Mortero Palms to Goat Canyon Trestle • Hike • California • All Triplogs • HikeArizona.COM

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Using PaleoRob, Grasshopper, Chumley and other routes, I came up with a couple starting points for this hike. We wanted to start the hike as close to the tracks as we could. Luckily we where able to drive (4x4) all the way to the railroad tracks. It saved at least 3 miles on this hike.
Over all it was a great hike with good weather.
Pictures are guesstimates of GPS locations

Behind the scenes video of the exposure shots in the tunnel.
[ youtube video ]

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Railroad Right-of-Way

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Goat Canyon

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Mar 13 2017

Jim

Guides 73
Routes 176
Photos 10,174
Triplogs 2,324

46 male

Joined Sep 08 2006

Carrizo Canyon to Train Trestles Trail

San Diego, CA

Hiking		Mar 13 2017
		Jim • Triplogs 2,324

Hiking	5.75 Miles	2,400 AEG

Hiking	5.75 Miles	5 Hrs 30 Mns		1.21 mph
	2,400 ft AEG	45 Mns Break	10 LBS Pack

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A highlight of the trip. Missed the palms going out, hit them coming back. Spotted 1, but really 2 Big Horn Ewes on a ridge above upper Goat Canyon and found this to be more of an adventure than expected. The Palm grove was nowhere near the highlight of this one. Worth a repeat, too.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Railroad Right-of-Way Railroad Tunnel

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May 28 2016

skatchkins

Guides 2
Routes 24
Photos 3,436
Triplogs 230

47 male

Joined Dec 22 2007
Mesa, AZ

Goat Canyon Railroad, CA

Hiking		May 28 2016
		skatchkins • Triplogs 230

Hiking	10.00 Miles

Hiking	10.00 Miles

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spacetimeart

It was the last gas-n-service stop in the middle of nowhere. Our load was still putting the pressure on the truck's back springs and the tarp cover was mostly still there. 4 hours worth of freeway winds had paid a heavy toll on what was left of the tattered corners and edges and a trained eye could make out bits and pieces of our precious cargo but still not make sense of the whole. Giddy with excitement and speculations after hitting our last exit, we hushed quickly as an badged-overalled elderly man came forth from the station's garage and offered to fill up the Ford. I honestly couldn't tell at this point in his life if his hard limp followed him or if he painfully followed its path and rule, but he had a kindness in his eyes that insisted our gift of compliance. Before we could birth our yes, he removed an old faded red handkerchief from his back pocket, and using it as a barrier for his black grease stained fingers, opened the truck's gas cap. Something kept us from resuming our talks of the possible adventures to come and we patiently waited in an odd reverence for the service currently being gifted to us in the hot afternoon sun.

Just before the seemingly endless time passed complete, as we waited for that pump shut-off to click, the old man began to speak. His voice was soft and he never raised his eyes to meet ours, only gazed out as if something unseen to us was slowly forming out to his right. He softly put his free left hand on the tarp, almost in a caress, and spoke as if in a daze, "After it all starts moving at you faster, right at the beginning of the big downhill, you'll arrive with all your feelings on the strong desire to back-off and to see what plays out on its own. That's the time, that's the very moment you lay into with all she's got. Push through against all your senses and everything thrown at you from there on out." He looked down at his twisted leg right as the Ford's tank finally had its fill and the pump clicked, shotgunning in that silence, loud enough to hush an audience of thousands. With his gaze still downward, he went on again, "Push through that and you're home free. You won't make the mistake I did." He closed the tank's latch with his hankered hand finally looking up and straight at me into my wide headlight eyes. Without looking back to the truck, he patted the tarp shielding our hidden homemade rail cart and gave the last of his own fill, "She'll hold. You'll fly," and turned away. I may have caught the beginning of a dampness forming in his faded eyes during that last moment held by his reminiscing and our reverent silence, but before I could be sure, he had begun his long belabored walk back into the dark of his garage.

