197204 Desert Magazine 1972 April

8/14/2019 197204 Desert Magazine 1972 April

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APRIL 1972 50c

* j^^^Jm


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A LAND THAT'S

Witch in Circle Cliffs, 60 miles east of Escalante.

L

erent:E S C A L A N T E C O U N T R YSkeptical? We don't blame you.We've all heard it before: the superlative clcdmsthat somehow don't hold up. For this reason we're go-ing to stick to facts facts more exciting than themost grandiose, glowing descriptions.Here's why Escalante Country is DIFFERENT: Youwill find a wide variety of scenery and activity. Withinminutes from Escalante you can climb to tall-timbered,lake-studded mountains; penetrate the deep labyrinthof canyons; descend to desert levels and view newly-formed Lake Powell.Activities? To name a few: all-year hunting of moun-tain lion and predators; all-year fishing on Lake Pow-ell; seasonal deer and bird hunting as well as lake andstream fishing.An infinite choice of objects and scenes for the photog-rapher and artist. Numerous petrified forests, fossilbeds, dinosaur graveyards for the rockhoundand pebblepup. Wilderness trails for hikers andr^j^J equestrians.Tfi So, what else is DIFFERENT? Here, we think, isthe most important difference of all: EscalanteCountry is Unspoiled no smog, no chemicalsin our water, no parking meters, no trafficlights. First class and friendly accommodations.

Standing Log (petrified). Circle Cliffs. Sunset Valley, 15 miles from Escalante.Interested in further details? Write ESCALANTE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, Escalante, LJtah


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WILLIAM KNYVETT, PUBLISHERJACK PEPPER, EDITORGEORGE BRAGA, Art DirectorMARY FRANCES STRONG. Field Trip EditorENID C. H O W A R D . Utah Associate EditorG LEN N V A RG A S . Lapidary EditorK. I.. B O Y N T O N , NaturalistJACK DEL AN BY. Staff Writer Volume 35, N umber 4 APRIL, 1972

CONTENTSF E A T U R E S

TH E CO V ER:Storm clouds above South-ern California' s M oi av pDesert accentuate the bril-liant California poppies inAntelope Valley. See page22 in this issue for a tripthrough the area and a viewof the wildflowers. Photoby David Muench. SantaBarbara, California.

TRAIL TO DRUID ARCHSIDE -BLOTCHED LIZARD

JUNGLES OF SAN BLASLAVISH LEGACY OF LUCKY BA LDW IN

WEEK END DESERTNOCTURNAL SHUTTERBUGS

SPRING SPLENDOR IN ANTELOPE VALLEYMYSTERIOUS YAQUI INDIAN RITUALS

GHOSTLY KILNS OF COCHRAN

Enid C. HowardK. L. BoyntonJack DelaneyR. Daniel ClarkGeorge KehetvWalter FordMary Frances StrongBernice JohnstonArnold Tilden

D E P A R T M E N T SA PEEK IN THE PUBLISHER'S POKE

BOOK REVIEWSCALENDAR OF EVENTS

DESERT LIFERA M BLIN G O N RO CK S

N EW P RO D U CTSLETTERS TO TH E EDITOR

William KnyvettJack PepperClub ActivitiesHans BaerwaldGlenn and Martha VargasItems of InterestReaders' Comments

ELTA SHIVELY, Executive Secretary MARVEL BARRETT. Circulation Manager

EDITORIAL, CIRCULATION AND ADVERTISING OFFICES: 74-109 Larrea St . , Palm Deser t , Cal ifornia 92260. Telephone Area Code714 346-8144 . Listed in Standard Rate and Da ta. SU BS CR IPT ION R AT ES: U nited States, Canada and M exico; 1 year, $5.00; 2 years,$9.50; 3 years $13.00. Other foreign subscribers add $1.00 U.S. currency for each year. See Subscription Order Form in this issue. Allowfive weeks for change of address and send both new and old addresses with zip codes. DESERT Alagazine is published monthly. Secondclass postage paid at Palm Desert, California and at additional mailing offices under Act of March 3, 1879. Contents copyrighted 1972by DESERT Magazine and permission to reproduce any or all contents musi be secured in writing. Unsolicited manuscripts and photo-graphs WIL L N O T BE RET UR NE D unless accompanied by a self-addressed and stamped envelope.


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A P e e ki n theP u b l i s h e r ' sP o k e

i T'S THAT time of the year again whenromance is in the air and young men'sfancy turns to love. Humorous rhymessuch as:

Spring is here, the grass is riz;I wonder where the birdies iz?

are on a lot of lips. Well, the birds .are onthe wing and the wildflowers are in bloomin Antelope Valley and with that in mindou r Field Trip Editor, Mary FrancesStrong, has compiled a comprehensivearticle on the Antelope Valley, describingits historical background, present-day rec-reational areas, an d an in-depth treat-

ment of the wildflowers, which, when the weather condit ions are right, present an awe-inspiring scene to motivate both professional and amateur photographers. This year, atpress t ime, the wildflower bloom appears favorable, with a good fall of snow in Decem-ber and with a l i t t le addit ional moisture should produce a better-than-average crop.

Our good friend, Jack Hesemeyer, long-time supervisor of the Anza-BorregoDes ert State Park , has been transferre d to Sacram ento. His successor is Ma urice " Bu d"Getty, who at one t ime was the Anza-Borrego Park naturalist .

Anza-Borrego comes in for a little tongue-in-cheek treatment from artist-author George Kehew, whose article on pages 18 and 19 could well augur the state ofthings to come what with vandalism on the increase and desert areas becoming morepopular with each passing year.

W e we re very sad to hear of the untim ely d eath of B ern ice John ston whosearticle Mysterious Yatfiti Indian Rituals appears on page 26. Mrs. Johnston was associ-ated with the Arizona State Museum and was considered an authority on Indians ofthe West. She will be missed by her many friends and admirers.

Due to a shortage of "First Notice" forms we have been forced to send outrenewal notices on "Second Notice" forms causing thousands of subscribers to thinkthat they were losing their memory as they received the second and didn't rememberever seeing the first notice. The error has been rectified and our apologies to all thosewho were confused.

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B o o kR e v i e w sby Jack Pepper

All books reviewed are available throughDesert Magazine Book Shop

GOLDAND SILVERIN THEWESTByT. H . W at kins

There have been many excellent bookswritten about the search for gold and sil-ver in California, Nevada and Arizona,all of which highlighted the colorful pastin each individual state or territory.

This is the first volume, to this re-viewer's knowledge, where an author hasattem pted - - and succeeded - in present-ing the entire saga of the search for valu-able ore throughout the entire W^est.

After reading this book, I felt I finallyhad put together the entire jigsaw puzzle,whereas before there were many missingpieces which resulted in voids in the over-all picture.

The main parts of the mining puzzle arethe Mother Lode in California, the Com-stock in Nevada and the various mines,such as the Vulture, in Arizona. The voidsare the Appalachian Gold Fields on theeast coast, Mexico mainland, Baja, Ore-gon, Brit ish Columbia, Alaska and otherfields about which little has been written.

Starting with the conquest of what isnow Mexico by Cortes which began in1519 and Coronado's later search for the"Seven Cities of Cibola", the author takesyou on an adventure throughout the Westwhich ends with the advent of today'stechnological mining corporations.

Author of four other successful books,including The Grand Colorado an d Th eStory of a River and its Canyons. Wat k i nsis not only a learned historian and re-searcher, but a writer who has the abilityto make the reader feel he is actually par-ticipating and living in this colorful areaof the old West.

As indicated in the subtitle of the book,The Illustrated History of an AmericanDream, the author not only describes theviolent and dramatic history of the frus-trating search, but analyzes and dissectsthe underlying reasons which caused hun-dreds of thousands of men from all walksof life to leave their homes in search ofgold. Only a handful found the GoldenFleece. His description of the hardships,frustrations and fanatical determinationof these men who refused to give up thesearchmoving from one discovery toanotheris vibrant and moving.

In addition to the excellent writing,the book is profusely illustrated with rareold pictures plus four-color photographsof the mining camps as they appear today.This book is highly recommended forthose who want to put together the fas-cinating jigsaw puzzle of the search forgold and silver in the West.

Large format, heavy slick paper, hard-cover, 287 pag es, Si 7.50.

