|
Services, Getting There Supplies: Tonopah is 75 miles to the west. Hikes & Trails Related Areas Map Information Benchmark Gazetteer, page 67. |
Wilderness Area Status Wilderness Study Area Management Managing Agency: Bureau of Land Management Area Description This Wilderness Study Area is dominated by an impressive rock formation known as "The Wall," a sheer, vertical face which soars about 2000 feet above the floor of the basin surrounding this mountain massif. This little-known WSA is relatively small, but is spectacular. It is located in the Pancake Range adjacent to the Palisade Mesa WSA and includes a portion of Railroad Valley. The black rock of the Wall extends an imposing barrier along the mesa. Upon scaling the precipitous cliffs one attains the mesa top, a maze cut by a labyrinth of erosion gullies and washes. Bouldering and limited technical rock-climbing routes abound, with numerous chimneys and overhangs to challenge intermediate-to-advanced climbers. Scattered groves of pinyon pine shade the gullies. This wild, untrammeled setting lures explorers into an experience unlike any other. Principal lithology at The Wall is a sequence of densely-welded, ash-flow tuffs. The vertical cliffs eroded from these tuffs guard access to the central mesa, as high as 6,873 feet. The Wall extends around the northern and eastern boundaries of the WSA Scattered groves of pinion pines and scrub provide habitat for bighorn sheep, as well as deer, mountain lion, and bobcat. Cliff faces provide good nesting areas for several species of raptors, including golden eagle. Wildlife: |
Do you like this page?