01-12-13

Today we went back to the Ramsey Mine area to see if we could find the Crisocola wall that I was looking for on Wednesday. There were four jeeps in the group. We drove East on I-10

until we came to SR-60 where we exited

and continued East on 60

to the Ramsey Mine Road

where we headed south to the kiosk. We stopped there so everyone could air down before we got into the rough stuff.

From the kiosk we continued south on Ramsey Mine Road to an intersection where there is a concrete foundation. I was sure that the right turn would eventually lead us to the mine where the Crisocola wall was.
We followed this track

to the end and found that we were on the same trail that we had followed last Wednesday. 
Oops, wrong again.
We retraced our track back to the North and stopped on a flat to have lunch. When we stopped we saw three deer on the ridge ahead of us.

We all sat behind the jeeps to eat lunch out of the wind.

After lunch I decided that I was through looking for the Blue Wall and we would just ride around and enjoy the scenery.

We took a few dead end roads and eventually ended up on the main trail that goes around to the East side of the Twin Peaks.

After driving for a while the trail turned to the right and started up a wide wash. Shortly after we entered in the wash I realized that this was the trail to the mine that we were looking for. 
For some reason in my mind I thought that the Crisocola wall was on the West side of the Twin Peaks. As it turned out I was wrong again, it is on the East side.

We stopped at some tailings where there was a deep vertical shaft. We walked around there for a few minutes.

Then we got back in the wash and followed it for a couple of miles until we came to the track that went up the hill to our left. We climbed up the hill to the high valley where there are some diggings.

We continued through the little valley and went up another steep rocky hill

and around some tight turns to the Crisocola outcrop.

 
We hung out there for a short time while Jo Ann and Shirley collected some of the blue rocks.

From there we drove back down to the valley via the back way. What I call the easy route.

Eventually we got back down to the main wash

and followed it to the trail that goes back toward the Ramsey Mine Road.
Along the way we came to a small trail that I had noticed before but have never followed.
We turned off on this narrow rocky track,

across a wash and over a steep hill.
Going down the other side of the hill, we got a call on the “talk about” that Dave and Jo Ann were having a problem. As it turned out they had had a flat tire. It turned out that a rock had slashed the side wall on their brand new “Hankook” 10 ply off road tires.

  
I think I will stick with my BFG’s. 
It was quite a chore getting the tire changed as the lug nuts were so tight that it took two people to break them loose. Dennis even broke the end off of his star wrench.

The tires were so heavy that it took three of us to get the flat back on the tire rack.

After we got the tire changed we found a wash that quickly took us back to the main trail and we had no further trouble getting back to the kiosk where we aired up and headed for home.
We got back to Q in time to go to the Mountain Quail Cafe for their prime rib special. Bill and Shirley had dinner with us.

It was another fun day in the desert.