Mojave National Preserve Opens New Visitor Center

Kelso Depot, newly transformed into the principal information center for Mojave National Preserve.

After years of restoration efforts, Kelso Depot Information Center is now open. The historic depot, which once served as a train station, lunch room and employee dormitory has been transformed into Mojave National Preserve’s chief information center.

Kelso Station, located "235 track miles from Los Angeles," seemed a veritable oasis to passengers crossing the desert by train. This photo shows the station a few years before restoration efforts began.

Autumn and winter are fine seasons for touring and hiking in the preserve. Located in the heart of a huge desert wonderland that includes the nearby Kelso Dunes, the new information center is open Thursday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (National Park Service plans call for the center to open seven days a week beginning in March, 2006.)

The depot's former dormitory rooms feature exhibits that highlight the history and natural history of the surrounding desert: mining, ranching, sand dunes and the desert tortoise. Period furnishings in the old baggage room, ticket office and other rooms evoke the feel of railroad travel in the early decades of the twentieth century. The new information center also boasts a theater, bookstore, restrooms and a picnic area.

While the trek up the Kelso Dunes might be slow going, the quick trip down is guaranteed to make you feel like a carefree kid.

Located at the intersection of Kelbaker Road and Kelso-Cima Road (Mojave’s two primary trans-preserve roads), the new Kelso Depot information center is an ideal place to begin exploring this vast parkland. Surely one of the most spectacular and popular sights is Kelso Dunes. This 45-square-mile formation of magnificently sculpted sand dunes is among the most extensive dune fields in the West. Some dunes tower over 700 feet high.

The Kelso Dunes provide a fine vantage point from which to gain a stunning view of the preserve. But to get to the top of the shifting sands requires some hard work. Although the hike is short (3 miles round trip with a 400-foot elevation gain), it’s somewhat demanding; there’s a lot of two step forward, one step back kind of progress, especially as you near the top of the ridge. Take your time, and enjoy the experience; it’s not everyday you get to play in a giant sandbox!

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