198011 Desert Magazine 1980 November

8/14/2019 198011 Desert Magazine 1980 November

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- X M I S S I L E A F F E C T Y O UG e o r g e F i s c h b e c ks A N Y T I M E !

E v i d e n c e :S S A I L E DL T O N S E Ae n e d D o l o r e s :i D O ' SO F S O R R O W S

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VOLUME 43 NUMBER 10 November, 1980ISSN 019 4-3405CONTENTS

I s ee God moving across the deser t s . . . H i s b r i l l i an t sp lendor f i l l s the ear th and sky . . .Habakkuk33

Features10121418

C U R I O U S W I L D F L O W E RN A M E S b y W a y n e P . A r m s t r o n gUnifolium bifolium Is OneS H I P S T M T P A S S I ND E S E R T S A N D S b y C h o r a l P e p p e rDid Vikings Sail the Salton Se a?C A V E S O FL A V A b y J i m Y u s k a v itc hA Little-Known O regon SpectacularC A M PR U C K E R b y B u d d y N o o n a nThe Army's Forgotten Outpost

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T H ED O L O R E S b y R u s s e ll M a r t i nColorado's River of SorrowsI M P A C T O FT H E M - X b y V . L e e O e r t l eWhere, When and How

31 T H E C A C T U S C I T YC L A R I O N M a ry E . T w y m a n , E d .Bighorns Endangered by Poaching

E A R T H Q U A K E !b y D o c t o r G e o r g e F i s c h b e c kAny Time, Any P lace

S T E A M B O A T S O N T H EC O L O R A D O b y R o n a l d M . L a n n e rIt. Ives and the U.S.S. "EXPLORER"V A N D Y K E ' SD E S E R T A n A p p r e c i a t i o nb y J o n W e sle y S e r i n g

DepartmentsEDITORIAL 5THE SECOND TIME AROUND 6THE LIVING DESERT 7LETTERS 8DESERT ROCKH OUND 36DESERT CALENDAR 37CHUCK WAGON CO OK IN' 39DESERT BO OK SHO P 52TRADING POST 54

CoverBarrie Roakeach took our cover photog raph ofMo num ent Valley from his plane, looking s outheast, ata height of 6,000 feet. The un usual rock formations,called pinnacles by some and m onum ents by others,stand starkly in the late afternoon light.


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T h e C A X T O N P R I N T E R S , L t d .P . O . Box 70 0C a l d w e l l , I d a h o 8 3 6 0 5

W e take pride in the pro ductio n of f ine bo o ksfor the readers of Western American history with particular emphasis on the history of thePacif ic Northwest and the Rocky Mountainregion.

Write for a Free Catalog.

Mai l Order Adver t is ing . Most mail order advertisers have worked longand hard to build the ir businesses and they have succeeded by giving pro m ptservice with quality products, along with their assurance of your full satisfac-t ion. Desert readers are invited to write and tell us about notably favorableexperiences with any of our advertisers, or if you have a problem we'd liketo hear about that, too. We'l l try to help get i t solved for you.W r i t e Desert Advertising Service, Box 1318, Palm De se rt, Califo rnia 92261.

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PUBLISHED MONTH LY SINCE 1937EditorDonald MacDonaldArt Director/P hoto EditorThomas ThreinenProduction DirectorBarry BergManag ing EditorMary E. TwymanAss't. Man aging EditorPat I. WilliamsStaff PhotographerGu y MotilArt Associatelane DivelContributing EditorsKaren Sausman, Natural SciencesWayne P. Armstrong, Natural SciencesJerry and Luisa Klink, Baja CaliforniaMerle H. Graff am, CartographerChoral Pepper, ExplorationProduction Assista nceJan GarlandArlene SmithSpecial ServicesArnie SmithPublisherDonald MacDonaldAssociate Publisher/Advertising DirectorDaniel D. WhedonAdvertising ServicesKathy Krahenbuh lPatricia ShenemanMarketing DirectorGeorge E. SectorSubscription FulfillmentGloria SmithBusiness ManagerMarjorie MolineCounselChester M. RossRepresented byNational Advertising S ales. Inc.Robert E. Leyburn, P res.James R. Lytle, Gen'l M gr.750 Third A ve., 29th FloorNew York, NY 10017(212) 682-7483Robert L. Sarra, II, Reg. Mgr.435 N, Mic higan Ave ., Su ite 1314Chicago, IL 60611(312)467-6240Richard F. Landy, R eg. Mgr.1680 Vine St., S uite 909Los Angeles, CA 90028(213)466-7717

