Hello and some trip reports Jan 22

[MojaveGeek]

Geek, you deserve 100% of the credit for the initial excitement about Blue Mountain

Cool, I'll take that.  But really, I would not have been there but for reading your Borax BM TR.

s it worth attempting the Corkskew route to get to borax/BM area? ( i mean other than for the canyon itself wich looks pretty awesome tresspassing or not...). I thought the top required some "atmospheric"  climbing.

I have not done that part of the route.  I've gone up Corkscrew, before they put the chain link fence around the massive ore bin, and it is very very cool (the ore bin, probably even with the fence, and the associated workshop, which was accessible at the time).  But not all the way up to the ridge.

John has a couple of TRs with pix, shows the scrambly part well, I believe he's described going both up and down (his posts from before this incarnation of the forum are on nwhikers, which is searchable).  I believe DVDazed has gone at least down Corkscrew, but he is fearless.  I was up on Borax in 2019, planning on going down via Corkscrew, but one member of my party was intimidated by Steve Hall's description - a case where his tendency to hyperbole was a bit of a bother.  (I have a GPS track of that trip if you want to see the details of the Kauri route).  Anyway, I thought it would be a good loop to go down Corkscrew but didn't get the chance to do so.

The ridgeline from Borax on to the top of Corkscrew looked fine to me from Borax.  It is really pretty up there.  My friend Eric, who is a regular out there with me, thinks it is one of the best views in the valley.  I hope you enjoy it.

[Daymoth]

Cant wait for my next attempt!

[John Morrow]

Oh the bypass looks promising. I need to go back.

This is pretty funny.  For other reasons, I was just looking at a John Morrow TR on nwhikers from 2017 about a DV trip, and he got way further up Redwall than I did, and it looks pretty cool up there! 

http://www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=8026169

His map also shows the bypass route, in blue.  (hope you don't mind me posting this, John).

My intention when posting is to share!

In viewing this thread, I searched my photos for one of the actual chockstone obstruction.  I was pretty sure I had one but cannot locate it now.  I didn't see it in my Flickr page though it was a brief look.  I hoped to be able to share it but can't find it.

[DeathValleyDazed]

This video may help? Back in 2017-2018 I was having a blast exploring the Black Mountain ridge from Dante's View parking to Mount Perry to the Borax Benchmark. This four minute video is scrambling up from Twenty Mule Team to the top of the Borax Benchmark. This is when I fell in love the Blue Mountain and its "Z" geology on the east face. 

I spent much of the day attempting to scoot down the Borax Benchmark west face drainages attempting to reach those gorgeous blue colored mountains tantalizingly close but completely inaccessible (until on a later trip finding an access route via Corkscrew Canyon). The video has some good shots of the scariest stop-dry-fall draining into the upper Artist Palette badlands. I did not really ever get lost, but I did lose my way in those labyrinth slots and crevices. It was exhausting. 

As far as "best views in the valley" this has to be in competition because of the colors and textures under foot and nearby with the panorama back drops of the Funerals, Grapevines, Panamints, and salt flats. I often felt like I was on Mars and I had the place all to myself. 

  

The ridgeline from Borax on to the top of Corkscrew looked fine to me from Borax.  It is really pretty up there.  My friend Eric, who is a regular out there with me, thinks it is one of the best views in the valley.  I hope you enjoy it.

The ridgeline from Borax on to the top of Corkscrew looked fine to me from Borax.  It is really pretty up there.  My friend Eric, who is a regular out there with me, thinks it is one of the best views in the valley.  I hope you enjoy it.

The ridgeline from Borax on to the top of Corkscrew looked fine to me from Borax.  It is really pretty up there.  My friend Eric, who is a regular out there with me, thinks it is one of the best views in the valley.  I hope you enjoy it.

The ridgeline from Borax on to the top of Corkscrew looked fine to me from Borax.  It is really pretty up there.  My friend Eric, who is a regular out there with me, thinks it is one of the best views in the valley.  I hope you enjoy it.

The ridgeline from Borax on to the top of Corkscrew looked fine to me from Borax.  It is really pretty up there.  My friend Eric, who is a regular out there with me, thinks it is one of the best views in the valley.  I hope you enjoy it.

The ridgeline from Borax on to the top of Corkscrew looked fine to me from Borax.  It is really pretty up there.  My friend Eric, who is a regular out there with me, thinks it is one of the best views in the valley.  I hope you enjoy it.

The ridgeline from Borax on to the top of Corkscrew looked fine to me from Borax.  It is really pretty up there.  My friend Eric, who is a regular out there with me, thinks it is one of the best views in the valley.  I hope you enjoy it.

[ski3pin]

I very much enjoyed this trip report, thank you. I saw terrain new to me and also canyons that brought so many memories. Here is another approach to Red Wall Canyon -

Red Wall Canyon - December 2014

[Daymoth]

I very much enjoyed this trip report, thank you. I saw terrain new to me and also canyons that brought so many memories. Here is another approach to Red Wall Canyon -

Red Wall Canyon - December 2014

Dang thats an awesome trip report. You really where prepared for the chockstone!

I so need to see those narrows.