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f A N D O FP O C O T I E M P OByCharles F,JMm mis

A Llarvard graduate and newspaper-man, Charles Lummis in 188'i walked3.507 miles in 143 days from Cincinnati,Ohio to Los Angeles where he assumedthe duties as city editor of the Los Angeleslimes.

The dramatic account of his experiencesduring the hike in which he was accom-panied only by his dog (who later turnedmad and attacked Lummis) is told in hisTramp Across the Continent first publish-ed in 1892. (It has since been republishedand is available through Desert MagazineBook Shop.)

For three years Lummis worked nightand day as editor of the Times. As a re-sult he suffered a stroke and brain clotwhich paralyzed his left side. He went toNew Mexico as an invalid and within afew years he completely regained hishealth (to test it he later climbed a19,000-foot volcano in Peru) and duringthis t ime explored New Mexico, l ivingwith the Indians.

Land of Poco Tiempo {Poco Tiempois Spanish for "pre tty soo n" ) is not onlyhis experiences in New Mexico, but alsohis Thoreau-like observations of the land

and Indians he learned to love and respect.First published in 1893, and now avail-

able in paperback, the book is a combina-tion of his adventures and his observa-tions relative to the Indian cultures whichare enlightening today in view of thewhite man's guilty complex relative towhat his predecessor once called "Red-skins."

Lummis later returned to Los Angelesand was the organizer and founder of theSouthwest Museum, one of many civic,historical and archeological projects whichexist today as a result of his determinationto explore life. Even after blindness over-took him, he compiled a book of hispoems which were published just beforehis death in 1910.

The reprint of Land of Poco Tiempo isexactly as the first edition with a newforeward by Paul A. F. W alte r, Ne wMexico historian and author. Paperback,236 pages, $2.45.Books reviewed may be orderedfrom the DESERT Magazine BookOrder Department, Palm Desert,California 92 26 0. P lease include50c for handling. California resi-dents must add 5% sales tax.

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h e T r a i l t o D r u i dA r c hby Enid C. Howard


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NOT TO O many visi tors to Canyon-lands National Park in southeast-ern Utah are aware of the well plannedand marked trails for hikers that pene-trate into the heart of this newest of ournational parks.

One of the most rewarding of thesefoot trails offers two points-of-departuretrail heads, and ends at impressive DruidArch in Elephant Canyon. Druid Arch isnot accessible by jeep, so those whowould visit this unusual Canyonlandstreasure must walk through deep andsilent corridors, to stand bedazzled andamazed at the very size of Druid.

The trail that begins at Squaw Flats iswon derfully scenic, with a variety of ter-rain to please the most avid hikers. Itmight be a bit too long for the novice tocomplete the round trip of 13 miles inone day, as it requires a minimum of tenhours hiking, even though the trail is aneasy one. Summertime daylight hours al-low plenty of time to do the trip withouthurry. This writer and her hiking part-

ner walked the distance in nine hoursFrom campground B at Squaw Flats

the long trail gets off to a good start bywinding up a narrow canyon, then ascendsa slickrock shelf where we used the stepscut into the steep wall of sandstone andgrasped a steel cable handrail to arrive atthe top of the first ridge. The trail hasbeen planned to give the hiker the bestwith an hour at the Arch to lunch andtake pictures. Some visitors might wantto carry a light overnight pack and ex-perience Canyonlands under the stars.

There is a shorter trail to Druid outof Chesler Park that requires five hoursto complete the six mile round trip. It isnecesary to jeep into the Chesler Parkarea to the Joint Crevasse Trail head, hikethe Joint Trail into Chesler, (45 minutes)then across the Park to the campgroundon the east side where a directional signstarts the hiker on his way. The two trailsmeet in the bottom of Elephant Canyon.Both trails are marked by large stonecairns that are easy to follow, directionalsigns and signs that direct to water.

views from each ridge that must be cross-ed, and it is wise to follow cairns so therewill be no need to back track.

The trail will cross wide meadows lushwith desert grasses, ascend and descendnarrow crevasses. In one of the fissures agnarled, shaggy cedar tree has grown verytall and slender as it reached for life giv-ing sunshine within its narrow prisonwalls. Another steep crevice contains aneat flight of log steps constructed bythe park rangers. The cairnsour silentguidesled us over wide rolling shelvesof dark iron-red sandstone, under ledgesand down the sides of slickrock knobbydomes, up and down steps of crossbeddedforma tions. W e crossed three canyons andfour ridges so there was a bit of easyclimbing involved before reaching Ele-phant Canyon.

Always along the path we paused toabsorb the vistas that unfolded below andin the distance as we topped each succes-sive ridge. This trail penetrates into thevery heart of the Needles Country of theNational Park. It is incredibly beautiful.

Shaped like part of the wallsof an ancient temple

resembling the ruins ofEngland's prehistoric

megalithic Stonehenge,Druid Arch is ^GQ feet highand appeared ''unbelievably

massive" to the author asshe rounded a bend and sawI lie arch silhouetted against

the Utah sky. The hikethrough this section of

Canyonlands National Park(right) traverses numerous

streams beds. Photosby the author.


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Vein broil walks through anarrow crevasse, one of the many

unusual geological formationsencountered during the hike

to Druid Arch.

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kangaroo rats, lizards and rabbits- thesigns of their nocturnal travels. The showyblue f light of pinon and bush jays, ortheincense aroma of the canyons. The feel-in g of happiness for all living things thatsurround us as we walked with the sunwarm on our shoulders .

W h e n we readied Elephant Canyonthe cairns followed the stream bed mostof the last two miles, but there wereplaces where the path led up the side ofthe canyon because of deep water holesthat blocked our way. As we progressed,the walls became increasingly higher andvertical, splendidly weathered and lum-inous.We r ounded a bend and Druid Archstood high above on its pedestal a firstthought - that it is unbelievably massive.It is, for it stands three hundred and sixtyfeet high! Its shape is rather like part ofthe walls of an ancient temple with col-umns suppor t ing por t ions of a roof.

It has been likened to the ruins ofStonehenge on Salisbury Plain, south cen-tral Wiltshire, England. Perhaps thosewho named Druid Arch thought of theorder of priests or teachers or religion inancient Gaul, Britain and Ireland who


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Elephant Canyon hasdeep water boles and brilliantlycolored sandstone formationsmaking it appear like afairyland.

were called Druids, and placed them atthe Stonehenge location.There is a trail that turns left up atalus slope to a ledge which brought usalmost on a level with the lower base ofthe arch- this ledge should be treatedwith respect as a careless misstep wouldsend one down the steep wall. There isa good view of the Arch from this vantagepoint, and it created a different perspec-tive of the perpendicular lines of the sur-rounding walls.A map of the Park Foot Trails and jeeproads may be obtained at the Ranger Sta-tion in Squaw Flats where visitors mustregister. State how long you expect to begone, in which area you will hike, and in-quire as to the water situation in the can-yons as it will vary with the season. Wateris the most precious element in the semi-arid (anyonlands Country and park rang-ers ask that hikers refrain from using thesmall water basins to swim in or washclothing as other hikers will need thewater for drinking.Hiking Canyonlands National Park foottrails will be a new delight for the firsttime visitors to this land of contrasts, withits "slickrock" dunes that hold exquisite

natural rock gardens in hidden coves. Itssandy stream beds that trail silver ribbonsof water after a summer shower or its pal-ette of color that changes with each hourof sunlight. Yes, all these the hiker willremember, and they will call him back .Q

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10/44

TheSide-blotchedLizardT i n y ,

ButT o u g h !by K. L. Boynton

THE SIDE-BLOTCHED lizard is one ofthe smaller l izards dwelling in thedesert lands of the Southwest, being onlyabout two and one-half inches long, notcounting his tail. Let it be here recorded,however, that Uta stansburiana is one ofthe toughest . He stands for no nonsensefrom others of his own kind, nor is hedaunted by the might of the great desert.

His species is abundant in a variety ofadverse desert conditions, each local pop-ulation adapting neatly to the differentsoil, vegetation and altitude conditionsin their particular area. They dress in dif-ferent patterns that seem best to fit thebackround scenery, and they regulate theirbehavior to make the most of bad con-ditions around them. They all carry thetribal badgea distinctive dark spot oneach side just back of the armthe dark-blotch from whence spots their commonname. And, they all subscribe to the Uta

clan motto: "Live alone and like it."Yes, Utas are anti-social. Each one of

these little lizards, fellows and gals alike,sets up a private territory. Those claimedby males a re abo ut .1 I acre in size, thoseof females much smaller, .03 acre. Boun-dary lines are policed with vigor. FromMarch to mid-August, intruders of thesame sex get the bum's rush, the ladiesbeing as adept at tossing female inter-lopers out of their domains as the gentle-men are at expelling male intruders.