ABC M embership Applied For 8/19/80Lithographed in the U.S.A. by World Color Press(Kent Witherby, Acc't. Exec.) Color Separationsby Pacific Coast Color Service. World distribu-tion by Dell Distribution Co., Inc. (John Gaffney,Acc't. Exec.) Offered in microfilm by Xerox Uni-versity Microfilms QUIP transmission availableDesert Magazine (USPS 535230) is publishedmonthly by Cactus Paperworks, Inc. , 74-425Highway 111, P.O. Box 1318, Palm Desert, CA92261. Telephone: (714) 568-2781. Officers: R. C.Packer , P res ident ; Chester M. Ross , Vice-President; Donald MacDonald, Vice-President;Marjorie Moline, Secretary. Controlled circulationpostage paid at Sparta, Illinois and at additionalmailing offices in the U.S.A. Copyright 1980 byDesert Magazine. All rights reserved. No part ofthis publication may be reproduced in any man-ner without written permission from the Publisher.Subscription Rates for U.S. and and its posses-s ions , C anada and M exico : 1-year, $10.00;2-years, $19.00. Elswhere: Add $4.00 per year(U.S. currency). To Subscribe, Renew or ChangeAddress: Write Desert M agaz ine, P.O. Box 28816,San Diego, CA 92128. Please allow six weeks forprocessing and include where applicable the ad-dress label from the most recent copy of theMagazine. Exact zip codes ar e ma ndatory. Donorsof gift subscriptions should include their ownname and address as well as those of the recip-ient(s). POSTMASTER: SEND CHANGE OF AD-DRESS TO DESERT MAGAZINE, P.O. BOX 28816.SAN DIEGO, CA 92128. Contributions: The Editorwelcomes unsolicited manuscripts and photo-graphs which will be returned only if accompa-nied by SASE, or envelope with international ex-change coupons. While material will be treatedwith care while in our possession, we cannot as-sume responsibility for loss or da ma ge . Paym ent isupon acceptance. Writers Guide free with SASE;sample copy, $1.50.


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Homo sapiens AnEndangered Species?CONGRESSMAN JERRY Lew is(R-Calif.) d idn 't ask that question.He stated it as a possibility verg ingon fact, a designation we might soon meritin hisopinion if conservationists and theirallies in the scientific community persist inplacing the welfare of threatene d fauna andflora ov er that ofman.But this shou ld be put in perspective,something mangenerally does but notconservationists or scientists. Most rece ntclashes have pitted the rawsurvival of thelesser species against thematerial welfareof man. And mangenerally considers adollar in hand to be preferable to one inthe bush.A rece nt illustration involvesUmainomata, known also as the CoachellaValley or white fringe-toed lizard. I can'tsay "commonly known" because it isn'tcom mon . Adults of the species range fromfour to seven inches in length andweighbu t a fewounces . And as far as we know,these lizards contribute nothing to society,which is a sin in and aroun d Palm Springs.However, within their little bodies, not yetfully explored by scientists, maylurk thejuice or t issue de stined to be the key to abreakthrough in medicine or space, orperhaps even inbuilding materials.Those whoprefer a desert populated byUma inomata and their threatened ilk to aproliferation ofHomo sapiens and hisaccompanying Ferous erectus are quick tocite the hoary example ofDr. AlexanderFleming finding in lowly bread m olds theclue that led topenicillin. There we re atthat t ime thos e whowanted to eradicatebread mold.Most mem bers of theLizard Family, aswidespread in the animal kingdom asJoneses are in man 's, seem to thrive in thehuman presence. Onebranch of the claneven is named "fence lizard" after itspreference for crawling and sunn ing itselfon fences. Unfortunately, though, fences ormore specifically, windbreaks, are thenemesis ofUma inomata because he musthave blowing sand to escap e from hispredators . Therealtors of the CoachellaValley, on the other hand, look uponblowin g sand with disfavor andtherein liesthe confrontation whereo f I speak.Conservationists have prop osed thatUma inomata be officially listed as"endangered" and in anticipation of this,the federal Office of Endangered Specieshas selected 18.5 square m iles of CoachellaValley desert to be set aside for the lizard.But, this acrea ge isvalued at $64,000,000and twoshopping centers are planned for it,

