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Northern California Rover Club - Club Calendar
Pyramid Lake/Black Rock Desert - August 8-10, Nevada Desert Come join NCRC for a three day desert expedition that will take you through one of most spectacular and remote regions in the entire US! We'll travel through the areas of Northwestern Nevada, including Pyramid Lake, the Smoke Creek Desert, the Granite Mountains, the Black Rock Desert, and High Rock Canyon. This event is open to all vehicles and no special modifications are required to attend. A detailed description of this event is listed below Please RSVP if you plan to attend this event so we can gauge the number of vehicles attending and plan the specifics accordingly. This is very important! Also, PLEASE read this entire listing to get a full understanding of the event. Click here to see photos from last years desert trip! Event Specifics: Nevada Desert Trip - A tour of the Black Rock Country of NW Nevada. Friday, Saturday and Sunday August 8, 9 and 10, 2003. Hosts Jason Pipes and Petra Esterle - jpipes@feldgrau.com or 510-504-1000. Meeting at 8:00am sharp, Friday August 8th, Days Inn parking lot, 701 E. 7th St, Reno, NV 89512 Map of meeting location Event Description: This event can be classified as a trail ride suitable for all vehicles and all driving abilities. There will be sections of trail on this event that will require careful attention and patience. There will also be a few steep rocky hill climbs and many miles of trail are very rocky. For these sections more aggressive tires will help but aren't required. There will also be lots of dust and some steep cliff sides near the trail. Our crossing of the Black Rock Desert may be dangerous due to oncoming high speed traffic under possibly near white-out conditions. Possible extreme weather conditions and the remote nature of our route will also add an extra dimension to this trip. That being said, there is no doubt that everyone in every type of Land Rover vehicle will find this trip suitable, exciting and very rewarding. Depending on the routes we take and the time and distance we make (all of which will vary depending on total number of vehicles, our comfortable moving speed, number of stops along the way, the heat, breakdowns, wind and dust conditions, etc) our camping locations may be less than ideal. We've scouted a number of great locations but if for some reason we can't make it to them on any given night be prepared to sleep either in/on your truck or in an area that may be a little more rocky than we are generally use to camping in. This event will take a group of Land Rovers on a route to circumnavigate the remote northwestern desert region of Nevada. From Reno we plan to travel to Sutcliffe on the western shore of Pyramid Lake, around the lake's northern shore, through Emerson Pass, overland across the Smoke Creek Desert to Gerlach, across the Black Rock Desert, through the Calico Mountains to High Rock Lake, through High Rock Canyon to Vya, down to Leadville, through the Granite Mountains, back across the western side of the Smoke Creek Desert, through Sand Pass, back to Sutcliffe, and finally return to Reno. Highlights: Particular highlights for this trip may include spotting wild horses, burros, elk, antelope and bighorn sheep. We may visit prehistoric and historic cultural locations including Native American archaeological sites, emigrant trails, ghost towns, and mines. We'll see the vast, open, expansive desert, mountain meadows, stunning vistas, and dozens of amazing geologic formations. Free Stuff: We've gathered a great deal of hand-outs and maps from the USGS and BLM to give away. Each person that RSVPs we'll get a binder with materials regarding the trip, our route, and the natural and human history of the region we'll be exploring. Total Distance: From the San Francisco Bay Area and back the route will approach 800 miles. From San Francisco to Reno it is close to 175 miles. From Reno to the farthest point of our off-road route and back it is about 350 miles. Most people will travel about 800 miles roundtrip, nearly half of which will be off-highway. Route Overview: http://www.norcalrover.org/NCRC_Nevada_Desert.jpg Gas: On this trip gas can be most closely found in the Reno and Sparks area (many), at Suttcliffe (one small), and at Gerlach (one very small, no premium). It is 100+ miles between Reno and Gerlach, and we'll be over 100 miles beyond Gerlach driving long distances on off-road routes which tend to use up more gas. Ten gallons of spare fuel is suggested, if not more. When we tank up sometime during lunch on the afternoon of July 26 in Gerlach, keep in mind that the service there has basically one pump and no premium fuel. Brining along your own octane boost is not a bad idea if you pay