Sagebrush Reconnoiterer
The Historian
When Mr. & Mrs. ski3pins take a trip, I am among those privileged to follow along via nightly text messages on my phone from their InReach device. I often plot those on Google Earth on my computer; keeping tabs on their travels and safety for the duration of their trip.
As Monte has mentioned elsewhere on this forum and on his blog, I have at times in the past noticed that they were camped near a spot that held items that I knew would be of interest and have alerted them via a message back to their InReach and/or cell phone if I know that they have service; resulting in their curiosity getting the better of them and thus they go on a hunt. With rare exception, I refrain from giving them coordinates; instead subtle clues so that they can go and discover these gems for themselves. They love a good challenge!
Monte texted me today (April 23rd), asking if I would be interested in writing up a trip report of a single day of his current travels. So, in my best imitation of their excelling blog, EXPLORATION WITH THE SKI3PINS, here goes.
So, in the afternoon of this past April 21st, I received Monte's daily InReach “Camped here for the night” message. He and Julie were spending the night just west of the ghost town of Candelaria, Nevada, located in the west-central part of the state, south of Hawthorne.
A Google Earth view of the ski3pins campsite in relation to the townsite of Candelaria. The open wound on the land and the large scab north of it has decimated much of the town, though what is left is quite interesting and photographic; if you can manage to maneuver your camera's lens in a direction of undisturbed landscape. And away from the destruction, there are still subtle things to search for and are waiting to be found.
Over the decades since the early 1980s, I have visited the ghost town numerous times, watching more of it disappear with time and modern strip mining. Over the decades several aspects of the site have eluded me, in that I never took the time to search out locations of interest that I had discovered in word or print in between trips. In those decades, modern mining have removed the earth, roads, and remains here, and have dumped them over there, while burying roads and remains; thus these aspects will forever continue to elude me. Things such as Candelaria's close neighbor, Metallic City, the water pipeline to far off Trail Canyon in the White Mountains near the California border, and the town's water reservoir are things that I often wanted to find and examine but are still yet an unfulfilled desire of mine. Fortunately, modern strip mining missed digging up and burying Candelaria's history as a railroad town. Fortunately, on past visits, I have been able to fully explore and document the railroad terminus area. I last visited Candelaria was in the winter of 2006.
Being an abandoned railroad buff, I saw that Monte and Julie had parked their rig and set up camp not only atop the current maintained road at a summit west of the townsite, but also atop the former Carson & Colorado Railroad's Candelaria Branch. That railroad began life at Mound House, Nevada – near Virginia City – in 1880. It's narrow gauge rails began growing east, then south, then back west again; entering California, turning south again then terminating at Keeler, California in the southern Owens Valley southeast of Lone Pine in 1883. Along the way, a branch of approximately five miles was constructed to access Candelaria.
So, I naturally notified them of their plight. “You are 1,520 feet from the old C&C turntable pit. It's to your northeast.” I knew that especially Julie, naturally and intensely curious, would be jumping at the chance to check it out.
Since the Candelaria Branch was basically a dead-end street, the means to turn trains around was required. In the case of the Carson & Colorado Railroad, it mean using an “Armstrong” turntable to spin locomotives around to reverse their direction; the topography didn't allow enough room for a turning wye. Armstrong meant just that – locomotives were turned by hand on a pivoted, rotating platform. The depot and yard tracks are located at a summit in the Candelaria Hills, a mile and a quarter west of downtown. A stone supported shelf was built on the slope to hold the depot and ancillary structures, as well as sidings; tracks came to an end about four tenths of a mile beyond. Below the depot is the site of the turntable on its own spur; it's rock lined pit still visible, along with a well worn path for station hands to push the locomotive 180° so that it can pull out, then back in to the opposite end of the train to return to the mainline.
Google Earth view of the terminus, depot and turntable of the Candelaria Branch.
Not long after Monte and Julie set up camp, I began to notice on the forum that Monte was liking a few of the day's posts and made a couple posts himself; so I knew that he had cellular service and data. He also texted me phone to phone that he and Julie had just walked a portion of the railroad back down the hill toward the ghost town of Belleville, a milling center for Candelaria and along the main Carson & Colorado mainline. Along the way they came across a small diamondback rattler, who made sure that they noticed him with all his might. Just to be sure that he got my message about the railroad turntable pit – in case they had already put away their InReach device for the night before I originally responded – I sent him a regular phone text stating what I said in my InReach reply just as I turned in for the night.
At 0738 hours the following morning, I got a couple of photographs embedded in phone texts taken up on Candelaria Mountain during their morning coffee walk; one of them looking at their camper down below and inquiring if the railroad facilities were in the photo. The rest of the photographs posted here were taken by Julie with her phone camera.
Looking down on their camp. The railroad terminus facilities start at the extreme right center.
Later, while we were regularly exchanging texts with inquiries and answers, they dropped down from the heights down to the railroad and found the turntable pit.
In the bottom photo, the depot and yard tracks sat up on the level to the left. Note the flat path around the perimeter. Imagine the trestle stretched across the pit with a Baldwin locomotive sitting atop, two men on each side pushing against handles on the turntable to spin the locomotive.