the loss of which would cost man$25,000,000 annually. Toallow both manand lizard on the land would requireenvironmental impact statements thatrequire years to process throughgovernment channels.Again inperspective, the fate of Umainomata, however it is resolved, typifies aserious, spreading qu andary for man andanimal. Thelizard could probably coexistwith the shopping centers ifsand wereallowed to blow into andaround them, butcustomers couldn't . Sowhich is the moreimportant, lizard or man?Some well-intentioned menmightlogically suggest that if certain species suchas this lizard, or thebald eagle, bighornsheep, S iberian tiger or grey whale can'tmake it in today's world, then the survivorsshould be promptly collected and put intoan artificially safe environment such as azoo. There they could perp etuatethemselves for the benefit ofboth sciencean d our grandchildren.That logic evaporates, however, whenone learns that the 750Siberian tigers incaptivity cost $1,200,000 a year to feed and

when you add in keepe r, veterinary,territorial, heat andother necessaryexpenses at $4.50 per animal per day, theworld annual zoobill for the tiger alone is$2,432,000.Then if theworld's existing zoos electedbetween them to maintain 500 of each of2,000 specie s, the bill for twenty yearswould be $25 billion! That, itwill beremembered , isalmost exactly what it costto put man on the moon.And now to achieve the sharp edge ofperspective, we must consider the rabbit inall of itsvariety, the coyote, the burro andcrab grass which are among the livingthings man has not only been unsuccessfulin threatening butwhich on occasion,threaten him.Nature's rule, notman's , issurvival of thefittest. Rabbits andcrab grass are obviouslyfit and the tiger (anddinosau r) wasn't.Andwe have but twoalternatives either paywhat it costs to save the unfit or settle foran environment ofrabbits andcrab grass.Indeed , the greed ofPalm Springs manand the single-mindedness of theenvironmentalists have common groundupon w hich they canmeet if thegovernment will let them.

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CHARTERS PILOT TRAINING SALESS u n r i s e B a l l o o n s Est. 1976 *P.O. Box 571 , Palm D esert, CA 92261(714) 346-7591

R E A D A B O U TT O D A Y ' S G O L D R U S H

Articles and news items aboutprospecting, mines and mining, bothlarge and small operations. Pictures,hints, tips, advertisements for ma-chinery, mines and claims. Publishedmonthly. $5.00 per year. Send forsample copy.W e s te r n P R O S P E C T O R b M I N E RDept. DBox 146, T om bs t one , AZ 85638

Notice tosubscribersDesert Magazine rents its mailing list.This means that other organizations,both for profit and nonprofit, can sendbulk mailings to our subscriber list inretur n for a fee. We limit the u se ofthese nam es to organizations webelieve to be repu table, and everymailing piece must be subm itted to usfor approval b efore it is sent.If you would prefer not to receivemailings of this kind, write to Privacy,Desert Magazin e, P.O. Box 1318, PalmDesert, California 92261. Pleaseinclu de a mailing label from a recent

If you wou ld like to have you r n am erem ove d from as many mailing lists aspossible, and not just DesertMagazine's, you s hou ld w rite to MailPreference Service, 6 East 43rd Street,New Y ork, N.Y 10017. They will tel l yo uhow to have your name deleted fromthe lists used by most of the majormailers in the countrv.

