Round Trip Distance: 0.4 miles
Difficulty: Easy
Elevation: 2601 - 2650 feet
Cellphone: 0 bars
Time: 30 mins.
Trailhead: near Campsite #19
Fee: none
Attractions: pictographs
The Jawbone Canyon Pictographs are in the Jawbone Off Highway Vehicle Area about 24 miles north of Mojave, California. The site includes a couple of small panels of images.
To get there from Mojave head north on CA-14 for 19.2 miles and turn left onto the Nine Mile Canyon Road. You could also enter Jawbone Canyon OHV Area into your driving app for turn-by-turn directions.
After turning off of CA-14 follow the paved Nine Mile Canyon Road for 5.4 miles to campsite #19. At the turn into the campsite there is an old short road the parallels the pavement. Unless you are going to rent the campsite pull up onto this old road and park.
The pictographs are up the side canyon to the left of campsite #19.
There are at least 2 small panels higher up on the face of the cliff. Once you find the larger panel it should be easier to find the other.
This might be an anthropomorphic image with various geometric lines and shapes.
Some small lines of black paint can be seen that must have added some significant meaning to the rest of the image.
There was also some white paint used in what might be some concentric circles. The white lines probably aren't chalk because none of the other images are outlined.
For the panel that is down a little lower on the cliff it is hard for us to make out much of anything other than a vague basket pattern.
When we hiked into the short side canyon we crossed over to the right hand side and began following the wash but ended up reaching a spot that was choked with brush and had to scramble about to get around it. On the hike out we stuck to the other side of the wash and found the hiking much easier. At one time the road that we parked on may have extended all the way into the wash to where someone was piping water out of the spring. There isn't a lot to see at the Jawbone Canyon site but if you are in the area it is only 10 minutes off of CA-14 and pretty easy to find once you get there. If you would like to see it for yourself then all you have to do is 'Take a hike'.