Candelaria isn't one of those boom and bust ghost towns, it continued as a town and mining community well into the Depression. The Carson & Colorado, which was then under ownership of the Southern Pacific Railroad, finally abandoned the Candelaria Branch in 1932 and pulled up rails.
However, there was another gem for Monte and Julie to find, which I mentioned in my original reply to yesterday's InReach text.
“And the town's water reservoir, and the terminus of the pipeline from [T]rail [C]anyon is nearly due east of you and over the ridge.”
A Google Earth view looking northeast. The Hendricks' camp is noted at the left, the turntable pit nearby. Across the mountain to the right, and right of center, is the water reservoir for Candelaria. The straight road below is atop the pipeline from Trail Canyon.
Candelaria is in a fairly waterless region; local water cannot sustain a booming and sizeable metropolis that Candelaria was turning into during its heyday. So a 27 mile long water pipeline tapped springs in upper Trail Canyon to convey water to a concrete reservoir located south of town near what was once Metallic City. Trail Canyon is on the east side of the northern White Mountains, near the California border. Monte and Julie have several blog entries over the years about their times at the canyon in search of native rock art. Fortunately, modern mining missed obliterating the reservoir. While preparing this report, I found this webpage with information about the pipeline and photos of what is left.
forum.expeditionportal.com
A game of textual volleyball continued throughout the morning, many asking for ideas as to how to access the reservoir. I texted them directions as well as screen shots from Google Earth from my desktop computer, which Monte also verified on his maps.
I also quipped: “This is the best that I can do without supplying the coordinates. Don't want to spoil the hunt.”
Earlier, Monte texted me a photo, taken atop Candelaria Mountain and looking south, and asking if it were the water pipeline. I responded: “It looks right. A scar running straight in an area where roads curve is a good indicator.” And then I added: “Instead of a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, you will find an in ground reservoir at the end of a pipeline.”
The last part of the reservoir access road parallels the pipeline. Photos were taken.
Then two minutes later, these photos came, along with the words: “And the pot of gold. Thanks for the treasure hunt!”
The Candelaria town water reservoir and likely a related utility structure next to it.
About three hours later, I got another InReach message alerting me to their next campsite. I should have known that they would overnight at what I teasingly call their “second home,” as it's so prolific on their blog, the Benton Hot Springs Inn. Julie is so adept to finding cancellations that Monte calls her the "Tub Whisperer." A fine way to finish off a day of treasure hunting!
Or as Monte finished up the day: “We are always ready for more. Our hunting licenses are current.”
As Monte has mentioned elsewhere on this forum and on his blog, I have at times in the past noticed that they were camped near a spot that held items that I knew would be of interest and have alerted them via a message back to their InReach and/or cell phone if I know that they have service; resulting in their curiosity getting the better of them and thus they go on a hunt. With rare exception, I refrain from giving them coordinates; instead subtle clues so that they can go and discover these gems for themselves. They love a good challenge!
Monte texted me today (April 23rd), asking if I would be interested in writing up a trip report of a single day of his current travels. So, in my best imitation of their excelling blog, EXPLORATION WITH THE SKI3PINS, here goes.
So, in the afternoon of this past April 21st, I received Monte's daily InReach “Camped here for the night” message. He and Julie were spending the night just west of the ghost town of Candelaria, Nevada, located in the west-central part of the state, south of Hawthorne.
A Google Earth view of the ski3pins campsite in relation to the townsite of Candelaria. The open wound on the land and the large scab north of it has decimated much of the town, though what is left is quite interesting and photographic; if you can manage to maneuver your camera's lens in a direction of undisturbed landscape. And away from the destruction, there are still subtle things to search for and are waiting to be found.
Over the decades since the early 1980s, I have visited the ghost town numerous times, watching more of it disappear with time and modern strip mining. Over the decades several aspects of the site have eluded me, in that I never took the time to search out locations of interest that I had discovered in word or print in between trips. In those decades, modern mining have removed the earth, roads, and remains here, and have dumped them over there, while burying roads and remains; thus these aspects will forever continue to elude me. Things such as Candelaria's close neighbor, Metallic City, the water pipeline to far off Trail Canyon in the White Mountains near the California border, and the town's water reservoir are things that I often wanted to find and examine but are still yet an unfulfilled desire of mine. Fortunately, modern strip mining missed digging up and burying Candelaria's history as a railroad town. Fortunately, on past visits, I have been able to fully explore and document the railroad terminus area. I last visited Candelaria was in the winter of 2006.
Being an abandoned railroad buff, I saw that Monte and Julie had parked their rig and set up camp not only atop the current maintained road at a summit west of the townsite, but also atop the former Carson & Colorado Railroad's Candelaria Branch. That railroad began life at Mound House, Nevada – near Virginia City – in 1880. It's narrow gauge rails began growing east, then south, then back west again; entering California, turning south again then terminating at Keeler, California in the southern Owens Valley southeast of Lone Pine in 1883. Along the way, a branch of approximately five miles was constructed to access Candelaria.
