Desatoya Mountains Area

Cant' sleep? Try counting sheep. There's a bunch here.

Buffalo Badlands

This is near Long Mountain.

The eerie ranch at Long Mountain. They didn't even take the bicycles.

This is the first I've heard from Hart since his book came out in the 80's. That book brought me to this range in the first place.

A ring with larger than average rocks on the way up to Carr Peak.

Rock ring out on the table near Carr Peak

A ring near point 7810

Highway 722 cuts thru the range and is where most of the action is. Big rigs can use a  pullout at mp CH 3.2 and another at mp CH 7.7 then another at mp CH 14.4 and it is over 6000 feet elevation and has some shade. Going east over Carroll Summit there are more big pullouts at mp LA 3. Only the first one mentioned here has a VZ signal. It comes from Fairview Peak. Middlegate has gas and maybe a tiny store. Anything not dated on this page comes from 2011 when I was last here. Posted 2020.

• For BIG DEN FALLS, drive to mile CH 6.3 on 722. Go north on a high clearance road for 3 and a half miles to a main fork. Then go right for a mile and a third to a camp area at the end of the road el 6650. It has some shade, a stream and no cattle. Mtn bikes could make it. Hike up the creek on a brushy trail for 20 minutes to the 40 foot fall in the narrows. It does get steep and rough. Take pruners. Updated 2020.
• For DESATOYA PEAK el 9973, there is a wild OHV trail from the south. Turn off 722 at mile LA 2.8 and follow the road up Campbell Creek and go over the divide into the Smith Creek watershed. Follow the rough road down to a key fork at N39 21453, W117 41124. Turn left here and follow the road along the creek to a fork at 21880, 43081. Then go right past 2 cattleguards then take the next right fork that goes up the ridge. Park at el 9100. Ignore horse trails by the road and aim for 22902, 44740 to find the easiest way over to the saddle on the crest at 9200. From the saddle, go left for .18 mile and take a trail to the right that goes toward the summit. Get on a trail that angles left at 22332, 45387 and go on up to the shoulder of the north summit. The BM and reg are on the south summit. A crash site is below the saddle between the summits at 22006, 45489. One gadget had a 1920 patent. 2 hours, 1000 gain.A better road to the key fork comes in from the east along Smith Creek. The ranch has to be bypassed to the south. The Edwards Creek road from the north had a quagmire that blocked me. There is a track going west from the divide that goes to the crest. A good spring is just south of the divide.
• DESATOYA PEAK WILLOW CREEK ROUTE - the north rim of the canyon offers a decent route. Take highway 722 to mp CH 6.3 and go north on a good road for 3 and a half miles to a main fork. Then go left for 1.2 miles to a camp area at the TH el 6650. No gates along the way. I could have drove a car in there that day but that depends on how much the road is plowed up by morons driving it wet. A brushy trail goes level to meet the creek. I put on shorts there and wore them all the way up. The first bump on the rim worth skirting is peak 7792. Use a trail on the left at N39 20386, W117 46918 el 7700 to get by it. Stay on the rim to 20901, 46600 el 8700 then go left on smooth ground around peak 8802. Next, crags are in the way. An obvious route goes left around those in a steep drainage, but I found a class 2 route thru the crags. I stayed left of center on class 1 then climbed class 2 rock at 20955, 46264 el 8950. That led me to a saddle then I could see a steep route up along the left of the last crag. I left cairns. After that there are a few patches of light brush around el 9300 but I stayed with shorts. At 21166, 45972 el 9600 I leveled off and took an easy angle down to a broad saddle el 9550 on the crest then up to the reg at 21913, 45547. That took 6 and a half hours with about 3700 gain. The rim is nearly pristine but the crest is covered with cow and horse shit. No burn areas. Willow Creek is a good looking canyon but choked with aspen. Cattle are fenced out of it. Rock Creek is another route hikers use and likely my route in the 90s but I can't remember. It has a good high clearance road and a good camp area. Posted 2020.
• SKULL CANYON MOUNTAIN BIKE TRAIL - dirt bikers use this trail but it's easy for mtn bikes with a shuttle. Take highway 722 to mp LA 1.2 and start riding south on a crude road el 7100. Follow it a mile and a half to a gate just before a saddle el 7500. Go thru then down into the canyon. The road shrinks to a trail and meets highway 722 at mp CH 13.1 el 6400 where you have a second car, don't you? No? Then it's 5 miles up over Carroll Summit back to the start. The loop is about 5 miles of hard packed dirt and 5 miles of pavement. Long pants are needed in the canyon. Posted 2020.
• COLD SPRINGS PONY EXPRESS STATION - take US 50 to mp CH 80.3 where a bad road heads east. Use a mtn bike, or better yet, ride a pony. Soon there is a fork in the road, stay right and it's a mile or so to the station. It's not fenced off like the ruins near the highway. The road goes on to Pony Canyon then an OHV trail runs south to Rock Creek. No cattle. Posted 2020.