THE SECONDTIME AROUNDby Nyerges

What can you do w ithan old, non-workingWater Heater?Make aCOMPOSTER

for kitchen & garden organic debris1 Remove center heating device2 Remove top3 Remove water tank & insulation (Thetank makes a good solar water heater.)4 Use the outer shell as composter.Organic matter goes in top anddecom poses quickly due to heat retentionwithin metal shell.

5 Keep lid on, with plastic liner, to hold inheat & deter flies.O Manure or ashes can be added to deterflies an d ants.7 Onc e the shell is full, com post sho uldbe ready to use. Shovel out at bottom

6 NOVEMBER, 1980


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A

The W eb of LifeI n a vignette of interde pen den ceand survival in the Am ericansouthwest, a bird, a berry and abus h star, with livestock and insects playingsubord inate roles. The bush is themesqu ite, a thorny, hard-bitten tree,som etimes sh rub, noteworthy for its roots,wo od, flowers, fruits and adaptability. Thebird is the jet black ph ainopep la(pronouncedfain-a-pep-la) whose favoriteroost is the mes quite . The berry is the fruitof the dese rt m istletoe (Phoradenroncalifomicum), the link between th e berryand our b ush . "The we b of life," by whichecologists often refer to nature's intricateinterconnections , is seldom as neatlyillustrated as in this "weblet" of plant an danimal cooperation.Because its singularly long taprootfurnishes water for the wh ole system, webegin with the mesquite, a mem ber of thepea family that includes acacia, ironwoodand p alo verde . It is easily recognized bylong flat "pea po d" fruits and ferny foliage.The most common variety is "honeypod"mesquite, whose sweet nutritious podswere a staple in the diet of manysouthw estern Indians and are relished bybrowsing animals like cattle and deer.lt isnative to arid woodlands and deserts fromcentral California thro ugh southe rnNevada and sou ther n Utah to west Texasand south thro ugh much of Mexico.

Mesquite will either grow into a treesom e twenty feet high or beco me ascrubby bush, depend ing on w here theseed has taken root. In dunes areas,blowing sand, checked by branches andfoliage, builds up a roun d the base of theplant and eventually threatens to bury it.But if the erstwhile tree can manage tokeep its head above water, so to speak, amesquite-topped dune is formed. Althoughthe plant looks like no more than abrambly topkno t, its great buried limbsand roo ts are actually holding the sandmo und together. Mesquite thickets arecommon along water courses andfault lines.Rather than depend ing o n occasionalrains, mesqu ite draws mo isture fromgroun dwate r reservoirs and is often usedas a water indicator by well diggers. Once aseed has sprou ted, all the plant's energygoes into root grow th up to thirty ormo re feet toward a perm anent watersupply. Only then does the visible plantgrow appreciably. So far as anyone knows,mesq uite holds the record for the longest

by Susan D urr Nixroots ever grown anywhere: 175 feet(Tucson, Arizona) and 250 feet (CoachellaValley, California).As far as roots are co nce rned , m istletoeis the antithesis of mesqu ite, for it has n oconnection w ith the soil and no m eans of

Mistletoeretaining rain water. It free-loads off themesquite's water and mineral supply, usingroot-like growths that wedge themselvesinto the plant and d rip-feed off the hostcells. Because it contains ch lorophy ll tomanufacture its own food, mistletoe iscalled a partial parasite, a distinction,however, that is lost on a mesquiteoverwh elmed by tangled m asses of thisbrittle, twiggy hang er-on. It usually takes along tim e for m istletoe to kill its host, andincidentally itself, partially because of theresistance of the bush and partially becauseof the activities of that bird,the phainopepla.Christmas m istletoe with its fleshy leavesand white berries is a mountain variety.Leafless desert mistletoe producespinkish-red berries and is parasitic mainlyon pea family plants and p articularly onme squite . It is easily recogn ized in winteras a clump of green stems am ong largelyleafless branches. When the mistletoerootlet tries to invade a healthy twig, themesquite retaliates by discharging a cleargum (used to make gumdrops and glue)