---------------------------------

We got as close as we could to our drop off point. It was a far cry from where I had wanted to put in, but the loud threats of the private road's owner kept us from making it any further. We knew we'd have some trials and we brought as many tools as we thought we would need and could store. After some dry runs, spring adjustments, an impromptu body lift, and some other finagling, we were as close as we could get with what we had. It was time.

The design came from Steve and I's mind and the parts came from whatever we could find. Wheels were from a weight bench, most of the hardware came from my magic bucket of bolts, pedals and springs were invented from scooters and trampoline springs. It was what we wanted it to be. We had only given her one test which resulted in us setting of a flashing traffic crossing somewhere in town and a broken part that helped us figure out a design flaw and then re-engineer.

Worst case scenario was that we pack on ourselves what we could and hike until we felt like stopping. In fact that was the original plan for this trip and then like all Michael ideas, it snowballed past mountain bikes, full moon schedules, then picked up ridiculous speed with the suggestion of doing the trip wearing post apocalyptic outfits (what you don't have one yet?), and finally ended up somewhere long past the idea of making a simple rail cart.

But here we were with all those ideas crudely tied together like the straps holding our mutilated school chairs and gear to our wooden shelving platform. We began our journey slow. 10mph feels like 45 that low to the ground with nothing to hold on to, much less a steering wheel. Where we were forced to put in at kept us quite near the moisture of the creek and ultimately that was what turned our wheels around. She ran great and would have take off if we had had the pedal deep in all 3.5 horses. We busted though the unforeseen brush along the rails pretty well and as a 1000lb cart on weight wheels should but one large creosote bush wouldn't have us pass. We had decelerated to check on things and hit her at too low a speed.

It was already getting late and Steve and I decided even though she was totally fine after her derailment, we didn't want to risk anything further down the line on this trip. We already had ideas for bettering her for the return and were ecstatic that she ran so well just on the firs real world test. We flipped the cart around and drove back to the truck, loaded what we wanted on to our backs like we knew could happen, and restarted our journey down the abandoned line. As we had hunched, as soon as the tracks strayed from the wash, the bushes went away and the rails were clear. There would be some sand fill and rock to contend with further in but we had packed a hoe and shovel for that. Next time, we'll fly.

-------------------------------

Other notes:
Camped near the first set of cars, out of sight from all the nudist colony swingers.
**Disclaimer: After the big bush, it got very wienery.
Hiked to the second set of cars. Oh come on, how can riding a bike naked in the desert with 7 other alikes be fun or safe?
Brother-in-law rode his bike down to the trestle. The post apocalptics stayed back and for the rest of the trip never stopped asking him about his new friends.
A group of 8 18 dudes, upon hiking back from the trestle, took refuge from the heat in the train car it looked like Noel and I were living in. They sat at the opposite end of the passenger car and wouldn't look at us at all. At one point I strode through them and they parted like I was a train tunnel full of naked dudes. I kept wanting to break the awkward silence by shouting, Get out of our home, or Now we fight, or even just walk up and ask What time does the train depart.
The whole thing was awesome. From the hours spent garage engineering, to the in the field figuring and fixes, and hot hiking, it was just a great time.
The plan was supposed to happen the week before for the full moon, but when we loaded up and showed up to pick up Steve, he was sick as a dog and no matter how much he insisted we go, we couldn't leave him behind.
Oh you want to know what the pumpkin we were wearing. I think I had the idea when I read on the HAZ forum that hiking in pajamas was illegal or something. But no, it was really because I needed a creative project to obsess over while Noel is getting her masters degree, and collecting junk from friends and then trying to make something out of it is crazy fun. Also, we like exploring abandoned areas and photography in and around them so it made sense to take that a step further and add the modeling aspect into the equation. Plus I've got a good angry face.

