In Search of the Glory Hole Mine

The Ride.

We met at the intersection of Plomosa Road and Highway 95 at 9:30.
It was the usual suspects; Jo Ann, Dave, Sue, Denis, Lise, Frank, Patti and I.

With Denis in the lead we headed east on Plomosa Road toward the town of Bouse on Highway 72.

The clouds were very threatening and appear pregnant with rain.

When we got to Bouse we turned east on Hwy. 72 where we drove for several miles to McVay Road. Here we turned north on McVay Road and followed it to a Jojoba farm where we turned east. We stopped here to air down then continued east. We crossed over the canal and continued east as the road narrowed and eventually became a wash.

The Wrong Trail.

We followed the wash for a couple of miles and realized that we weren't on the trail that goes to the Glory Hole Mine. Eventually the trail climbs out of the wash and goes up a steep hill.

Patti and I were here several weeks ago with the Wednesday group but Frank and Lise had never been here so it was worth the climb to show them the view from the top.

It was so cold that even Sue was bundled up.

Trouble With Cholla's.

While we were there, Jo Ann tangled with a Cholla cactus.  Chollas are really nasty and easy to get stuck by.

One of the balls was seriously stuck to the back of her hand. It took quite a while to get the ball off her hand and pull all the thorns out.
We were so involved in pulling the thorns out of Jo Ann's hand that we didn't get any picture.

Finding the Right Trail.

Once we got Jo Ann squared away we headed back down the hill.

We followed the wash back to where we missed the turn off and turned south at a "Y". This turned out to be the correct trail to take us to the Glory Hole Mine.
This trail also entered a wash and we followed it for a while.

Lunch Behind the Rocks.

Around noon the sun was trying to warm things up but the wind was still very cold. Denis found a good spot for lunch on the lea side of a cliff where we stopped and sat in the sun for lunch. It was warmer than in the wind but it was still chilly.

  
The clouds closed in again and it got cold where we were sitting.

We packed up and continued along the wash enjoying the scenery.

The End of the Trail.

Eventually we came to a place where the trail had been completely washed away with a ten foot deep gab.

Picture by Denis.

We were on a very narrow part of the trail and had to back up for about a hundred yards before we could turn around.
I guess the Glory Hole Mine is now inaccessible by vehicle.

Finding the Way Out.

We turned around and started  looking for a way out. We found another trail going out of the canyon we were in and followed it.

As we traveled along we could see what looked like rain falling in the distance. It never rained on us.

We came out of the mountains on Vicksburg Pit Road where we stopped to air up.

From here we took Hwy. 60 to I-10 and home.

Even though we never got to The  Glory Hole Mine it was a fun ride.