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Guide to Exploring Mojave National Preserve
Mojave National Preserve offers the opportunity to explore everything from sand dunes to Joshua Trees. This California desert park isn't one you hear of often but it is truly amazing. The Mojave Desert is located between Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
The park offers solitude and serenity away from the city.
Mojave National Preserve
Mojave National Preserve is the 3rd largest National Park Service Site in the lower 48 states. It includes 1.6 million acres of protected lands.
Kelso Depot
The Kelso Depot feels like a beautiful mirage in the middle of the desert. You come around a corner and see a 1924 train station.
The Kelso Depot was built by the Union Pacific Railroad as they tried to get a hold on train travel in California.
I thought it was fun to learn that the Kelso Depot was named after two workers put their names and a co-worker's name in a hat and drew out the name Kelso.
Over time the Kelso Depot grew and evolved as it became busier with train travel. Today you can check out the visitor center, see a jail cell, and more.
Guided Ranger Programs
The park offers a few different guided ranger programs. The programs are held starting in September. Most guided programs are on Friday, Saturday, and Sundays. It is worth checking the events page on the National Park Service website for current programs.
They also offer full moon hikes and other special events during the year.
Camping
Mojave National Preserve has two developed campgrounds - the Mid Hills Campground and Hole-in-the-Wall Campground. These campgrounds have pit toilets, potable water, fire rings, and picnic tables. There are no utility hook-ups or showers available at the campground. Hole-In-The-Wall Campground does have a dump station.
One cool thing about the park is you can also offer roadside camping in certain areas. Camping on roadsides is not allowed along paved roads, in day-use areas, on private property, or within ¼ mile of any water source or cultural site. Roadside camping is allowed in previously used or disturbed sites outside of the day use areas.
For a fun adventure check out Escape Campervans. These campervans have built in beds, kitchen area with refrigerators, and more. You can have them fully set up with kitchen supplies, bedding, and other fun extras. They are painted with epic designs you can't miss!
We saw a ton of hawks while we were in the park including what we think was a pair of Golden Eagles. The hawks were nice enough to pose for some epic photos. We used a 100-500 Canon Telephoto Lens so we did not have to get really close to them.
Camera Gear we use
We are big fans of using great camera gear to get amazing photos while traveling.
Canon R5 - We recently upgraded to the R5 after using a Mark 5 for years. We are loving the camera shutter speed and quality of images.
Camera Rain Cover - A rain cover will help protect your camera during rain showers but also when photographing waterfalls.
Camera Cleaning Kit - Cameras can get dirty, beat up, and dusty while in the parks. We like having a cleaning kit with us so we can do on the spot touch ups.
Extra Camera Batteries - We suggest always having one or two extra camera batteries with you. There is nothing worse than going to take a shot and the battery dies.
Sunscreen - I buy environmentally friendly sunscreen whenever possible because you inevitably pull it out at the beach.
Bring your water bottle and plenty of water with you. Plastic water bottles are not sold in the park.
Sunglasses - I always bring sunglasses with me. I personally love Goodr sunglasses because they are lightweight, durable, and have awesome National Park Designs from several National Parks like Joshua Tree, Yellowstone, Hawaii Volcanoes, Acadia, Denali, and more!
Binoculars/Spotting Scope - These will help spot birds and wildlife and make them easier to identify. We tend to see waterfowl in the distance, and they are always just a bit too far to identify them without binoculars.
Take the road less traveled
Get away from the main road and take a dirt road adventure. Please make sure you are prepared with water and food. We took this dirt road to Castle Mountains National Monument and it was amazing.
The entire time we were on it we didn't see a single other car or person.
Many dirt roads in the Preserve require high clearance of 8" or more and 4-wheel drive. Road conditions can change quickly.
Check with a Park Ranger for vehicle requirements and conditions on the specific roads you plan to travel before you leave the pavement.
Cinder Cone
As you drive along Kelbaker Road or Interstate 15 you can see mounds of red and black rock rising from the desert. There are 32 conical mounds of volcanic rock in Mojave. These small volcanoes are known as cinder cones that erupted into existence 7.6 million years ago.
In 1973 this area was designated Cinder Cone National Natural Landmark.
Lava Tubes
A lava tube in the park is accessible via a 5-mile drive on the unpaved Aiken Mine Road from Kelbaker Road. Visitors can carefully climb through a collapsed hole in the lava tube's roof and view the lava tube from the inside.
A high clearance vehicle is recommended. It is also recommended that you check with the visitor center to get current road conditions. The lava tube is not regularly maintained by the park service. Visitors enter at their own risk.
Things you need to know when planning a trip to Mojave National Preserve
Gas - There is no fuel inside the Preserve. Make sure you have gas before entering the park.
Be careful on the road - We heard that the road through the park can be used at times as a high-speed freeway as people head towards Las Vegas and Nevada. We saw a few people speeding but not as fast as we had heard people go.
Please be careful on the road and pay attention to what is happening.
GPS - Please do not trust that your GPS is going to track and be able to tell you where you are while in Mojave. We could barely bring up a map on our phones and all we could see was that we were still in the park in a few places.
$80.00 - For the America the Beautiful/National Park Pass. The pass covers entrance fees to all US National Park Sites and over 2,000 Federal Recreation Fee Sites for an entire year and covers everyone in the car for per-vehicle sites and up to 4 adults for per-person sites.
Buy your pass at this link, and REI will donate 10% of pass proceeds to the National Forest Foundation, National Park Foundation, and the U.S. Endowment for Forestry & Communities.
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