Oh and you'll want this snippet of the video we took: https://youtu.be/Y- ... xaNM
I really wish we had just opened her up for all she was worth but you know, first time and all and no one wanted to think about carrying it back to camp if the worst happened.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] HAZ Rides

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May he guide you through the wilderness : protect you through the storm;
May he bring you home rejoicing : at the wonders he has shown you;
Armchair Crisis Design

1 archive

Mar 08 2014

Guides 1
Routes 136
Photos 22,415
Triplogs 1,041

77 male

Joined Feb 28 2003
Tucson, AZ

San Diego, CA

Hiking		Mar 08 2014
		rwstorm • Triplogs 1,041

Hiking	1.50 Miles	755 AEG

Hiking	1.50 Miles
	755 ft AEG

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azbackpackr

After documenting the drive in from Highway S2, Elizabeth and I set out on the hike to the palms. We both had the goal to go past the grove and at least to a point where we could get a glimpse of the famous Goat Canyon railroad trestle. Hike starts out easy in the wash, but once past the springbox the going gets tougher. Up to the palms isn't too bad, just slow going looking for cairns and picking a route. From the palms you pull out of the drainage to the right to probably bypass some slickrock pouroffs, with fairly serious scrambling/bouldering at times. We got to a spot above the palms and I told Elizabeth I wasn't having the best of days and voted to stop. She agreed to this and we headed back to the vehicle. We had at least another 800 feet to bushwhack up to the high point on the ridge before the drop down into Goat Canyon. I now realize that I am not going to ever do the hike this way. Too tiring and slow going. If I ever get to that trestle it will be by walking the tracks, or better yet riding the rails on a train! :lol:

For now, I am content looking at photos of it or watching online videos. Regardless, this is some very interesting and beautifully harsh country.

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Wind Turbine

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Mortero Palm Canyon

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

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Mar 08 2014

azbackpackr

Guides 27
Routes 518
Photos 5,861
Triplogs 883

72 female

Joined Jan 21 2006
Eagar AZ

San Diego, CA

Hiking		Mar 08 2014
		azbackpackr • Triplogs 883

Hiking	4.00 Miles	1,500 AEG

Hiking	4.00 Miles	2 Hrs 10 Mns	2.55 mph
	1,500 ft AEG	36 Mns Break

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This was my first hike in Anza-Borrego in many years. Enjoyed hiking to the palms but we discovered that the hike to the trestle isn't exactly hiking. It's bouldering, and although the distance to see a view of the trestle is said to be only a couple of miles, it would take many hours.

Also, I forgot to look for the actual "morteros" which are the grinding holes, or bedrock mortars, where the Indians ground up seeds for food. But, the palms were worth seeing. Very pretty!

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Inscriptions

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Mortero Palm Canyon

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There is a point of no return unremarked at the time in most lives. Graham Greene The Comedians
A clean house is a sign of a misspent life.

Mar 08 2014

Guides 1
Routes 136
Photos 22,415
Triplogs 1,041

77 male

Joined Feb 28 2003
Tucson, AZ

Drive to Dos Cabezas and S2 via Jojobacnyn, CA

4x4 Trip		Mar 08 2014
		rwstorm • Triplogs 1,041

4x4 Trip

4x4 Trip

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azbackpackr

Following our hike to the Mortero Canyon Palms, Liz and I headed back to Highway S2 by way of Dos Cabezas and Mortero Canyon Road to the information kiosk at S2 (west of the border patrol checkpoint). On the way we did the short side trip to Dos Cabezas Spring. The San Diego and Arizona Railroad ran a pipeline from there to the water tank by the rail line back in the days of steam.

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Dos Cabezas Spring

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

Dos Cabezas Spring

Quart per minute

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Mar 08 2014

Guides 1
Routes 136
Photos 22,415
Triplogs 1,041

77 male

Joined Feb 28 2003
Tucson, AZ

Drive to Mortero Palms Trailhead, CA

4x4 Trip		Mar 08 2014
		rwstorm • Triplogs 1,041

4x4 Trip	6.80 Miles	1,192 AEG

4x4 Trip	6.80 Miles
	1,192 ft AEG

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azbackpackr

I went back over to this area to document the roads I drove two weeks previous. It was a little tricky doing it in the opposite direction and trying to remember certain turns, etc. But I pretty much made the right guesses. Between the photos and gps data, you should be able to get to the trailhead with ease. There are other ways there but this is the easiest.