Scientists view with interest this strongterritorial behavior, particularly since itturns out upon further investigation thatthere's a loophole in the apparently iron-clad Uta scheme. While the large terri-tories of the gentlemen never overlap, itjust may happen that a goodly portion ofa smaller territory claimed by a lady liv-ing next door so to speak lies within thedomain of a male. Naturally enough, who


11/44

Although one of thesmaller desert dwellers,

Ihe Side-blotched lizard istough and can survive

under the most adverseconditions. They are ,

loners'' as far as otherlizards are concerned.Averaging only aboutfour inches long, the

gender have different ;markings. The male

(opposite page) is dotted vwhereas the female and S

her hatchling (right) '.have murks down

their backs.

would be so ungallant as to point out to;>. lady that her property survey was inerror? And so it seems that under suchconditions, ,1 more neighborly att i tudebetween these two is apt to exist.

In fact, the chances are exceedinglygood that encounters between the residentmale going about his daily business andth e lad)' dwelling partial ly within his ter-ritory will become increasingly frequent.This is a matter with plenty of social con-sequence, since females are receptive toovertures only at certain t imes. Further-more, what with the local lad's constantpatroll ing of his lines, the chance thatthis lady will meet other non-resident

imales diminishes immediately.

What emerges from all this territorialsystem is first of all a spacing out of thelocal population that makes the most ofthe grocery supply in a sparse environ-ment, a real advantage both for the indi-vidual lizard and the species. But thensomething else is also achieved, largelydu e to the loopnole: a kind of monogam-ous situation since the same two lizardstend to pair during the breeding seasonto produce the customary three batches ofyoung per season.

Uta ' s day begins shortly after sunrise.Pushing out of the sand where he's beenburied all night, he basks in the warmi ng

rays of the sun. Being a lizard he is amember of the cold blooded brotherhood,unable to manufacture enough heat with-in his body for much activity. Turningthis way and that to expose the greatestpart of his body to the sun, he warms upfairly quickly since he is so small. Nowhe's ready for the day's work, which con-sists mainly of eating as the opportunityoffers, basking in the sun, resting in theshade, moving from plant to plant, andpatroll ing his boundary lines.

Utas are not active foragers, nor needthe)' be. Staying around sheltering plantsas is so characteristic of (hem, they finda good food suppl) at hand, since insects

11


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also hang about plants. Black ants, beetles,grasshoppers, caterpil lars are snapped upquickly. One female was observed to tuckaway 25 to 30 ants merely as a snack whileresting under a yucca during the heat ofthe day. Utas are particularly fond of leaf-hoppers, and eat so many of these that inNevada they are considered of prime eco-nomic importance in controll ing these in-sects on beets.In moving about Utas travel quickly,legging it from one sheltering plant tothe next. Tinkle found that the averagerunning speed was about 6 mph whichcould be sustained long enough to crossthe short spaces between shelters. And inthis matter, the particular location of thepopu lation m akes a big difference in howUtas make out. Texas Utas living in vege-tation areas where low mesquite, yuccassandsage, broomweed plants grow ratherclosely together, are seldom caught bybirds, since they are not actually out in theopen very long when going betweenplants. Alexander and Whitford in theirstudy showed that it was a quite differentstory for Utas dwelling in New Mexicoon creosote flats where wide spaces occurbetween plants. Here the lizards are forcedto be out in the open more and, speedy

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as the}' are, are caught handily by bothsparrow hawks and shrikes.

Utas are subject to pre dation 2-1 hoursa day. Snakes of various sortsrattlers,coachwhips, glossy snakesare quick tocatch them. There are also the larger leo-pard lizards around who, highly predatoryan d very fast on their feet, account formany a Uta demise among both the adultsand the hatchlings. Mortality is high, butUtas stay in business. Each female laysabout I 2 eggs durin g the season, and atleast 20 percent of the hatchlings make itsuccessfully to maturity, which is reachedabout four months after hatching.

T he youngsters are less than one inchlong when they first emerge from theshell and live on the yolk still clinging tothem for the first few days. Growth isslow at first, then steps up in speed, theyoung shedding their skin frequently asthey increase in size.Growth of the tail is very importantsince this appendage is of big use in es-caping predators. Like many lizards, Utashave fracture points in their tails at whichthe tail is easily broken. The portion ofth e tail beyond the break parts companywith the body, and many a lizard oweshis life to leaving part of his tail behind.Fast regeneration of the lost part is im-portant, for a lizard needs his tail notonly for future escape tactics but also forbalance, fat storage, fighting and mating.About a week after a break occurs, a cal-lous forms at the spot, and after this re-growth becomes rapid until the lost por-tion of the tail is replaced. Regenerationis quickest if the break occurs near thebase; slowest if just the tip end is lost.

Besides producing three batches ofyoung, Utas have another reproductiveadva ntage a special form of delayed

Palm DesertStationers

12


13/44

fertilization. Anatomist Cuellar , checkinginto this, found that sperm from a m at ingis stored in the female's body and remainsactive at least 81 days. This is about thetime needed for the deve lopm ent of twoclutches of eggs. A clutch is m ade up offour eggs, and each clutch is formed se-parately in the ovaries and kid .About 50days after the first clutch, the second isready. Thus the stored sperm, still active,can fertilize the second clutch, if need be.This could well be a ::actor in maintainingUta numbers , for while the males slowdown productively about the m iddle ofJuly, the females can go r ight on and layanother clutch even considerably later ,fertilized by this s ingle mating.

Late afternoon is the period of mostactivity among Utas, the l izards movingabout considerably, feeding and patrol l ingtheir boundaries. Most social contacts aremade at this time, since everybody isabroad and challenge s, bluffing, f ightingtake place now, and indeed wooing, too.In late evening the lizards bask again inthe sinking rays of the sun, and as the aircools down, seem tobecome quite nervous,moving about a lmost contant ly a l thoughonly for a distance of a foot or so at atime, f inal ly when the air temperature isdown to about 77 degrees, the lizards re-tire. Pushing their snouts into the sandand shoving with their hind legs, theybury their entire bodies. By sunset every-body' s gone to bed.

Actually one reason why these lizardsget along so well in their deadly desertsur r oundings is that as lizards go they arerather sedentary, spending so much t imesitting, either basking in the sun or rest-in g in the shade. Hence their energy bud-get is low. Food is handy, so nobig effortis required to get something to eat . Aboutthe only time spurts of energy are neededare in racing from plant to plant , or in thelate afternoon activity session of boundarypatrols. Long periods of inactivity during

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the heat of the day conserves body mois-ture andkeeps the lizards cooler. On earthas early as 10million years ago, Utas havelearned how toadjust behaviorly formaxi-mum comfort under exceedingly bad con-di t ions . As a species, however, they areshort- lived; the average length of a nor-mal life span of an individual being onlyabout twoyears.

Ironically, this short life may be a key tothe future survival of the species in thesedays when man is so busy spoiling thingsin the world about him. Studies aregoingon now in the areas around Jackass Flats,N e v a d a at theU.S. Atomic Energy Com-mission's Test Site, that point in this dir-ection. The whole terrain here has beenexposed to low levels of gamma radiat ion,and the investigations are aimed at f ind-in g out what hashappened to the vegeta-tion andwildlife because of it. It has beendiscovered already, for instance, that fe-male leopard lizards are sterile after threeyears exposu re. In this area, therefore, leo-pard lizards are on their way out. Here inthis spot, because of radiation, this par-ticular species is f inished.

But the side-blotched Uta clan appar-ently survive the radiation without notice-able ill effects, the females still beingfound to be fertile. This is due to theirmuch shorter life span. During the twoyears each female Uta lives, she receivesfar less radiation than the dose accumulat-ed by the female leopard lizards duringtheir longer life span of eight or nineyears.

So in the last analysis, the little Utasmay have the last laugh on their arch ene-mies the leopard lizards, and incidentally,on man himself.

