1st Time Overlanding The Mojave Road

One of the most popular off roading trails in the South West United States. The Mojave road is over 100 miles of dirt that cuts across California with a portion of the road going through the Mojave National Preserve.

The Mojave road was originally used by Native Americans to transport goods to other tribes along the coast.

Signal is off and on throughout the road so make sure to download your maps ahead of time! There are a lot of off shoots so make sure to plan your trip in advanced to see everything you want to see (there are numerous stops along the way) but for this trip we focused mainly on the North side of the preserve going from Cima, CA down and west toward Afton Canyon/I-15 where we eventually ended the trail.

Along the way we visited:

1. Old Mine area / Good camp spot for a larger group with a nice view. There is a natural spring that runs nearby causing a lot of growth (green grass!) Coordinates: 35.169060, -115.648115

2. Mohave Mailbox and its interesting collections of Frogs, Gnomes and Cars Coordinates: 35.185370, -115.692799

3. Lava Tubes – This was awesome to see and experience walking around in the caves/tubes Coordinates: 35.213603, -115.753235

4. Travelers Monument on Soda Lake within the Mojave National Preserve – Make sure to bring a rock with you to drop off at the Monument for Good Luck! Coordinates: 35.130801, -116.095459

5. Afton Canyons – lots of dispersed campsites along this route within the canyon but there is an establish Campground closer to I-15 with bathrooms. You can get to the Afton campground without doing the River crossing. Coordinates (where the bridge is that starts Afton Canyon): 35.042776, -116.309482

6. Where we Camped Coordinates: 35.022904, -116.352008

7. Water crossing (2x) to make our way toward Afton Campground which sits at the top of the ridge close to the I-15 by Baker. The crossing was doable by stock vehicles (at this time) sometimes the water could get higher at some points during the year! River crossing 1: 35.030907, -116.366554

8. River Crossing 2 (on the way to Afton Campground): 35.037479, -116.380860 Trail Ends at I-15 Coordinates: 35.069502, -116.410804

All in all this was a great trip! Minus the 60 MPH winds we saw within Afton Canyon but still a good time with great people from the Vegas Overlanding Group!

Groups must be 6 vehicles or less (unless you get a permit) which will allow you to travel with more than 6 rigs throughout the Mojave National Preserve. Make sure to pack out whatever you pack in because there are NO facilities along the road (not even a bathroom/pit toilets until you get to or leave Afton Canyon)