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Feb 21 2014

Guides 1
Routes 136
Photos 22,415
Triplogs 1,041

77 male

Joined Feb 28 2003
Tucson, AZ

Indian Hill & Carrizo Palms Trail

San Diego, CA

Hiking		Feb 21 2014
		rwstorm • Triplogs 1,041

Hiking	1.40 Miles	285 AEG

Hiking	1.40 Miles
	285 ft AEG

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I had been dancing around this one long enough and decided to head in and start checking things out. I had camped the previous two nights at Borrego Springs and Agua Caliente and was now heading back toward Arizona. A hike to Goat Canyon Trestle has been on my mind for a long time, since I am huge fan of the "Impossible Railroad." But this trip was just to drive some of the roads and determine access to the trailhead, etc. The big draw for me is railroad stuff, not palms, but hey palms are nice too.

Anyway, since I was heading eastbound on S2 from Agua Caliente (where I did a nice hike earlier in the day), I headed for Dos Cabezas first via the Mortero turnoff at S2. Piece of cake. Then it was over the tracks and to the road leading to the Mortero Palms TH (also an easy drive).

There was one person camping near the trailhead and another vehicle parked there. I heard voices and soon the hikers were back at the trailhead and I talked with them about the hike to the palms. Turns out it was their first time there and they went up the drainage to the south, which is the wrong one. I knew that from reading the description in "Afoot & Afield." I let them know that for future reference. They headed off and I started my little hike, going west from the parking lot to access the main drainage. It was already going on 2 o'clock, so I figured I would just go to palms and back. I had no intention of going to saddle at the 3200 foot contour, just the palms. I have already decided I will not hike to the trestle alone because of the ruggedness of the terrain, but I wanted to get a feel for the area. My thoughts echo Chumley's: only 4 miles RT, but slower going than you might expect due to the bouldering and route finding. Also agree that you should leave the hiking poles behind for this one.

Though I read about not taking the route on the north side of the canyon or else you will miss the palms, I forgot that detail, and headed that way since I saw lots of footprints and cairns leading away from the spring box (for awhile). This was after I tried to go the proper way briefly but lost signs of a route. Again, slow going in here. Anyway I had fun on the little bit I did. Just have to go back again and also GPS the drive in as well. Who knows, maybe I'll get wild and go all the way to the trestle! I really want to do it this way because of it being 4 mile RT versus a 10+ effort walking the tracks (not to mention it not being legal, though many do it). I don't like long hikes anymore.

After the hike my next quest was to drive out a different way than my way in from Dos Cabezas. Again Jerry Schad's book was most helpful with the only exception that he said the road turnoff at S2 was EC119, whereas it is signed as EC109. No biggie. There have been a few changes in the wind farm area, but in general things are the same as before. Because this was my first time there, it was somewhat confusing when I came to junctions, but I ended up getting out just fine. Just after you go over the tracks at the paved crossing you immediately hang a right and drop down into a big wash (this is on the drive out). You see the road continuing up a steep pullout along the tracks on the other side, but that is not where you want to go (you'd likely get stuck anyway). Just stay on the road in the bottom of the wash that leads away from the tracks and you will be in business.

Though I looked, I failed to spot any Subaru parts or debris.

Once I got back to the main S2 highway it was off to grab a cold beer at the Lazy Lizard Saloon in Ocotillo. After a nice visit with the locals there, it was on to Yuma to motel it before heading back home Saturday morning.