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14/44

by Jack Delaney

A WELCOMING PARTY of a milliondiminutive, but ferocious, flyinginsects awaits you upon your arrival atSan Bias, M exico- -especially around sun-down ! This is the wa rnin g yo u' ll hear,and read, when you plan a trip to thistropical paradise.

Yet, during an enjoyable stay in the vil-lage and a thrilling jungle r iver cruise,we were not invaded by these little f lyingbeasts. Possibly the answer is they prac-tice their skin-game along the beach ex-clusively; or that they prefer the humidsummer season for "doing their sting!"

San Bias, in the state of Nayarit, is onthe west coast of Mexico about 180 milessouth of Mazatlan. Should you want todrive the approximate 1,000 miles fromthe United States border to this tropicalcom mu nity, you II find paved roads allthe way. fust follow Mexican Highway1 5 throug h many interesting cities andtowns, to the San Bias turnoff at Km 941(about 20 miles nor th of Tepic) . Turnright at the clearly marked junction anddr ive through 21 miles of lush, greenvegetation to the village.

Here, you' ll have an opportunity tothrill to the real thing, after having seenartif icial r ides at Disneyland and otheramusement parks in the United States.Dress casually, and be sure to bring yourcamera and a supply of color film. If youown binoculars or field glasses, bring14

them for close-up viewing of the uniquespecimens of wildlife relaxing in theirown wor ld.

A portion of our tr ip was made by bus;and we learned that first class buses inMexico are truly first class. They featuretwo dr ivers who take turns dr iving; arest room; drapes on the windows; musicby radio and hi-fi; an ice-chest stockedwith cokes (free to first class passengers) ;meal stops; reserved seats, and low fares.W e rode from M azatlan to Tepic for ap-proximately 50 pesos ($4.0 0) for two.The bus from Tepic to San Bias, also firstclass, cost only 15 pesos ($1 .20 ) for two.

Our choice of living quarters in SanBias was the Bucanero Hotel because wehad heard that it was probably the best.We were greeted by a Senor Martinez,who led the way to the hotel and bookedus for a jungle excursion the next morn-ing. He quoted us a price of 60 pesos($4 .80 ) for two, which we thou ght wasreasonable for a two hour cruise.

The Bucanero is located a block fromthe village plaza. It has a pretty patio,swimming pool and beautiful tropicalgardens. The rate for a twin-bed room fortwo is 50 pesos ($4.00) per nightandis worth it! There is no hot water at anytime; no glass in the windows (onlyscreens) ; no insulat ion between rooms;no heating or air condit ioning; but therooms are clean.

The few other hotels in the village andat the beach, some with a number of trail-er spaces, are not considered to be firstclass. W e enjoyed good food in the Bu-canero dining room and the prices werereasonable. A typical breakfast costs 24pesos (SI .92) for two, and it alwaysstarts with a local banan a com plim entsof the house! Dinners run around 50pesos ($4 .00 ) for two, and featureddishes include venison, cluck, turtle, steak,lobster, shrim p and oysters all productsof the area.

San Bias was an important Spanish portduri ng the I 6th and 1 7th centuries, witha population of 30,000. It was visited bymission aries Father Kin o and funiperoSerra. Also, the pirate, Sir Francis Drake,made an appearance or two. Today, it isa quaint f ishing village consisting of 1 5or 20 business places encircling its plaza,a cathedral, a few hotels and eating placesand several blocks of native homes. Thereare many picturesque palm- thatchedhouses scattered within a radius of severalmiles around the town.

The major attraction here is the jungleriver cruise in an outboard motorboat.What appears to be an impenetrable thick-et of tropical vegetation is pentrated bya skilled pilot, bringing you in closetouch with a mass of mango, papaya, andmangrove trees; coconut palms; bananatrees; bamboo and reeds.


15/44

Much of it is covered v/ith ferns andwild orchids, with native lilies growingeverywhere. You' ll see parakeet nestshanging from the Irees and many exoticbirds f lying or restingwith their eyeson you! The cruise leads to a picturesquelanding, with a refreshment stand, at theheadwaters of the lagoon.

W e enjoyed every mile of the tr ip, sit-ting at the bow of the boat, with SenorMar t inez at the controls. He cut off themotor whenever I raised my camera for apicture (a courtesy 1 ap pre cia ted ), andeven called our attention to a particularlyattractive picture material along the way.

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The landing and refreshmentstand at the headwaters of theSan Bias lagoon looks like atropical paradise.

In addition to the fabulous jungle r ivercruises, this region offers an opportunityfor water sports along a f ine ocean beach.Also, bird-watchers will be interested tolearn that thousands of water birds liveon the offshore islands. Peter C. Aldenof the Tucson Audubon Society, recentlyreported 299 different species of birdsobserved. Boat excursions to these islands

can be arranged, and the rates charged arenot out of line.When you reach the point where you

are becoming bored with your routineand wish you were out in the jungle, awayfrom the daily grind- -keep San Bias inmind. You' ll f ind something differentand refreshing here. But regardless ofwhat you read in the first paragraph ofthis article, be sure to bring some insectrepellent along. It is always possible thatyour arrival might coincide with a safariof the little flying monsters, and thatyou might happen to have the kind of skinthey love to touch!

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16/44

I'o enterlam hisfriends, "Lucky"Baldwin built theQueen AnneCottage. Themarble steps andgingerbreadornaments made itI he last word inelegance in LasAngeles during th eturn of the century.

by R. Daniel Clark

16

F EW OF the hundre ds of thousa nds ofmotorists who drive to the SantaAnita rack track in Arcadia, California.are aware that within a few hundredyards of them is one of the most beauti-ful spots in all of Southern California.

Hidden for years from the public, thisbeautiful arboretum of trees, shrubs andflowers is open daily to visitors. It is theheart of the home and grounds of thefabulous E. J. Lucky " Baldw in and hisRancho Santa Anita.

And, as a crazy quilt always has onepatch brighter, odder, lovelier, and moreromantically interesting than the rest, sothis 1 00-acre estate is the most outstand-ing of all of Baldwin's holdings.

Here, giant oaks and bubbling springsset the stage originally, but Baldwin spentmoney lavishly to aid nature in providinga more perfect paradise. He dug wells, en-larged reservoirs and improved the irri-gation system. He planted orchards, vine-yards and fields of various crops. He madean eucalypti-bordered lake out of themarshy cienegaplan ting the first eu-calyptus trees in California.

When Baldwin died in 1909, he waslord and master of an estate, the value ofwhich he but l i t t le dreamed. Even thenthe horticultural aspects of Rancho SantaAnita were tremendous. These includedthe finest orchards of citrus fruits, grapes.

walnuts, peaches, apricots, olives, pears,plums, cherries, persimmons and apples;the corn and alfalfa; the barley and oats.Then, too, there was the expansive watersystem, which conveyed spring waterfrom huge reservoirs to every part of thehomesite. Baldwin so loved the sound ofrunning water that he built several roun-tains among the trees, adjacent to thebuildings.

Thirty-six years after B aldw in's dea th March of 1947 -th e deed to his old home,the outbuilding and the surrounding es-tate was turned over by Rancho SantaAnita, Inc., to the Chairman of the LosAngeles Count) Board of Supervisors.The property had been bought in partner-ship by the State of California and theCounty of Los Angeles for the purpose ofturning the grounds into a public arbore-tum and botanic garden.

Dr. Samuel Ayres, fr., Chairman of theArboretum Committee of the Horticultur-al Institute, in speaking at the presenta-tion about future plans for the project,compared them with those of the KewGardens in London and the New YorkBotanical Gardens.

Here," said Ayres, "will eventuallyflourish the most exotic flowers and treesin the world. We have the opportunity inSouthern California, and particularly inthe arboretum, to grow things which can-


17/44

Cine of the manyfeatures of th e

Santa AnitaArboretum is theAquatic Gardenwith its terraced

pooh. TheArboretum

contains, some ofthe most exoticI lowers and trees inthe world and.although little

known, is open tothe public.

not be grown elsewhere (parts of Floridaexcluded) except under glass." In conclu-sion, he stated that all the garden clubs,the horticultural societies and the birdorganizations in California were interest-ed in th e development of this arboretum.