• POTTER BENCHMARK el 8774- 4wds can make it up Bassie Canyon for a bit over a mile to a short thicket at N39 26408, W117 41302 el 6500. OHVs can get thru then it's easy on to el 8600 within a half mile of the peak. It wouldn't be a bad hike to walk the road from the thicket to the peak then pick a direct route back down. The quagmire at the mouth of Edwards Creek was dry but a flood could divert the creek into it. Porter Canyon is not an approach for this peak because it's private. Posted June, 2020.
• CEDAR CREEK - 4wds can get to the mouth then it's an easy OHV trail up canyon to el 7400 then a foot trail goes on 100 yards to cabin ruins with a memorial to Dan O Homer. Just before that is a fork in the OHV trail that goes on up to the saddle el 8050 at the head of the canyon but it's way too steep for my cycle. I made a loop up the west rim of the canyon and on to peak 8956 then down the east rim. But the best hike is to walk the OHV trail to the peak then back down the west rim to peak 7119 then back down to the OHV trail. The west rim has the best forest and one rock ring. Horse trails run the whole way but the horses have been taken out. If more come in then it will be a stinky hike. No brush. Posted 2020.
• CARR PEAK el 8536 is what I call the one dominating the north end of the Desatoya Mtns. The NE ridge is an easy route. Take US 50 to mp CH 105.5 and turn on easy 4wd. Stay on the main road to a fork at N39 29960, W117 31202 el 6255. Go right for half a mile to a 4-way. Go right for a few feet to a fork. Go left for a mile and a half and park at a canyon el 6700 where cattle and horses have decimated the stream. OHVs can go on another third mile to el 6800. There are no gates the whole way. There are obvious routes up the south side of the canyon to a plateau el 7550. I went up canyon just past a cliff then then took an easy angle up to the left. I found an Indian rock ring on the plateau reading 29947, 34532 el 7550. It has the largest rocks of any I've seen. I wandered north at that level to a small ring at 30287, 34650. Then I started angling up to the NE ridge and hit a trail at 30295, 35019 el 8100. It goes right of center to 30288, 35135 el 8200 then on to a saddle el 8300 north of the peak. I went thru then over to the final north ridge of the peak. It's bald up to a tower foundation on the summit at 30144, 35307. I could see a mile long table to the NW. To get at it, I fumbled around in mahogany and figured out I should have gone straight down from the summit to a drainage crossing at 30256, 35690 el 7900. Then I just went up a little to get on the table and walked to point 7810 at the far end. I came across a good ring at 30745, 36343 el 7750 then another at the point reading 30946, 36504 el 7800. I then retraced back to the drainage and used cow trails on the right side to go up canyon. A main trail is at 30259, 35538 el 8100. I walked up that for .15 mile then moved to the left side of the drainage then on up to the north saddle el 8300 then retraced back down. I lost track of  time in all that wandering, but it took 2 hours to get back from point 7810. I hauled long pants but never used them. The forest here is the best in the range but horses and cattle have made a mess. The peakbagger horses were taken out long ago. This is not as pristine as I had hoped but still a good hike. There are bound to be dozens more rings in this area. Posted 2020.
• PEAK 8500 is the highest south of Carroll Summit. I made a loop using dirt bike trails. Take highway 722 to mp LA 1.2 and turn on easy 4wd. Follow it a mile and a half to a gate just before a saddle el 7500. I stepped over the gate and climbed a smooth ridge at N39 14905, W117 43210. I went up and to the right into a saddle el 7950 on the main ridge. Then I stayed right of center to get around a bump and into the next saddle el 7950. The next bump has a trail straight up it, I went part way up then around the right side to the saddle el 8150 behind it. Next comes the reg at 13783, 43228. Next, I walked SW to get on the rim of Skull Canyon and followed a trail down that then it faded out just before peak 7738. I went left and down around that peak to a saddle el 7450 behind it, just above a mine. I walked over to 13410, 44634 el 7300 to get in the correct drainage. I went down that nearly a tenth mile then got up on the left bank and walked the edge of a burn. Soon I was in the trees again and stayed high for half a mile along that drainage then I came to a main cow trail which soon led to a dirt bike trail in Skull Canyon el 6850. I walked that back to the start. That took 4 hours with 1000 gain to the peak then 700 on the trail at the end. Shorts work the whole way. There is heavy cattle impact. Posted 2020.
• LONG MOUNTAIN el 8280 is what I call the southernmost 8000 footer in the Desatoya Mtns. It's easy to drive to the SE side. Take highway 722 to mp LA 6.4 and turn at a sign for Ione. Go 3.4 miles on a good road to a fork then go right for .9 mile on high clearance to an abandoned ranch el 6850. A road goes along the left side of the house then pick a route up. The summit is at N39 12773, W117 43188. 2 hours, nearly 1500 gain. Nice forest, no brush. I could have extended the hike to peak 8500 then walked back on the low ground. The road in Long Canyon to the south is now OHVs only. Posted 2020.