Fauna

Fauna [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Mearn's rock lizard

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Aircraft HAZ Food Wind Turbine

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Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Mortero Palm Canyon

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Apr 07 2013

chumley

Guides 94
Routes 840
Photos 22,055
Triplogs 1,993

52 male

Joined Sep 18 2002
Tempe, AZ

Indian Hill to Goat Canyon Trestle, CA

Hiking		Apr 07 2013
		chumley • Triplogs 1,993

Hiking	11.60 Miles	1,271 AEG

Hiking	11.60 Miles	3 Hrs 30 Mns		3.31 mph
	1,271 ft AEG		15 LBS Pack

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Indian Hill

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After failing at my attempt to traverse the mountain from Mortero Palms directly into Goat Canyon, I decided to try Plan B. While the scrambling route over the hill proved to be much slower than I had planned, I knew that I'd be able to cruise at 3+ mph on the railroad grade. Unfortunately, I was unaware that the old road around Indian Hill was long closed, and added nearly 2 miles to my planned route. So instead of a 7 mile round trip, I was no looking at 11 miles. And it was already 3pm. Oh well, I loaded up on water and snacks, parked next to an immigrant watering station (I figure there's no reason to break into my truck if there's plenty of water and a bag of beef jerky right next to it!), and took off at a good pace for the railroad.

This area is truly beautiful. The ocotillo forest is fully abloom and the afternoon sun was tolerable. The rugged, rounded rocks are very picturesque. Unfortunately, the old road is like walking on the beach. Slow and very difficult. After the first mile though, the ground firmed and my pace quickened. The old road connects to the railroad just as it comes out of a tunnel to the north. Far down in the canyon below you can spot Carrizo Palms.

There is a well used path on the outside of the tracks making hiking quite easy. The railroad grade increases in elevation, though I never realized it until looking back down to where I had come from. It appears that many visitors using this route ride mountain bikes, an option which I might recommend for anybody who wants to shave some time off their trip. Hiking on train tracks isn't that exciting after all, unless you are into the history of it all. All kinds of remnants of the building of the track remain, and it seems every piece of steel has a date on it. It helps you see when things were originally built, and when they might have been rebuilt or repaired.

Shortly after the first tunnel, you round a corner opening up views of Carrizo Canyon, and the Goat Canyon Trestle in the distance. From here, the tracks cross numerous smaller trestles and three more tunnels while winding it's way along the mountainside before reaching Goat Canyon. There's a fifth tunnel just beyond the trestle as well. All the tunnels are short enough to hike without the need for light, though one of them was a little bit dark in the middle.

The construction of both the trestles and the tunnels are truly amazing to see. I kept considering the economics involved in building this "Impossible Railroad" and wondering how it ever made sense financially. Alas, I am not a railroader!

Along some of the lower trestles, there are two derailed boxcars laying several hundred feet downhill of the track. I can only imagine how they came to get derailed; but more intriguing is how they managed to stop before reaching the bottom of this very steep canyon slope!

Upon finally reaching the Goat Canyon Trestle, (5.2 miles in 1:35) I realized I would have plenty of light for a non-hurried return trip. I crossed the trestle along the tracks, and took a break to snack on the other side. While returning, I noticed that there was a catwalk across the trestle down below the tracks! I found my way down under the start and immediately realized that my pack would have to be left behind. There were some ducks and tight squeezes ahead of me.

I had to climb two ladders that were sketchy, but seemed ok. Another ladder that lead all the way to the bottom of the trestle was an absolute no-go :scared:

. The main structure of the trestle appeared to be in good shape, but the catwalk was rickety and in some disrepair. Occasionally there were pieces of an old hand rail, but often there was not. The footboards were loose, split and splintered. It made for the highlight of the trip! Check out the video here:

http://youtu.be/UojhxkfMJw4

In retrospect, I wish I had taken a few minutes to hike up Goat Canyon to get a view from above, but I'll save that for when I make this trip via the Goat Canyon route over the mountain from Mortero Palms.

