Mountains Hide Islands of Flora in East Mojave Desert

Botanists call them disjuncts. Bureaucrats call them UPAs (unusual plant assemblages). The more lyrical naturalists among us call them islands on the land.

By whatever name, the isolated communities of pinon pine and white fir in the New York Mountains of the East Mojave Desert are very special places. Nearly 300 plant species have been counted on the slopes of this range and in its colorfully named canyons--Cottonwood and Caruthers, Butcher Knife and Fourth of July.

Perhaps the most botanically rare area in the mountains, indeed in the whole 1.5-million-acre East Mojave National Scenic Area, is Caruthers Canyon. A cool, inviting pinon pine/juniper woodland stands in marked contrast to the sparsely vegetated landscape common in other parts of the desert. The conifers are joined by oaks and a variety of coastal chaparral plants, including manzanita, yerba santa, ceanothus and coffee berry.

How It Got There

What is a coastal ecosystem doing in the middle of the desert?

Botanists believe that during wetter times, such coastal scrub vegetation was quite widespread. As the climate became more arid, coastal ecosystems were “stranded” atop high and moist slopes. The botanical islands high in the New York Mountains are outposts of Rocky Mountain and coastal California flora.

Caruthers Canyon is a treat for the hiker. An abandoned dirt road leads through a rocky basin and into a historic gold-mining region. Prospectors began digging in the New York Mountains in the 1860s and continued well into the 20th Century. At trail’s end are a couple of gold-mine shafts.

The canyon’s woodland offers great bird-watching. The Western tanager, gray-headed junco, yellow-breasted chat and many more species are found here. Circling high in the sky are the raptors--golden eagles, prairie falcons and red-tailed hawks.

Directions to the trailhead: From Interstate 40, 28 miles west of Needles, exit north on Mountain Springs Road. You will pass the tiny town of Goffs (last chance for provisions) and head north 27 1/2 miles on the main road, known variously as Ivanpah-Goffs Road or Ivanpah Road or Lanfair Road, to New York Mountains Road. (Part of Ivanpah and New York Mountains roads are dirt; they are suitable for passenger cars with good ground clearance.) Turn left (west) on New York Mountains Road. A couple of OX Cattle Ranch buildings stand near this road’s intersection with Ivanpah Road.

Drive 5 1/2 miles to an unsigned junction with a dirt road and turn north. Proceed 2 miles to a woodland laced with turnouts that serve as unofficial campsites. Leave your car here; farther along, the road dips into a wash and gets very rough.

For more information about the East Mojave National Scenic Area, administered by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, stop by the California Desert Information Center in Barstow, or call: (619) 256-8617.

Before venturing into the desert, I recommend a copy of the new East Mojave National Scenic Area map; see below.

The hike: From the Caruthers Canyon “campground,” follow the main dirt road up the canyon. As you ascend, look behind you for a great view of Table Mountain, the dominant peak of the central part of East Mojave.

Handsome boulders line the trail and frame views of New York Mountain, the tall peak before you. The range’s 7,532-foot signature peak is crowned with a botanical island of its own--a relic stand of Rocky Mountain white fir.

Half a mile along, you’ll come to a fork in the road. The rightward road climbs a quarter of a mile to an old mining shack. Take the left fork, dipping in and out of a wash and gaining a great view of the canyon and its castellated walls.

If it has rained recently, you might find some water in pools on the rocky canyon bottom. Enjoy the tranquility of the gold-mine area, but don’t stray into the dark and dangerous shafts.

JUST PUBLISHED--A large-format, detailed map, “A Recreation Guide to the East Mojave National Scenic Area,” is available. The map highlights the wonders of Kelso Dunes, Wildhorse Canyon, Cima Dome and Clark Mountain, along with more than two dozen other natural wonders within the Bureau of Land Management-administered East Mojave National Scenic Area.

The back of the publication features an additional map guide to the entire California desert, including 36 parks, preserves and natural places, desert museums and nature centers. Well-known desert parks of Death Valley and Anza-Borrego are detailed as well as such off-the-beaten-track destinations as the Chuckwalla Mountains and Darwin Springs.

The map, produced by a consortium of conservation groups and the Bureau of Land Management, is available for $3.50 from the Desert Protective Council Foundation, P. O. Box 76210, Los Angeles 90076.

Caruthers Canyon Trail

Caruthers Canyon to Gold Mine: 3 miles round trip; 400-foot elevation gain.