The horticultural aspects of the arbore-tum are impressive. Palms at Rancho San-ta Anita are the tallest in California, onebeing 108-feet high. A redwood foundhere is also the tallest in the south. Inaddition, rare trees of all kinds prevail.For instance, there is the Ginkgo orMa idenh air Tre e It is the sacred tree ofChina and is the oldest tree in the world'shistory. There arc seven of these beautifultrees at the arboretum.

In thinking of this example of Califor-nia's scenic attractions, one must keep inmind the great fundam ental distinctionbetween a botanic garden or arboretumand a park. A pi blic park is intended toserve hygienic, esthetic and recreationalneeds. And in planning a park the mainconsideration is beauty. No attention needbe paid to the botanical affinities of thetrees and shrubs and herbaceous plants.

Of course beauty is equally essential inan arboretum, but there is the added han-dicap of botanical complications. Also, ina public park plants are sometimes label-ed; in a botanical garden they must be, forit is the primary purpose of the plantations

to be educational. No one ever thinks of apublic park as an educational center, butthat is precisely what an arboretum isan outdoor museum of plant life, aboutwhich is organized a program for the ad-vancement and diffusion of knowledge.

Those who realize the civic and eco-nomic importance of arboriculture, silvi-turc and scientific forestry have alwaysrecognized the great advantages of an ar-oulture and scientific forestry have alwaysthere is no question but what this SouthernCalifornia arboretum has made a tremen-dous contribution to the understandingand appreciation of horticulture to allclasses of people. To the student it hasscientific appeal; to the lay gardener i tshows the use of plant materials, and tothose who have never worked with plants,it is often the stimulation for starting agarden of their own.

In addition to the botanical features ofthe arboretum, there are several interest-ing buildings within the grounds whichwere used in Baldwin's time. For instancehe restored the old adobe that had beenfirst built by Hugo Reid in 1839, andadded a wing himself in 1879.

In order that he might properly enter-tain his friends, Baldwin built the lovelyQueen Anne Cottage which also looks outupon the lake. Its marble steps and "gin-gerbread" ornaments were the last word

in elegance. Inside was even more ele-gance, for here was the paneled bath-room with its enclosed bathtub of lead,its funny commode, and the enclosed lava-tory. This building, also known as theOld Casino, still supports its ornate bell-tower.

Spacious verandas surround the groundfloor and overlook vistas ol sylvan beau-ty. Roulette and card games were playedhere by Baldwin and his friends- notcommercially but for their own amuse-ment. The old safe that guarded Bald-win's fortune is still in on e of the rooms

and still locked!A stone's throw from the Queen Anne

Cottage is the old Coach Barn. One can-not enter its doors without feeling theclock being turned back to an earlier andmore leisurely daw Heavily and carefullybu i l t , t h i s bu i ld ing wi l l s t and fo r gene ra -t i o n s . W ith in , m uch a s it was in the ' 90s .The old carr iage s ta l ls are s t i l l as service-able as the\ ' were 7^ years ago, and are s t i l lt i pped wi th the i r o rna te i ron work . In se tin the design is the date and ma ker ' sn a m e : " 1 8 7 9 S an Francisco, Savage andS o n . "

It is the i r an t iqua te d cha rm com binedwit h the pr iceless col lect io n of f loraabou t them which b r ings thousands o fpeople to see and enjoy the magnificencethat is here .

17


18/44


19/44

W E E K E N D J E S E RWHEN PROVIDENCE placed the Anza-Borrego Desert so close to the metropolitan aof Southern California, she certainly was partial to the desert lover. Unwittingly, in tnew begotten days, this proximity is proving to be the desert's undoing. With the easy swift accessibility offered by freeways, weekending armies of unsympathetic land tramarmed with combustion engines are waging all out war on desert fauna, flora and mineIt would be imprudent to suggest that modern man wean himself from his splug pacifier. Deaf ears listen not to the mass media warning of recreation land plunThe one possible way to save what hasn't yet been ravished is to create a suitable enviment conducive to the appetite of the times. Such an environment is the "Week End DesThis synthetic, indestructible desert park would confine the spoilers while giving them eopportunity to rip and roar about in their multi-wheeled terrain munchers, four-wheflora crunchers, mini and monster rut makers, and all their other anti-ecology blitzers. The "Wee k End Desert" starts with a simple credit card. It ends with the guaran'satisfaction of having spent a profitable weekend ravaging Mother Earth without that dame receiving one blight.

MAP LEGEND1. Charge card gate, restricted to m otorized b litzers and dedicated spoilers.2. Water hole for general polluting.3. Knock down, pop up, indestructible plastic flora.4. Family hiker manikins for maniacal drivers.5. Bottomless pit for terrain rooters.6. Pop up armor-plated fauna cutouts for playing safari.7. Target range for indiscriminate plunkers.8. Whittle table for park cut-ups.9. Historic synthetic ruins for playing "ruin your heritage."10. Doodle boulders for extroverted exhibitionists.11. Plasma-fed elephant tree for axe, sword or pen knife.12. Stuffed furries for sportsmen to ride down and squash.13. Fireproof fan palms for fire nuts.

19


20/44

\ . . -

- ,-. '

^

by Walter forcfw-w probably /usl as surprised as the author when he wandered into the nocturnal shutterbug contraption.

S h u T T E R b u q sM A N Y DESERT denizens forage fortheir food at night and those werarely see. The only signs of their pres-

ence arc tracks across the sand dunes andburrows in which they spend their day-light hours. However, in spite of theirelusiveness, we can record their imageson film and even have them assist inthe picture-taking operations.

To engage in this intriguing phase ofnature photography, we need a camerawith an electronic flash, tripod, a meansof tripping our camera shutter and an ex -tra supply of patience. The easiest setupfor tripping the shutter is a piece ofthread strung across an animal's pathwith one end attached to the shutter re-lease. And while that method is simple toarrange, it can't be recommended for 100perc ent reliab ility. I used it successfullymany times until one of my subjects be-20

came tangled with the thread and tippedmy camera over into the sand.

The replacement for the thread-con-trolled shutter was a beam of infraredlight. A bit of food was placed in an areabefore the camera and a flashlight with ared filter over its lens was located to shine-across the area and into a photocell. Whenan animal walked through the light beamthe photocell actuated a relay which trip-ped the camera shutter and photoflash.

The first photo taken with the light-beam controlled shutter was in front of asmall burrow one night on the MojaveDesert. When developed the negative-showed a blurred image of a kangaroorat. This little animal rates high on thedesert kit fox's bill of fare and the re-markable speed that he uses in trying toescape this natural enemy was dramaticallyshown in the photograph. The flashlight

bulb had an effective duration of only1/200 of a second, yet during that briefinterval the Dipodomys was able to sensea possible danger, then nearly complete aturn to get back to his underground home.

The original light-beam controlled cam-era provided fun and excitement on man}'desert safaris, even though it required fre-quent checking during an evening to seeif the shutter had been tripped. The cam-era was usually set up some distance fromcamp and when it was located in roughterrain, finding it in the dark often creat-ed problems. Recently. I rebuilt the con-trol unit to eliminate that annoyance.

No w, I can relax in camp until an ex-posure has been made. Two seconds afterthe camera shutter has been triggered, alight which may be seen Lip to 500 feetaway signals that a customer has enteredmy outdoor studio, posed for his picture.


21/44

%and departed. At the same time a switchautomatically cuts off battery power toall controls but the signal light, to pre-vent possible damage to them if an ani-mal happens to nudge the light sourceout of line. This would have the same ef-fect as if the light beam were broken dur-ing an exposure operation, except that theflow of current through the relays wouldbe continuous with probable damage fromoverheating.

1 made the test of the improved camerashutter control in my back yard. Twelveyears ago the area was surrounded withchaparral from which small animals wouldcome nightly to get the scraps of food Ihad placed out for them. With the devel-opment of the neighborhood during theintervening years, the number of theirvisits gradually dwindled up to about threeyears ago when they stopped altogether.

An exciting phase of subject-controllednature photography is that you never knowwhat you have captured on film until thenegative has been developed. When I setup the remodeled equipment for its firsttest, I hoped that one of my old animalfriends might retain, but instead the de-veloped negative revealed a black alleycat-a battle-scarred veteran that appar-ently was just pa.sirg through.