I headed back along the tracks the way I came. The lighting was nicer, but the return was pretty boring otherwise. On the drive out I passed two other hikers who had been out all day, and offered them a lift back to their car at the Dos Cabezas tower. Apparently they were not used to driving in the back of a pickup on dirt roads ... and I was even on my best behavior!

I enjoyed a few minutes amongst the wind turbines as the sun set over the desert. They are amazingly large, and make the coolest noise as the wind whips through them. (20 sec. video here: http://youtu.be/znci8GcUylQ)

I had an unsatisfying dinner in Yuma and managed to be home by 11pm. Plans to return here are already in the works!

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Ocotillo

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Cactuscat Pose

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Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Dos Cabezas Mine Goat Canyon

_____________________

I'm not sure what my spirit animal is, but I'm confident it has rabies.

Apr 07 2013

chumley

Guides 94
Routes 840
Photos 22,055
Triplogs 1,993

52 male

Joined Sep 18 2002
Tempe, AZ

Mortero Palms, CA

Hiking		Apr 07 2013
		chumley • Triplogs 1,993

Hiking	1.38 Miles	436 AEG

Hiking	1.38 Miles	1 Hour 6 Mns	1.25 mph
	436 ft AEG

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On my way back from San Diego, I planned to spend a few hours having fun in the Anza Borrego and had my eye set on the Goat Canyon rail trestle. Using Randall's triplog from Feb 12, and the GPS track info added by Hank, I decided that a 6-7 mile out-n-back from Mortero Palms would be a worthy day for me.

After finding the trailhead (there's a huge new windfarm in the Imperial Valley that has made a mess of new roads), I made a quick visit to the perennial Dos Cabezas Spring (not much more than a trickle) before heading one canyon over.

I set off looking for the route up to Goat Canyon. It was a sandy wash and there were a few cairns, but otherwise it was pretty much an explorative journey. As the trail began to ascend, I found myself doing a lot more scrambling than I had expected. I had my hiking poles out, prodding and poking the ground in front of me, since it is now into snake season. That made things more treacherous too since I think this would be much easier without the poles.

It was in the mid 80s and I was sweating pretty good under the desert sun as I climbed the boulder-filled canyon. I began to doubt my ability to get to the pass, and then down the other side to the railroad before having to do it all again in reverse.

That's when I spotted Mortero Palms! What a neat oasis in the desert. I always wonder how these palms come to grow in such random spots. There's one in Aravaipa that always throws me for a loop. Palms are not native to the desert after all...

Anyway, the palms offer a densely shaded and borderline creepy area with tons of frond debris strewn about making the footing surprisingly slippery. After some photos, I pushed on up canyon, which required a couple of interesting route selections, backtracking, and short climbs.

When I got above the palms, I re-evaluated my situation and decided that I was not prepared to make the trip over to the railway. The route-finding was proving more difficult than I had hoped, and I had begun too late in the day. So I turned around and headed back down to the truck before embarking on Plan B...

What I can say for sure is this area is awesomely rugged and stunningly beautiful. I have every intention of returning here on a trip specifically for the mission, rather than a pit stop on the way home from the coast. The route over the mountain to Goat Canyon is still on my list!

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Informational/Interpretive Sign

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Dos Cabezas Spring Mortero Palm Canyon

	Dos Cabezas Spring	Quart per minute	Quart per minute
	A light flow out of the spring pipe.

Mortero Palm Canyon

Dry

_____________________

I'm not sure what my spirit animal is, but I'm confident it has rabies.

