The Contact Zone

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The Contact Zone

The Contact Zone, so-called by fellow JTree explorer and intrepid 3D photographer, Murbachi. For purposes of this post, the area referred to as the Contact Zone is the demarcation between the light tan monzogranite on the left and the darker material on the right in the Google Earth image above. The CZ stretches for about one mile and after seeing some of Murbachi's pictures (click HERE to see for your ownself) of this area, I knew I wanted to visit, regardless of the danger. The views of the far eastern edge of the Wonderland of Rocks are simply spectacular. 

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Pinto Wye Hideout

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Pinto Wye Hideout

After a recent visit to the Pinto Wye arrastra, I stumbled upon an interesting place while hiking cross desert back to my truck. And that's just how it happens sometimes. Hiking along, minding your own business, taking in the scenery while also trying to watch where your feet are going so you don't step on anything sharp or poisonous. 

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Wandering while Waiting

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Wandering while Waiting

So I recently bought a GoPro camera and have been having some fun learning how to use it. I had shot a lot of video earlier this day, and now wanted to try a time lapse experiment. I found an appropriate rock to put the camera on, pointed it towards some other rocks and a portion of Park Blvd., checked the settings and started recording. Which left me with about twenty minutes to wander about while waiting for the camera to do its thing. 

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Desert Queen Petroglyphs

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Desert Queen Petroglyphs

There's a lot of stuff going on in the general area around the Desert Queen Mine. If you park at the small parking area/trailhead for the DQ Mine and Pine City, you've got gold mines, stone building ruins, vanished cities, dams, debris, sparkly rocks, amazing vistas and many signs of the local Indians who once passed through this area during their seasonal migrations. And all within a couple miles hiking distance. It's like a nexus of amazement.

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52 Miles

/ Joshua Tree National Park/
52 Miles

If you've ever wondered how far it is from the west entrance of Joshua Tree National Park to the south entrance, it's approximately 52 miles via Park Blvd. and Pinto Basin Road. I know this because, I recently entered the confusing (at least to me, at present) world of video cameras and decided to make a video of that drive. 

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