attention to that sort of thing. Required Supplies: Aside from all the normal camping equipment, recovery gear, food, tools and parts you might normally bring, be extra sure to have the following for this trip. Trip Communication: Use CB channel 7, HAM freq 146.5, FRS station 7 at all times. Convoying to Event: There are no particular convoys arranged as of this time although groups will likely come together informally to plan convoys via the mendo_recce email list shortly prior to Thursday August 7th. Jason and Petra will hopefully be leaving the Bay Area on Thursday afternoon or early evening. Call or email to make specific arrangements if you'd like to convoy to the starting point with other vehicles. Suggested Accommodations Thur Night: Thursday night only (self serve) Days Inn Reno, phone 775-786-4070, fax 775-329-4338. Jason and Petra will be staying in this Days Inn Reno on Thursday night and the group will be starting the trip from this location on Friday morning. We found this motel to be friendly, clean, cheap and easy to find. There is gas and food near by. Some parts of Reno aren't so appealing at night and this motel seems particularly safe. It's an ideal place to stay and start the trip Friday morning. Please call ahead and make reservations as required, although I don't believe under any circumstances that they won't have rooms available when you arrive should you choose to stay here. Late Comers: If you get lost or are late to show up we'll be leaving Reno at 9am sharp Friday morning August 8th. We'll be stopping in Sutcliffe at Pyramid Lake to get day use passes shortly after and we'll likely be there for at least 30 minutes. We'll be on CB channel 7, FRS station 7 and HAM frequency 146.5. Sutcliffe is about 27 miles north of Reno on Hwy 445. Pyramid Lake Day Use Passes: There is a requirement that we all get day use passes from the ranger station in Sutcliffe on Friday morning before crossing over the northern section of Pyramid Lake. These day use passes cost 5 USD per vehicle. We will all be stopping to get these shortly after leaving Reno. Camping, Fire and other Basic Regulations: Tent camping, camp fires, rock hounding, rock climbing, nature study, backpacking and driving on designated routes are all allowed in the Wilderness Areas we'll be traveling in without any special permits or fees. In Wilderness Areas, only dead or downed firewood may be gathered. Chainsaws are not allowed to be used in Wilderness Areas. Projected Weather: For all weather projections for the region please see the following two excellent sites: NOAA NW Nevada NOAA Reno main page Select GPS Coords: Sutcliffe: 39.96523 N 119.61821 W Emerson Pass: 40.31783 N 119.65672 W Gerlach's gas station: 40.65407 N 119.35148 W Maps Used: USGS Nevada Index to topographic map coverage For all USGS 7.5 minute (1:24,000) Series - National Geographic/USGS Nevada topographic cdrom collection USGS 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - Reno USGS 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - Kumiva Peak USGS 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - Gerlach USGS 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - High Rock Canyon USGS 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - Vya USGS 1x2 Degree (1:250,000) Series - Reno USGS 1x2 Degree (1:250,000) Series - Lovelock USGS 1x2 Degree (1:250,000) Series - Vya BLM Surface Management Status 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - Reno BLM Surface Management Status 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - Kumiva Peak BLM Surface Management Status 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - Gerlach BLM Surface Management Status 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - High Rock Canyon BLM Surface Management Status 30x60 Minute (1:100,000) Series - Vya BLM Black Rock Desert-High Rock Canyon-Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area overview maps Delorme Nevada Atlas and Gazetteer Nevada Ghost Towns and Mining Camps Atlas, 2001, by Stanley Paher Nevada Map Atlas, 4th edition, NV DOT cartography section Additional Reading: Nevada's Northwest Corner - The Black Rock Country of Northern Humboldt, Pershing and Washoe Counties, 1996, by Raymond Smith Travels: In the Nevada Outback, 1993, Raymond Smith Nevada's Black Rock Desert, 1994 by Sessions Wheeler The Desert Lake, 2001, by Sessions Wheeler The Nevada Desert, 1989, by Sessions Wheeler Desert Challenge - An Interpretation of Nevada, 1942, by Richard Lillard Nevada Ghost Towns and Mining Camps, 2001, by Stanley Paher Nevada Ghost Towns and Mining Camps Atlas, 2001, by Stanley Paher The Black Rock Desert Landscape, BLM pamphlet, edited Mike Bilbo The Black Rock Desert and Playa: Visitor Info on Natural and Cultural History, BLM pamphlet << back |