1 set up my camera equipment for thefirst field test reiently in the Anza-Bor-rego State Park near what looked like akangaroo rat's burrow. Since the terrainwas rough I plai ed a flat rock over theopening so that it would break the lightbeam if moved i pward. Soon after darkthe signal light indicated an exposure hadbeen made. The lext day, after consider-ing how far 1 hid traveled to make thefirst field test. I returned to the same spot-to take an "insurance" shot.

When the negatives were developed thefirst one taken revealed not the Dipodo-iii)J I expected but a large hairy tarantula.The second negative was equally surpris-ing, but disappointing. It showed howclose I came to getting a one-in-a-thousandpicture. The negative showed a leg of thetarantula reaching out of the burrow anda small scorpion just a few inches away.

It disclosed also my mistake in coveringthe opening with a flat stone. Without itthe camera shutte" would not have operat-ed until the tarantula had climbed abovethe ground, then the perplexing questionwhether the subjects were on a collisioncourse or just going their separate wayswould have beer answered.

' . . { " . - - . * - . ' , > .

^ V ^ ' ^ - " ' * . "

Breaking the photocell (louer right, of picture) light beam, a tarantula (above) isphotographed as he leaves his hole. Rock over the tarantula's hole prevented authorfrom obtaining actual confrontation of tarantula and scorpionor ivas it just afriendly visit?V *

J


22/44

by Mary Frances StrongPhotos by Jerry Strong

C L O R N I A POPPIESSplerjdofin^nte lopeYELLOW BUSH GOLDEN POPPIES


23/44

POPPIES AND OWL'S CLOVER CLUMPS OF LUPINE

W HEN SEVERAL winter storms man-age to surmount mountain bar-riers and drop adequate moisture onCalifornia's desert region, one of Nature'smiracles will be revealedthe birth ofwildflowers.The somber, beige-colored land soontakes on a velvet-green hue and, by lateFebruary, flowers will begin to carpet thearea with a kaleidoscope of color oftenlasting well into May.FIELD OF COREOPSIS

It is a time of rebirth even on the ca-pricious and foreboding desert. Thrasherssing from the Joshua trees, Gambel quailhave paired up and a new season is un-derway.Tremendous fields of California pop-pies, lupine, coreopsis, desert dandelion,alkali goldfields and gilia; and smallerstands of owl's clover, candelaria, phacel-ia and thistle sage, plus many other vari-eties give a succession of colorful per-CALIFORNIA POPPIES


24/44

Mrs. Grace Oliver, owner of Antelope Valley Museum, displays Indian basket.formances. The show is about to begin andit shouldn' t be missed. Now is the time fora trip to the Antelope Valley to enjoyspr ing ' s splendor

While large masses of wildflowers willbe found throughout the desert region,the Antelope Valley, on the Western Mo-jave, seems to be particularly favored. Thewildflower areas are easily reached viapaved roads which also lead through thehistorical past of the Valley. Two main

tours cover the western and eastern sec-tions providing more than a full weekendof activities for spring visitors.

W E S T E R N T O U RThe earliest wildflowers begin bloom-

ing in Western Antelope Valley and bymid-March they surround and decoratemany early-day historical sites. It is as ifspring is the time to recall and honor thefreighter , miners and pioneers who have

COLOR TVDIRECT DIAL ING TELEPHONES

THERAPY POOL

8 0 5 - 9 4 8 - 2 6 9 1

133 21 NORTH SIERRA HIGHWAY LANCASTER, CALIFORNIA

braved the unknown desert and broughtabout its development. The western tourwill take you to outstandin g f ields of f low-ers and the more important historicalsites.

Let's begin by leaving State Highway14 at the Rosamond Boulevard offramp,12 miles north of Lancaster. Turn left,then continue west for three miles to theMojave-Tropico Road. Turn r ight and al-most immediately you will have a goodview of a sizeable mining operation in theRosamond Hills.

This is the Tropico Gold Mine whichnow encompasses a half-dozen of the orig-inal mines including the famed Lida.Discovered in 1896 by Ezra Hamilton,the Lida started the Rosamond Hills min-ing boom that lasted for over a halfcentury.

In recent years, the Tropico has becomea tourist attraction. Mine tours are con-ducted all year except Monday and Tues-day of each week. Si.00 for adults, 75cfor child ren, 5 to I I years, is charg ed. Th etour is interesting and one you will enjoyif you haven't been inside an "honest-to-gosh" gold mine.

Our route now continues north alongthe Mojave-Tropico Road, cutting throughthe Rosamond Hills where wildflowersshould be in bloom.

Just before the summit is reached, youwill see shallow open cuts and pits alongboth sides of the road. This is the site ofthe "Great Uranium Strike" of the 1950-56 era. Several claims were filed and asizeable area posted "No Trespassing."Ura niu m fever reached a high pitch andgun-carrying claim owners patrolled theirpro pe rty. B ut -as is so often the case-the ore didn' t live up to expectations.

Immediately over the summit, on thenorth side, dirt tracks lead west to GemHill a pop ular rock collectin g area.Good specimens of petr if ied wood, agate,opal and agate nodules may be found.

R O A D L O GMileages not accumulative

0.0 Rosamond Blvd. and Mojave-TropicoRoad. Drive north.

4.6 Turn left onto dirt tracks..5 Keep ahead. Dirt tracks on left lead

up to collecting area 1..5 Turn left.A End of road. Nodules occur on hilJ to

the west. Hike over the summit southof the parking area to the collectingarea. It is a short hike.

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Solcdad Mountain, a large volcanic coreof silicious lava, looms skyward as ourroute continues north to Backus Road.Du ring M arch, i t s covered with woolycoreopsis. Little dirt roads lead back intothe mountain's inner recesses inviting clos-er inspection and the opportunity to takesome fine color photographs.

A particularly interesting flower arealies in the so uthv est corn er of Soleda dMountain. Cross Backus Road and gonorth a few hundred feet to a dirt roadleading off to the right. The wide varietyof wildflowers found in this area gives agarden effect with blossoms of lilac, yel-low, white, blue and orange intermingled.Cam era buffs ma) lind a new flower toadd to their color slide collection.

Traveling west on Backus Road, inter-mittent wildflowers will be seen with thenext large masses on the Middle Buttes.California poppies and wooly coreopsispredominate and, again, many dirt roadslead to and through :he fields of flowers.

Continue west to the Tehachapi--Wil-low Springs Road a.nd turn left. Drivesouth four miles to Hamilton Road, turnright and then left onto Manley Road. Amile further south von will enter WillowSpringsperhaps (he most notable his-toric site m the Antelope Valley.

Long known and used by the Indians,Willow Springs served them as an import-ant camp and burial ground. The firstwhite man to cross the great Mojave Des-ert, Padre Fray Francisco Garces, campedat the spring in 1776. The year 1827found the famed mountain man JedediahSmith stopping at the spring. Other fam-ous visitors include [ohn Fremont andKit Carson in I S


26/44

From left to right: ceremonial dancerwith deer headdress: masked Chapayekas carryJudas in effigy; Judas' effigy is burned thus defeatingthe evil sources so all participants ar crededicated to Jesus.

E VERY YEAR at Easter, a tribe of Ameri-can Indians fights a battle with anenemy. There is no bloodshed and nolives are lost. As the enemies advancethey are repelled by a bombardment ofconfetti, flower petals and din. YaquiIndians have fought this yearly battle forabout four centuries.

Yaquis who live in Arizona are refu-gees from Mexico and so are in a situa-tion quite different from that of indig-enous United States tribes. The firstimportant Yaqui encounter with Euro-peans was in 1533. Spanish soldiersunder Diego de Guzman were on theirway north to capture Indian slaves. Whenhe tangled with the Yaquis, this ferocious-ly defensive tribe numbering approxi-mately 30,000 caused Guzman to lose all26

taste for further contact with Yaquis.In the following years the Spanish sub-

jugated all of the tribes to the south ofthe Yaquis and with those tribes, Jesuitswere hard at work. So successful were themissionaries among the people that theMayos, linguistically related neighbors ofthe Yaquis in the north, asked for and gotmissionaries to work in their villages, too.Spanish relations with this tribe and thoseto the south were excellent.

But the Yaqui door remained closed.In an effort to bring the tribe to its knees,physically and religiously, more and big-ger armies were sent against them. Nonewere successful . The Yaquis didn't fightbeyond their borders but they held theirground.