• BALD MOUNTAIN el 8971- I did a one way hike from near Carroll Summit then over the peak and down the west ridge. A fifth mile east of the summit there is an easy 4wd road that goes north from the highway and up to a flat with a gate at el 7950. I walked from there up to the left to el 8200, but there might be a cow trail lower. I stayed near that level to get to the last saddle el 8200. I could see everything. I took an easy angle out of the saddle on a faint trail to N39 16893, W117 45129 el 8350 where it makes a switch to the right. It soon switches back left then fades on the SE ridge of the peak. I zigzagged up to the reg at 16857, 45395. Then I went down the ridge at 16885, 45557 el 8700. It enters a burn area at el 7600 and makes a left turn then goes on down past peak 7050 to a road on the ridge at el 6700. That road then goes down to mp CH 7.3 on the highway where I had my RV parked. It would save an hour to spot a 4wd nearly 3 miles up that road at a fork el 5977. It's a good road except for 200 feet of sand at the start. That took me 5 hours with 1000 gain. Just doing the peak and returning the same way might take 3 hours. Next time I will descend a different way to avoid the burn. I will drop south off of peak 8362 then bend toward peak 7374 and follow a ridge down with a good forest and try to stay between burns. But by the time I get around to it there may nothing left standing. Posted 2020.
• BUFFALO BADLANDS - north forks of Buffalo Canyon have some colorful eroded formations. Various easy loops can be done. I did a long one over peak 7662. Take highway 722 to mp CH 7.7 and turn on a rarely graded road. Go 5.2 miles then go left on easy 4wd. Stay straight for a mile to a rim el 6020. It's mtn bikeable. Then it's a matter of walking north on the low ground into the badlands. I found my way into a canyon at N39 12978, W117 47442 el 6080. I went .16 air mile up that then took a ridge on my right up to the rim el 6400. I could have dropped down the other side of the ridge for an easy 2 hour hike, but I walked up the ridge until it got steep at el 6600. Then I moved right and followed along the drainage to my right but didn't drop to the creekbed until 13364, 46524 el 6700. Then I just followed the easy drainage up to peak 7662 at 12984, 45284. No sign of humanity there except for what I left, but a tenth mile south on the main ridge is a 1915 marker. Then I just headed SW down easy slopes to 12705, 46059 el 6850 where I could see a road below. When I got to the road I dropped down a drainage on the left of it and walked it back to the start. That took 5 hours with maybe 1000 noticeable gain, not steep at all. Good forest, shorts work the whole way. The main arm of Buffalo Canyon has some water and a cow trail, but I didn't go far up it. There is light brush at a minimum in there and cabin ruins. Posted 2020.
• BUFFALO MOUNTAIN el 7603 was an Indian hotspot. Take highway 722 to mp CH 7.7 and turn on a rarely graded road. Go 11 miles to a cattleguard at Buffalo Summit el 6800. Walk along the fence on a bad road to the end and up to the first rock ring I saw at N39 08727, W117 47749 on peak 7225. I didn't walk east from there to check. There are some more up the ridge and one at 08688, 48040 has trees in it. The best I saw is at 08763, 48220 el 7350 then the reg is at 08758, 48406. I circled back on the south ridge and found one at 08355, 47697 and a good one on peak 7184 at 08314, 47443. The best forest is on that peak. I spent 2 and a half hours with 800 noticeable gain, no brush. Posted 2020.
• GRAYBACK el 7502 is the high point of the Eastgate Range according to the reg placed by M&L in 1998. Maybe they had a 15 minute map showing such a range. Take highway 361 to mp CH 4.8 and turn on a good road. Stay on the main road for 6 miles to a main fork. Stay left to Mud Spring where the road turns into easy 4wd. Go on over a low saddle then go right at the next fork into a smooth wash. Drive the wash then at 1.2 miles before the peak the road goes up on the right bank with room to park el 6450. Routes to the summit are ovbvious. The reg is at N39 11845, W117 53335. 90 minutes, 1050 gain, shorts work. BROKEN HILLS HIGH POINT el 6632 can be done on the drive out. At the main fork, go south for .8 mile then go right on 4wd. At the next fork el 6300, start walking the left fork to get to the north base of the peak. The reg is at 08904, 55573. There is 300 feet of steep gain. Mtn bikes work as far as the spring. Posted 2020.
• A smooth ATV track gets close to the VALLEY VIEW BM. Turn off 722 into White Rock Canyon at mile LA 3.1. Go up and take the first right fork in a canyon and go to the end at 8000. Hike up the steep slope to the BM at N39 17003, W117 38952 el 8600.
• NEW PASS PEAK el 9002 has a 4wd road to the top. Turn off US 50 at mp LA 2 and go north for nearly 2 miles to a main fork.. Stay right for about 3 more miles to another main fork. Stay right again and follow the main road all the way up. The road isn't eroded much but it gets steep. No gates. An ice cold spring is along the way at N39 38427, W117 27187 el 7250. I filtered it. Posted 2020.