Pilot Knob

On the old twenty mule team route from the Harmony Borax Works to Mojave, the 165 mile dirt trail passed by Pilot Knob, a natural landmark that helped the teams and other Mojave Desert travelers and explorers orient themselves while in this extremely remote region. Pilot Knob is located about seven miles northeast of Blackwater Well, the first watering stop for the team from Mojave. In today’s vastly different world, Pilot Knob lies just inside the China Lake Naval Weapons Center, and is therefore off limits to all civilian folks.

Due to Pilot Knob’s large size and distinctive flat top shape, it remains visible from the outside region. We will recognize it by the noticeable two white bands that run horizontally across its upper steep slopes. There are a few ways to view this landmark by dirt road, perhaps the most direct of which is to take the Steam Wells road east from the paved Trona road, about three miles north of Red Mountain. This road skirts the southern border of the Golden Valley Wilderness Area.