2020 Providence Mountains, Mojave

The ultimate desert solitude is to be found in this remote and surprising area. Located between Las Vegas and Los Angeles, Mojave National Preserve was established in 1994 with the passage of the California Desert Protections Act. This 1.6-million-acre park protects a range of natural features from the Kelso singing sand dunes, to volcanic cinder cones, to forests of Joshua trees, and carpets of wildflowers. Mojave's natural history is stunning in its vastness and beauty, with three of the four major North American deserts present; Mojave, Sonoran, and Great Basin, and all their assorted flora and fauna -- Joshua Trees, yucca, desert tortoise and roadrunners, just to name a few. A visit to its canyons, mountains and mesas will reveal long-abandoned mines, homesteads, and rock-walled military outposts. The American history is vibrant, ranging from explorers meeting native Mojave people for the first time in 1776, to early mail carrier routes down the Mojave Road in the mid-1800's, to historical traveler outposts scattered in hidden pockets of the landscape.

Our ongoing service project aids National Park Service biological staff by removing invasive Sahara mustard plants in an isolated area of the preserve. Sahara Mustard is a non-native species invading the biotic communities of Mojave National Preserve. It poses the risk of lasting harm to the delicate native desert ecosystems by crowding out native Mojave Desert annuals and creating increased fuel loads and fire danger in local vegetation. The project has been planned in early March to both reduce the following year’s growth dramatically by removing these invasive plants before they go to seed, and for the pleasant daytime temps and cool desert evenings.

For more information: http://www.WildernessVolunteers.org