Feb 04 2012

Randal_Schulhauser

Guides 71
Routes 98
Photos 9,967
Triplogs 1,009

65 male

Joined May 14 2003
Ahwatukee, AZ

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

San Diego, CA

Hiking		Feb 04 2012
		Randal_Schulhauser • Triplogs 1,009

Hiking	10.62 Miles	1,735 AEG

Hiking	10.62 Miles	9 Hrs	1.18 mph
	1,735 ft AEG

no routes

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	cnorgaard	KennethS
	PaleoRob

Anza Borrego Feb2012 - Goat Canyon Trestle & Indian Hill

Prelude - From my "boyhood affinity with trains", I've always had an awareness of the Goat Canyon Trestle (just Google "GOAT CANYON TRESTLE" and see what you get). With a recent HAZ Forum thread targeting the nearby Carrizo Gorge (check out => [ Error T Topic ] ), and a non-HAZ posted hike description (check out => https://www.stowell.org/trestle2000/traveloguemain.htm ), my interest was piqued to go explore the "Impossible Railway" in the Anza Borrego. The Goat Canyon trestle was built in 1932 after an earthquake collapsed one of the tunnels of the Carrizo Gorge section of the San Diego and Arizona Railway. At 200 feet tall and 750 feet long, it remains to this day the longest, tallest curved wooden trestle ever built in the United States.

Friday Feb 3rd - "Establishing Base Camp at Mortero Palms Trail Head" - With our weekend itinerary set (check out => [ Carrizo Gorge California Feb 4-5 ] ), Clark Norgaard and I checked out from work noon-ish. I make the side trek to Casa Grande to pick up Rob Gay while Clark makes a side trek to Ahwatukee to pick up Ken Schopen. We rendezvous at the Gila Bend McDonald's two-ish and our race red F-150 and red Ford Expedition form a convoy heading west along the I-8. We exit the I-8 at the Imperial Highway turn-off in Ocotillo CA (check out => PHOTO #26 link goes here...). About 8 miles along the Imperial Highway, just past the Border Patrol check point; you will find a kiosk and sign indicating "Mortero Wash" (check out => PHOTO #25 link goes here...). It's a 4WD from here to the trail head. About 4 miles from the Imperial Highway you reach the railway tracks and water tower at the Dos Cabezas ghost town. We stop to strategically place some rocks to improvise a rail crossing grade. Onto the Mortero Palms trail head where we set up camp in the glow of our headlights. An almost-full moon rises to supplement our field lighting. I'm on dinner duty - camp dinner menu includes choice beverages, BBQ steaks, corn-on-the-cob, gherkin pickles, grilled mushrooms and onions. We have a cozy camp fire and complete solitude - no evidence of any other campers in our corner of the Anza Borrego tonight. Somebody points out that the time is after midnight...

Saturday Feb 4th - "Mortero Palms to Goat Canyon Trestle with Return Via the Tracks" - At sun-up Clark prepares a camp breakfast of fresh perked coffee, bacon and scrambled eggs. We organize our packs and consult our maps (check out => PHOTO #24 link goes here...) one last time before tackling our convoluted trail. Any doubt we are at the wrong location is allayed when I find a trail marker labeled "MORTERO PALMS". Paying heed to our trail notes;

"One of the most critical parts of this hike is getting started up the correct canyon. There is a choice of two main washes each of which split into multiple possible routes. The correct wash is NORTH-WEST with an immediate turn to the WEST. It is tempting to take the South-West wash, which will also get you there, but adds about 0.75 miles to the trek."

We manage to find multiple cairns along our route giving us some assurance that we are on the right path. As we amble into the palm oasis, we are somewhat awestruck and reassured we're on the correct path. Again, paying heed to our trail notes;

"It is possible to exit the palm grove to the right or left. To the right is a water chute that can run strong in the spring months. It is climbable and the most direct route up."

We make this our chosen path. There are plenty of options, all very climbable... The path is fairly obvious and well cairned taking you to the crest. At the crest we once again pay heed to our trail notes;

"Probably the trickiest part of the hike is route finding along the relatively flat section between Mortero Canyon and Goat Canyon. Mortero Canyon peters out at the 1.5 mile mark and becomes a rolling desert meadow lined with cholla, barrel cactus, agave, ocotillo and catclaw. There are several possible routes to Goat Canyon, but the best one tends to the right and bypasses the beginning of Goat Canyon. Again, the best advice is to find the most well-worn trail and stick to it."

