Valhalla Dome - 3.9.2025
We parked in the dirt parking lot located a quarter mile NE of the very popular paved parking lot for Barker Dam... and we started hiking on the Wall Street Mill Trail.
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After hiking less than a tenth of a mile on the Wall Street Mill Trail we turned to the left on an unsigned path.
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After leaving the Wall Street Mill Trail we hiked another tenth of a mile to the Pink House... aka the Worth Bagley Homestead... we will enter the Wonderland of Rocks behind the Pink House.
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Entering the Wonderland of Rocks... hiking north.
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Continuing to hike north in the Wonderland of Rocks.
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Continuing to hike north in the Wonderland of Rocks... here getting ready to pass by what we call 'Shark Rock'.
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After hiking five minutes beyond 'Shark Rock' we left the wash in the Wonderland of Rocks and started doing a little scrambling to the west.
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Now hiking south... doing a 'U Turn' in less than 3 minutes after leaving the wash in the Wonderland of Rocks.
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Getting ready to do a little scrambling.
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Scrambling.
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Looks like a dead-end... but it isn't.
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Getting ready to enter a box canyon.
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Continuing to hike south... now in a box canyon... with Valhalla Dome out there on the right-center horizon.
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Hiking south and heading for the low point out there.
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Working our way through the rocks... looking for a way to get up out of the box canyon.
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Denali Girl is taking a photo... and Star Dancer is hard to see as she enters the cave in the middle of the photo.
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Denali Girl enters the cave.
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The cave is at least 30 feet in length.
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Denali Girl has scrambled up out of the cave.
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Star Dancer enters what looks like another cave.
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More scrambling after coming out of the second cave.
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A little more scrambling is needed.
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We have found our way up out of the box canyon... and the little pinyon pine on the horizon in the middle of the photo is the summit of Valhalla Dome.
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Working our way over to the summit of Valhalla Dome we found this nice balcony... looking SE to the left into the Queen Valley area... and looking SW to Lost Horse Valley on the far right.
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Leaving the balcony and heading for the summit of Valhalla Dome.
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Getting closer to the summit of Valhalla Dome.
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There was some water in the potholes.
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After hiking a total of 1.4 miles we have reached the 4.500 foot summit of Valhalla Dome... looking north into the Wonderland of Rocks at the Astro Dome in the middle of the photo... looking west beyond Quail Mountain to snow covered San Jacinto Peak and snow covered San Gorgonio Mountain on the left horizon... and looking NE to Queen Mountain on the right horizon.
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Leaving the Valhalla Dome summit and hiking north to explore on flatish terrain.
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Relaxing on the Valhalla Dome summit area... here looking north to the South Astro Dome on the left horizon.
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Exploring the summit area... with a nice heart shaped pothole in the left foreground.
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Another balcony... looking down at the box canyon we used to get up here... with Queen Mountain on the horizon.
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We are going to make a loop out of the hike... hiking SW... heading down toward Barker Dam... and that is the Valhalla Dome summit up there in the left foreground.
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Hiking SW and heading down to Barker Dam.
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Hiking SW and heading down to Barker Dam.
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Almost down to the Barker Dam area... we haven't seen water down there in at least 5 years.
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We have reached the Barker Dam area.
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Looking back at where we came down from... with the Valhalla Dome summit up there in the right-center horizon.
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Leaving the Barker Dam area... the main trail goes out to the right... but we are going to go over to the left and use what we call the 'side door' to exit the area.
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Leaving the Barker Dam area via the 'side door'.
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Leaving the Barker Dam area via the 'side door'.
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Looking back where we came from as we exit via the 'side door'.
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Leaving the Barker Dam area via the 'side door'.
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Almost out of the 'side door'... and getting ready to join the desert floor.
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A stone's throw from the parking lot... the total hike was 2.5 miles, gaining 316 feet of elevation.
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