We’ve spent a few weeks in Death Valley over our years on the road since it’s warm in the winter. So we’ve already done a lot of what there is to do in the area. This two week stay we did a lot of new things including this ride out to Skidoo.
Skidoo was initially named “23 Skidoo”, an early 20th-century slang term meaning to “go away” or “take off”. The postal service refused to accept “23” as part of the name. The historic town of Skidoo depended on the output of the Skidoo Mine, a venture operating between 1906 and 1917. The mine produced about 75,000 ounces of gold, worth at the time more than $1.5 million. Skidoo possessed the only milling plant in the desert operated almost completely by water power. The construction of the water pipeline to get to the mine was a phenomenal engineering feat. The Skidoo Stamp Mill is built on a steep hillside which slopes 3,000ft down to the canyon. We hiked around to see it and it looks like some work is being done to restore the bottom so it doesn’t collapse.
The first part of this ride is a climb on pavement. If you want to cut this out, you can park off the pavement wherever you can find a pullout. Once you hang a left at the dirt road to the mine, it’s quiet with little to no traffic. A jeep passed us and that’s it. The gravel/dirt road is sandy in some sections and quite washboardy in others. We rode mountain bikes because it’s more comfortable and I’m glad we did. Sure, they are slower, but the full suspension helps over these rough roads.
The views get better and better as you head up to the ridge. Indeed, the view down to the floor below are amazing. It was a bit cloudy the day we rode but still, you could see the salt flats below and the snowy surrounding peaks. What I like the most about this ride is it’s a FAST decent back to the start…even with all the washboard bumps.
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