We listen to this "best advice" and stick to the well-cairned, obvious trail. Soon we are descending into Goat Canyon as the side walls begin to box up. There are multiple pour-offs with work-around on either side. As the trestle comes into view, our jaws drop - it is stunning! The 35 foot dry waterfall is also dropping our jaws - so we consult our trail notes once again;

"This first glimpse occurs at a particularly steep and tall drop-off, some 300 yards from the trestle. On first inspection, it appears you can't get there from here. However, you can make it by climbing to the left, then dropping into the scree-choked canyon below."

As we contour over to the left, an obvious path down the scree chute comes into view. A little bum surfing and we're at the trestle! There's a group of about 10 people at the Goat Canyon Trestle on this Saturday about lunch time. We find out that they are all from a San Diego area motorcycle club out on a day trip. They've hiked the 5 or 6 miles along the tracks starting from the I-8 near the town of Jacumba. One of their photographers obliges me and takes a group shot of us with my wide-angle lens camera. We cross the trestle and the tunnel to go check out the earthquake collapsed tunnel (the reason for building the trestle by-pass in the 1932). On our return crossing of the trestle we note that each one of the columns is from a single redwood tree. That's more than 175 feet for some of the column members! The return route north along the tracks starts at about mile marker 102 and ends near mile marker 109 at the Dos Cabezas water tower. The route is filled with eye-candy including train wrecks, smaller trestles, multiple tunnels, palm oases, and railroad artifacts.

Rob posted his SPOT Track on HAZ => GPS :: Mortero Palms to Goat Canyon Trestle
1,735 AEG and 10.62 miles later (check out => PHOTO #01 link goes here...), we bum a ride to our base camp from San Diego Aaron and his dog Tula. They were checking out the water tower at Dos Cabezas when we ambled by. We negotiate a ride in the bed of his F-150 in exchange for a couple of choice beverages back at the Mortero Palms TH. As the sun sets, temperatures plummet from 71degF to 40degF in about 30 minutes! That camp fire keeps our conditions perfect while Ken whips up a camp dinner of BBQ burgers with jalapenos. That night I get a weeks' worth of sleep - nothing like some fresh air and a little bit of exercise to promote some zzz's! SIDE NOTE: We had to perform emergency surgery on Ken to remove an embedded tick at his waist line - WTF? Not something we expected to come across on a desert trek - always associated ticks as long grass residents => https://www.tickinfo.com/

Sunday Feb 5th - "The REAL Indian Hill Rock Art Site" - Ken whips up a camp morning meal of breakfast burritos. It's soon time to break camp and head over to the rock art sites (armed with some tips courtesy of Hank Luke aka Grasshopper). We meet a couple from the Sierra Club at the REAL Indian Hill that point out the alcove and the cave and the fertility rite area. Lunch at the Lazy Lizard in Ocotillo and we're on the road home... Check out the rest of the story at => [ photoset ]

Denouement - It's almost unimaginable to think that this rail line was re-opened in 2004 and trains actually ran until 2007 (check out => [ youtube video ] and https://www.sdrm.org/history/sda/history.html and [ youtube video ] ). Also need to get a portable metal camp fire set-up for future back country adventures. Photos and Hike Description to follow...

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] California Fan Palm

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Railroad Right-of-Way Railroad Tunnel

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Goat Canyon Mortero Palm Canyon

Wildflowers Observation Isolated

_____________________

Mar 06 2008

Grasshopper

Guides 48
Routes 510
Photos 9,555
Triplogs 578

79 male

Joined Dec 28 2006
Scottsdale, AZ

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

San Diego, CA

Hiking		Mar 06 2008
		Grasshopper • Triplogs 578

Hiking	28.50 Miles

Hiking	28.50 Miles

no routes

no photosets

Linked

10 linked trail guides

Indian Hill & Carrizo Palms Trail

Ghost Mountain - Yaquitepec Ruins Site