Climbing the Rings through Banshee Canyon

5 Days in the Desert travelog #8
Mojave Preserve, CA - Sat, 24 Dec 2022, 5pm

"It's a short hike," the ranger said. We weren't that interested. "It's in Banshee Canyon," she added. That got our attention. When she added, "And you have to climb rings blasted in the rock in the steepest spots," we were sold.

The first two-thirds of the Hole-in-the-Wall hike (previous blog) were easy. Then it was time for the narrows— and the climbing rings!



Yup, the narrows sure get narrow. As in, stretch out both your arms and you'll scrape all your knuckles.

Part of the ascent through the narrows doesn't require climbing aids. We could scramble up the boulders just fine. Though even so, this is a tough hike, not one for "Mom, Pop, and all the kids".

Then come the rings.



There are two sections with rings like these anchored into the rock. The idea is you grab onto the rings to help pull yourself up while bracing your feet against the rock walls. Although we've done a variety of other hikes with rails, spikes, staples, and even knotted ropes, this one was not easy. The footing is slippery, and there needs to be at least one more ring at the top for people taller than 3' to pull themselves the last bit of the way out.



Here's a view back down the narrows from atop the first set of rings. Oh, did I mention those rock walls are sharp? They're very rough composite rock. I scraped a knee while trying to climb through the notch.



Once atop the second set of rings (not pictured) we scrambled up to a nice viewpoint overlooking the canyon. That floor down there... yup, that's how high we climbed basically pulling ourselves up.



Once past the rings it was basically all footwork to climb out of Banshee Canyon. Here's a view back across the maze like spires rising out of the narrows. BTW, settlers called it Banshee Canyon because winds blow through it made a wail like tormented spirits of folklore.

Up next: Back to Barstow for the ancient Jewish tradition of eating Chinese on Christmas Eve.

2,554 Miles to Wilmington, NC

5 Days in the Desert travelog #10
Barstow, CA - Sun, 25 Dec 2022, 8am

We got an early start this morning, leaving the hotel by 7:30. Having breakfast in our room— Christmas morning breakfast of leftovers and cold cuts and crackers— helped us move things along quickly. And not more than about 5 miles from the hotel we passed the first picture worthy thing of the day. A road sign.



But not just any road sign. This is one of those Americana road signs you see on our great highways. We're on I-40 (I is for interstate highway) which begins in Barstow and ends 2,556 miles away on the East Coast of the US in Wilmington, North Carolina. Yes, I wrote 2,556 even though the sign states 2,554. The distance on the sign is to Wilmington city center, as per signage standards; the road continues a few miles further before ending about 2 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean.

Fortunately we're not driving 2,500+ miles today. We're only driving I-40 for about 78 miles, to the turnoff at Kelbaker Road to head north to Kelso Dunes.