Then suddenly, to the surprise to every-body, the Yaquis asked for a peace treaty

and missionaries. They had made the de-cision alone and in their own time. Possi-bly they had investigated the conditionsin other tribes and l iked what they s a w -agricultural help and acceptable teaching.Not all of the young Yaquis were inagreement but the elders had made thedecision and it was honored.

The missionaries moved in and for 60years there was peace and prosperity. Ya-quis from all of the a ppro xim ately


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by Bernice JohnstonExclusive P ho tos by

Charles and Lucile Herbert.

discovered in the irea bringing an influxof miners, prospectors and their l ike whocaused friction and made l ife unpleasant.On their heels came settlers, land grab-bers and the typical frontier encroach-ment on the rights of those already there.Settlers envied the Indians their richlands and resented the prosperity thathad been broughl about for the Indiansunder the Jesuits. The fire of envy grewhot and the pot of turmoil began to boil.The si tuation became so unbearable thatin 1740 the Yaquis and Mayos revolted.When i t was all over, the Indians count-ed 3,000 dead and the Spanish 1,000.

Many of the Indians were scattered be-yond their territory, populat ion waned,agriculture was neglected an d prosperitydeclined. The Jesuits tried to recover andsave the situation but in 1 767 they were

expelled from Mexico.From 1810 to 1820 as the Spanish

fought each other in their Wa r of Inde-pendence the Yaquis watched from thesidelines, never considering themselvespart of it. But at the end of the conflict,they found they were considered to beMexicans, too, and therefore, taxable.This caused new and constant harass-ment. In 1825, the Yaquis again revolt-ed and drove all of the white settlersfrom their borders. The new Mexicanarmed forces were no match for them.

But i t was the beginning of the end.They were to defend their rights off andon for another 100 years. Many werekil led, others captured and deported toYucatan and other places, some hid outin the hills, and others fled to the UnitedStates. Yaquis were considered a mili tary

threat in Mexico as late as 1927. But theMexicans were not successful in forcingtheir land and political systems on theYaquis even as late as the 1960s.

Those Indians who sought refuge inthe United States at the end of the cen-tury settled from Nogales to Phoenix,Arizona wherever they could find workon ranches, in fields or mines. Theirlargest village, Pascua, was establishedon what was then the outskirts of Tuc-son. It was eventually smothered underthe dirty skirts of the city that soon sur-rounded it. Another old village, BarrioF.ibre, is located in the armpit of Inter-state 19, south of Tucson. Other villagesare at Marana, Scottsdale and Guadalupe,Arizona. Of the eight original villages inMexico, one is deserted entirely and thebulk of the population is concentrated in

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three of the others.Being refugees, Yaquis do not qualify

for the assistance available to other UnitedStates Indians. Their situation is still quitedesperate. They came as displaced farm-ers and tried to compete in a wage econ-omy with little formal education and ameager knowledge of English, speakingmostly Spanish, although many of themcould read and write. Most are still at thevery bottom of the pay scale.

In 1962, some Pascua residents andother interested citizens petitioned theUnited States government for land onwhich to build a new vil lage. They weregiven a location near the Papago IndianReservation south of Tucson. It was up tothem to obtain money, materials and laborto build a new vil lage. This has gone slow-ly. Not all of the villagers chose to movefor various real and sentimental reasonsand so the old village of Pascua hasn'tchanged too much except to lose aboutfifty families.

The Yaquis in the old village of BarrioLibre have an equally unsuitable site withthe world's traffic roaring over theirheads. Fo r a long time they saved andworked for a new church. Their rickety-old adobe Church of the Conception wasalmost unsafe. So behind it they began tobuild, as they could buy blocks, anotherchurch dedicated to St. Martin de Porres.Last year they put the roof on but they stillfall short of completion. In all of the vil-lages, religion holds priority over anyother situation and churches come first.

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One of the mysteries concerning theYaq uis is their combined pagan -ChristianLenten and Easter ceremonies. In pre-Spanish times their religion was one ofconstant conflict between good and eviland the bringing about of the victory ofgood. This had to do mostly with animalspirits of the hunt. In order to obtain meatthe Yaquis had to impress the animal'sspirit with the need and convince it thatit should give itself up, allow itself to bekilled. Dances, ceremonies and songs heldbefore the hunt were to bring this about.When the performance was good enough,the animal allowed itself to be taken.

Such a survival from these times is theDeer Dancer. Those who perform thisdance are considered dance masters. It isthe ult imate in performance. Older dan-cers teach young men from childhood. Tobecome successful in the dance, a youngman must hunt the deer. He needs to befamiliar with the actions ol the huntedanimal . When a good Deer Dancer per-forms, he is not an imitator of a deer, heIS the deer. He is alert, listens, standsmotionless, moves swiftly and with agility

-he defends himself. An observer of thedance catches this animal lever, its fear,its cunning. If the dancer is good, it canbe very exciting. No other animal dancesare done now but some of the songs arestill remembered and sung.

It has always been something of a mys-tery, too, why the Yaquis found theChristian teaching so acceptable as to in-corporate it into their own religion. Butremembering that the Yaquis are basicallya peaceful people with a high sense of thegood-evil polarity, the idea of a God whowas peaceful and merciful and who tri-umphed over death, must have been fairlyeasy to accept. It is harder to understandthe remarkable tolerance of the mission-aries who permitted it. In any case, there-developed a series of ceremonies commem-orating the passion, death and resurrectionof Christ that is as complex as the famedpageant of Oberammergau. For about: fourcenturies this yearly observance has beenperform ed in the same way by all Yaquiseverywhere. Other linguistically-relatedMexican Indians have celebrated it in asimilar manner.

Flowers are very important in Yaquiceremonies and have been from ancienttimes. The word sewa, flower, applied toblooms, acts, heavenly rewards, etc. Intheir Christian interpretation, flowers areweapons to be used against evil; they are

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Christ 's blood drops transformed, andblessings bestowed Flowers are and havealways been their most important religioussymbols.

People who take part in certain roles ofthis pageant do so for having made amanda or a vow. This is a promise of per-formance in return for a favor granted, ablessing received or other reason. Theirtrain ing is intense and long and whenthey must perform, it takes precedenceover school, job or my other obligation.Employers find this hard to live with andit often works great: hardship on the Yaquiwho may get fired or suffer pay loss as aresult. Be that as it may, he leaves anywayto perform.

To an outsider these Lenten and Easterservices seem very confusing and to most,they are an incomprehensible mixture ofexcitement and comedy. It is helpful tohave an idea of what's going to happenbefore one witnesses the pageant. To thisend, a film was made in the 1920s and isshown yearly by the Arizona State Mu-seum the week before Easter. It is opento the public at no charge. Two excellentbooks have been published about the Ya-qui ceremonies. One is Faith, Flowers, andFiestas and the other is Easter at Pascua.With these assists on e can get a preview ofwhat will transpire. The events are notentertainment for visi tors. They are re-ligious obliga tions Respectful visitors arewelcomed to the ceremonies but photo-graphy is absolutely- forbidden. On only afew occasions have Yaquis permitted pro-fessionals to record the ceremonies al-though at other times individual per-formers may pose

Ash Wednesday signals the beginningof this series of ceremonies and they con-tinue each Friday through Lent. The cli-max, and to most visitors the most im-pressive part, is on Holy Saturday at thesinging of the Gloria. For weeks womenhave been decor; ting the chur ch, thestatues, etc., and nakin g paper flowers.On Saturday, friends of the Indians bringreal flowers from .heir gardens and fromthe florists and these are stockpiled withthe paper ones and confetti at the church.

'This is the ammunition that will be direct-ed against the enemies of the church andit will overcome them.

Around noon, good and evil forces lineupthe good in front of the church andthe evil beyond a nark at a distance. Theenemy are the persecutors of Jesus, theFariseos (Pharisees). They are officers in

hats ; Pilates in long black capes; andmasked men, Chapayekas, who are thecommon soldiers. T h e s e l as t have a"saint", Judas, in effigy.

On the side of the good are the defend-ers of the church: the leaders or Maestros;women; children; Matachin dancers (boysand men dressed in regalia of the Virginor "soldiers of the Virgin"); Pascoladancers, called "old men of the fiesta"and their musicians; the Deer Dancer andhis singers.