So, I naturally notified them of their plight. “You are 1,520 feet from the old C&C turntable pit. It's to your northeast.” I knew that especially Julie, naturally and intensely curious, would be jumping at the chance to check it out.
Since the Candelaria Branch was basically a dead-end street, the means to turn trains around was required. In the case of the Carson & Colorado Railroad, it mean using an “Armstrong” turntable to spin locomotives around to reverse their direction; the topography didn't allow enough room for a turning wye. Armstrong meant just that – locomotives were turned by hand on a pivoted, rotating platform. The depot and yard tracks are located at a summit in the Candelaria Hills, a mile and a quarter west of downtown. A stone supported shelf was built on the slope to hold the depot and ancillary structures, as well as sidings; tracks came to an end about four tenths of a mile beyond. Below the depot is the site of the turntable on its own spur; it's rock lined pit still visible, along with a well worn path for station hands to push the locomotive 180° so that it can pull out, then back in to the opposite end of the train to return to the mainline.
Google Earth view of the terminus, depot and turntable of the Candelaria Branch.
Not long after Monte and Julie set up camp, I began to notice on the forum that Monte was liking a few of the day's posts and made a couple posts himself; so I knew that he had cellular service and data. He also texted me phone to phone that he and Julie had just walked a portion of the railroad back down the hill toward the ghost town of Belleville, a milling center for Candelaria and along the main Carson & Colorado mainline. Along the way they came across a small diamondback rattler, who made sure that they noticed him with all his might. Just to be sure that he got my message about the railroad turntable pit – in case they had already put away their InReach device for the night before I originally responded – I sent him a regular phone text stating what I said in my InReach reply just as I turned in for the night.
At 0738 hours the following morning, I got a couple of photographs embedded in phone texts taken up on Candelaria Mountain during their morning coffee walk; one of them looking at their camper down below and inquiring if the railroad facilities were in the photo. The rest of the photographs posted here were taken by Julie with her phone camera.
Looking down on their camp. The railroad terminus facilities start at the extreme right center.
Later, while we were regularly exchanging texts with inquiries and answers, they dropped down from the heights down to the railroad and found the turntable pit.
In the bottom photo, the depot and yard tracks sat up on the level to the left. Note the flat path around the perimeter. Imagine the trestle stretched across the pit with a Baldwin locomotive sitting atop, two men on each side pushing against handles on the turntable to spin the locomotive.
Candelaria isn't one of those boom and bust ghost towns, it continued as a town and mining community well into the Depression. The Carson & Colorado, which was then under ownership of the Southern Pacific Railroad, finally abandoned the Candelaria Branch in 1932 and pulled up rails.
However, there was another gem for Monte and Julie to find, which I mentioned in my original reply to yesterday's InReach text.
“And the town's water reservoir, and the terminus of the pipeline from [T]rail [C]anyon is nearly due east of you and over the ridge.”
A Google Earth view looking northeast. The Hendricks' camp is noted at the left, the turntable pit nearby. Across the mountain to the right, and right of center, is the water reservoir for Candelaria. The straight road below is atop the pipeline from Trail Canyon.
Candelaria is in a fairly waterless region; local water cannot sustain a booming and sizeable metropolis that Candelaria was turning into during its heyday. So a 27 mile long water pipeline tapped springs in upper Trail Canyon to convey water to a concrete reservoir located south of town near what was once Metallic City. Trail Canyon is on the east side of the northern White Mountains, near the California border. Monte and Julie have several blog entries over the years about their times at the canyon in search of native rock art. Fortunately, modern mining missed obliterating the reservoir. While preparing this report, I found this webpage with information about the pipeline and photos of what is left.
Candelaria Pipeline, Western Nevada
Came across an old 4wd exploring pamplet listing what appeared to be "forgotten" places to explore in Western Nevada. One such place was the old Candelaria Pipeline. While much can be found about the town of Caldelaria, little seems to be written about the 27 mile pipeline that laid from the...
forum.expeditionportal.com
A game of textual volleyball continued throughout the morning, many asking for ideas as to how to access the reservoir. I texted them directions as well as screen shots from Google Earth from my desktop computer, which Monte also verified on his maps.
I also quipped: “This is the best that I can do without supplying the coordinates. Don't want to spoil the hunt.”
Earlier, Monte texted me a photo, taken atop Candelaria Mountain and looking south, and asking if it were the water pipeline. I responded: “It looks right. A scar running straight in an area where roads curve is a good indicator.” And then I added: “Instead of a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, you will find an in ground reservoir at the end of a pipeline.”
The last part of the reservoir access road parallels the pipeline. Photos were taken.
Then two minutes later, these photos came, along with the words: “And the pot of gold. Thanks for the treasure hunt!”
The Candelaria town water reservoir and likely a related utility structure next to it.
About three hours later, I got another InReach message alerting me to their next campsite. I should have known that they would overnight at what I teasingly call their “second home,” as it's so prolific on their blog, the Benton Hot Springs Inn. Julie is so adept to finding cancellations that Monte calls her the "Tub Whisperer." A fine way to finish off a day of treasure hunting!
Or as Monte finished up the day: “We are always ready for more. Our hunting licenses are current.”
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