Jumbo Rocks (Point 4558) - 3.18.2019
From the north entrance pay station of Joshua Tree National Park... drive 7.5 miles on Park Blvd and park on the side of the road near Skull Rock.
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Start hiking cross-country in a SE direction... there are impressive rock formations near the road.
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Heading SE in the Jumbo Rocks area.
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Continuing SE in the Jumbo Rocks area.
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Continuing SE in the Jumbo Rocks area.
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We have hiked beyond the impressive rock formations located near Park Blvd... here we are looking back at those rock formations.
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We can see our two points of interest for today... Point 4558 on the left and Point 4581 on the right.
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Looking at the west side of Point 4558.
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Looking at the north side of Point 4581.
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Standing between Point 4558 and Point 4581... looking east toward Pinto Basin.
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Looking at the west side of Point 4558... looks like a possible route via the plateau out there on the right (south side).
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Heading toward the south side of Point 4558.
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Looking east on our way to Point 4558... Eagle Mountain is on the left center horizon... with Monument Mountain on the right center horizon.
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Getting closer to the south side of Point 4558.
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Getting a lot closer to where I will start up to the top of Point 4558.
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Looking back at Point 4581 from the south side of Point 4558.
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A pano shot from the south side of Point 4558... part of Point 4581 is in the far right foreground.
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Heading up the south side of Point 4558.
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Working my way up the south side of Point 4558.
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I have reached the plateau on the south side of Point 4558... but there is work to be done... looks like going to the right might be a good idea.
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Gaining elevation on the south side of Point 4558... I wonder if that corridor up there is the best way to get up on top?
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I'm much closer to that corridor... and I will look for something easier.
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I will traverse a bit here and look for easier terrain.
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Easier terrain and almost on top.
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The top of Point 4558... a dance floor on top... looking across the Jumbo Rocks area to Queen Mountain on the horizon.
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Pretty obvious that I'm not the first person to be here.
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Looking east from the top of Point 4558.
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Is it a meditation circle... or a maze... or a whatever.
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Looking over at Point 4581 from the top of Point 4558.
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A pano shot looking north across the Jumbo Rocks area to Queen Mountain.
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Time to head back down where Denali Girl is patiently waiting for me.
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Working my way down the south side of Point 4558... looking over at Point 4581.
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We decided to hike back toward Point 4581 with the idea of checking out the west side of it to see if there was a better route up it... here we are looking back at Point 4558.
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Now looking at the west side of Point 4581... we couldn't see an obvious route up it... so lets go back to the car and call it a day.
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Heading for the car we found another meditation circle on the north side of Point 4558... with Point 4581 in the distance on the right.
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Heading for the Jumbo Rocks area.
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We will cross through Jumbo Rocks Campground on our way back to the car... this campground has 124 camp sites... the largest in the park.
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On our way to the car we decided to cross over this huge dance floor... we could see it from a mile away and decided that we would check it out on our way back to the car.
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Denali Girl coming up onto the dance floor at Jumbo Rocks.
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A pano shot from the dance floor at Jumbo Rocks.
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Looking back across the dance floor at Points 4558 and 4581.
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Heading for the car through Jumbo Rocks.
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Almost back at the car... looking back.
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Our car... parked along the side of Park Blvd... our hike/scramble was 4.2 miles, gaining 740 feet of elevation.
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After our hike we visited some friends at the Indian Cove Campground to check out the super moon... later in the evening it pretty much lit up the campground.
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