The Gloria is sung and the attack be-gins . Fariseos storm the church. Then allHeaven breaks loose in defense. Churchbells and hand bells ring; the deer, Mata-chinis and Pascolas dance; there is tootingof the flutes; beating of drums; clatter ofrattles. Flowers are thrown and there is ashower of confetti. Angels dart aboutbrandishing switches and girls wave flags.There is motion, commotion, color andclamor.

After three such attacks and defeats, theFariseos throw their masks and regalia atthe feet of their Judas saint and the wholething is consumed in a tremendous bon-fire. The performers of the bad roles, now-rid of all evil, are taken into the churchwhere they are rededicated to Jesus. Anall-night fiesta celebrates the victory.

On Easter morning leaders gather theperformers together to commend andthank them for the discharge of their obli-gations and to bid farewell for anotheryear. Christ is risen. Good has triumphed.Easter is over.

Seldom have there been known moreferocious warriors than the Yaquis andseldom have there been more peacefulIndians. All they have ever wanted was tobe left alone. They were not left aloneand today they are scattered far and wide,living with legends, with a nostalgic tieto their original eight villages in Mexico,with material povertybut with rich andstrong religious tradit ions.Those who fled through the back doorof the United States over half a centuryago have tried to carve a slot for them-selves. As farmers turned wage earners itwas hard. Two generations later it is stillhard. Friends of the Indians, various or-ganizations and other assistances have notbeen enough to provide for most of theirnecessities much less to raise their stand-ards very high or even build the churchesthat are so necessary to their way of life.Through i t al l their rel igion, almost alone,has sustained them.

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SPLENDOR IN ANTELOPE VALLEYcontinued from page 25

ternating with sections of land heavilycovered by native vegetation, Joshua trees,junipers , buckwheat and Ram onaSa ge pre-dominate with all but the junipers pro-viding beautiful b ossoms. A ground coverof small wildflowers will result from latespring rain.

Approximately four miles west of 90thStreet, lies Fairmont and Antelope Buttes.Spring will generally find them almostsmothered with bright yellow alkali gold-fields. Numerous dirt roads give accessfor closer photography.

Large herds ol antelope once roamedthrough the Valley and the last sightedwa s a group of 1 '> on Fairmont Butte in1 9 2 5 . Their demise was inevitable whenthe sett lement of the Valley began. Fences,hunters and the railroad, the tracks ofwhich they wouldn't cross, severely cur-tailed their range and consequently re-duced their numbers. However, historiansagree that the great blizzards of 1882-85,when the entire Valley was covered withseveral feet of snow, hastened their end.The antelope wee trapped in the driftswhere many hundreds starved to death.

Our tour ol Western Antelope Valleynow brings us to the sites of the three orig-inal settlements -Manzana, Neenach andFairmont. It also leads us through the out-standing displays of poppies for which theValley has become famous.

Development of the Valley began in1 8 8 7 . T he Manzana Colony was the mostambitious planned, as acreage extendingfor nearly six miles along the hills wassettled. Large aln on d an d fruit orchardswere planted, as were several large vine-yards of raisin grapes. No expense norlabor was spared to make Manzana a per-manen t settlement. I'ine farm homes werebuilt and water n: Kings Canyon wastapped to supply their irrigation system.Neenach and Fairmont were mainly set-tled by dry-grain larmers.

T he settlements enjoyed success until1895 when a three-year drought began.Dry-fanners couldn't raise crops, Man-zana's source of water dried up and theorchards and vineyards died. Wooed andwon by th e capricious desert , who hadshown only her pleasant face, most ofthe sett lers were unprepared when shedisplayed her harsh side. Hot winds liftedthe top soil from cultivated fields and

sand-blasted every thing in its path . Win-ter brought more of the same except thewinds were freezing cold. Nearly all of thesettlers moved to more gentle climes.

Today, nothing remains of Manzanaexcept a few old almond trees that some-how manage to bring forth a few blos-soms in spring. A dead orchard or twoplays host to brilliant fields of goldenpoppies and royal-purple owl's clover.Neenach hasn't faired much better, al-though the old schoolhouse still stands.

From Neenach our route back-tracks acouple of miles to Lancaster Road (oldHighway 138) and turns right. The pop-py tour now begins! (An alternate routeN-2 can be followed through Pine Can-yon along the San Andreas Fault to Palm-dale. This is a beautiful drive in springand many wildflowers will be seen. Youmay want to take this route another day.)

lust after Lancaster Road crosses theFeather River Canal, a dead orchard willbe seen on the left. It should be carpetedwith poppies and owl's clover. I canguarantee i t is a photographer 's paradisewhen in full bloom.

In the vicinity of 170th Street will benumerous fields of yellow poppies. Thisarea is strip-farmed and the poppies comeup in the sections lying fallow.

Old Fairmont will loom into view on asharp curve at I 60th Street. A bar (a sec-tion of which is said to be one of the oldbuildings) and gas pump occupy the si te.Fairmont may have been the "metropolis"

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Built into the native rock, this kiln was used by the Llano Socialist Colony,of the I 880s , as on th e corne r stood theJustice of the Peace office, grocery store,blacksmith shop and postoffice.

A dirt road leads south from Fairmontfor two miles through fields of wildflow-ers to Fairmont Reservoir. It is worthy ofa side trip.

"Flowers, f lowers everywhere" aptlydescribes the next four miles to MunzRoad. It you are interested in taking someunusual f lower photos, turn r ight. Inabout a mile there will be several large

patches of owl's clover on the low hillslmediately adjacent to the road. This isone of the few locations where these beau-tiful flowers are found in profusion.

Munz Road is a section of the old stageroute from Elizabeth Lake to WillowSprings, and my 1871 map shows a stagestation near the owl's clover location.Nothing remains today.

Returning to Lancaster Road, our routeleads through fields of poppies and lu-pine. Traveling east from 110th Street,

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large fields of brilliant red-orange pop-pies will be seen alongside the road.

Our tour ends at Lancaster. You willwant to visit the Wildflower Center inthe Antelope Valley Fairgrounds. Ably-manned by volunteers, they have freemaps and some very interesting exhibits.The Center is open from March 25ththrough April 30th, Thursday throughSunday, 10 A.M. to A P.M. Admissionis free.

E A S T E R N T O U RJoshua Tree State Park is an excellent

point to begin a tour of Eastern AntelopeValley. Overnight camping faci l i t ies(Si.50 per night) are available amongfine stands of Joshua trees. They shouldbe in bloom by March. The blossoms arelarge and beautiful but quickly fade andproduce a sizeable seed pod. The pod notonly insures their survival but providesan important source of food for many ofthe birds and small mammals living inthis habitat.

A few miles north and east of the StatePark lie the Butte Valley Wildflower andthe Phalcelia Wildlife Sanctuaries. Thedrive between them will take you throughacres of colorful wild flowe rs.

The Antelope Valley Indian Museum isa short distance southwest of the StatePark. A visit to this fine, private museumwill give you a better understanding ofthe desert's "first dw elle rs." (See DES-ERT, June '68, for more details.) Themuseum is open only on Saturday and Sun-day from September through June. Ad-mission is $1.00 for adults and 50c forchildren 6 to 12 years.

Mrs. Grace Oliver, curator, told methe surrounding area (known as WilsonaValley) is covered with verbena in late-spring. In fact, this entire region begin-ning at 90th Street and running east formany miles, has a wide and varied bloomof flowers.

From the museum, it is a short drive via1 50th S treet to Av enu e O , then west tothe Alpine Wildlife Sanctuarylocatedbetween two branches of Big Rock Wash.Quiet observers will be rewarded withglimpses of the "natives" inhabiting thislife zone round-tailed and antelopeground squir re ls , packrats, white-footedmice, jackrabbits, lizards, snakes and anumber of birds, to name but a few.

Our tour continues by going east onAven ue O to I 70th Street, then right. Th eroad leads up through Lovejoy Buttes and


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the newdevelopmentLake LosAngeles-The Buttes have been thesetting for manywestern movies and the TV series"Gun-smoke." Driving south to Highway 138,scattered fields cf wildflowers will beseen along both si;k:s of the road.Two miles ease cm Highway 138 isLlano del Rio, now called Llano. It con-sists of a cafe, ba\ gas station and post-office. The Llano Colony began in 1895but was deserted twoyears later. Thoughland hadbeen cleared and several hundredacres of fruit trees planted, the colonistswere unable to get clear title to their land.The second settlement of Llan

Documents

197204 Desert Magazine 1972 April