which quickly hardens under the sproutingseed, pushing it away. Continued growth inthe rootlet triggers more gum and usually,the tree successfully repulses the invasion.This defense m echanism h elps maintain areasonable balance between mistletoe andmesquite. When it fails, the new mistletoestunts the growth of the branch andeventually causes a tumor-like growth. On esuch on an ironwood tree weighed nearly800 pounds .Perched o n the top of the tree w here itgets full sun, mistletoe moves through itsown flowering an d fruiting cycle. It will dieif it is too shad ed. It bloo ms fromNovember to April with male and femaleflowers that smell like apple blossoms andattract swarm s of insects. Berries follow t heflowers and with them co mes thephaino pepla, a bird so closely associatedwith mesquite that it is found now hereoutside of the American southwest.During the winter and spring,phainop eplas (their n ame translates as"shining robe") feed almost exclusively on

mistletoe berries. And just as mes quiterelies on livestock for seed dispersal,desert mistletoe depends on birds,especially this bird. Rather than a resistantseed coating, however, the berries have anextremely sticky cover the b irdsfind irresistible .The phainopepla gorges himself on theberries w hich evidently have a markedeffect on him , for as they pass throug h hisalimentary canal, he rocks himself alongthe branch depo siting dropp ings full ofundigested seeds. The stick}7 residue setsquickly, literally gluing the se eds in p lace.

This happe ns within m inutes of hisfeeding, as the seeds are apparentlyharmed if they are not excreted quickly, afact that almost i nsure s they will be voide dwh ere they have the best chance ofsurviving on a mes quite branch.Uneaten seeds adh ere to the feathers andbeaks of birds who rub them off ontree limbs.Bluebirds, robins, mo ckingbirds,thrashers and quail are among the otherbirds that eat mistletoe berries, but none isas instrumental in its propagation andcontrol as the phain opepla the bird thateats the berry that lives on the bush thatsupplies the water that produces the podsthat are eaten by the cattle that disperse theseeds that make new mesqu ite. Upset anypart of this system and all is changed. T heweb is broke n. F5J


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FROM A PEGLEG FANThat "lively exchange" of misinformationbetween Choral Pepper and DonMacDonald (Desert, June 1980) hastriggered long, scholarly and accurateletters on desert varnish which can onlyfrustrate and antagonize Mr. Pegleg all themore. He was getting short-tempered wayback in your Dec emb er 1965 issue over the"repetitious" and "nit-picking" questions.Now you are beating this desert varnishthing again. Look at his letter inset in yourfirst-mentioned issue. He has consistentlyused the terms "copper oxide coating,""tarnish," or maybe "patina," but never"desert varnish."

He further stated (Desert, June 1974,page 33) that "this nugget is starting todarken again even thoug h (it) has bee n in asack, locked away and not exposed to heator light since being locked away (fouryears ago)." Mr. Pegleg cleared this all upand, well, you gotta believe. H e is theultimate expert! Don't antagonize him anymore. Get him back on your side and weall might learn something.John SouthworthBurbank, Calif.

AND FRO MPEGLEG HIMSELFDear Mr. MacDonald and Choral Pepperif you will pass this on: Just a few lines to letyou know that the man w ho found Pegleg'sBlack Gold is still around, hale and hearty,and enjoying life as always.Your interview with Choral Pepper inthe current (Ju ne > 1980) issue oiDesert,which just caught up with me, is quite tothe point. She has articulated the entireadventure (that's what I always haveregarded it) in a precise and succinctmanner. Her deductions about me areuncanny in their accuracy.Desert lovers like a little roma nce,adventure and m ystery. What's wrong withgiving it to them, especially when it is real,live and true? If Desert and its readers a restill interested in the story, I can furnishmore information from time to time.I still have a goodly amount of theoriginal find, and I've found more in thesame area. At today's prices I'd estimate thevalue to be in excess of $2 million. Frankly,I haven't weighed it all out accurately. It isstashed in several different places.Those who kept up with the story in the

1960s know that I used to spend summersin Alaska. Now, the summer trips are closerto home, usually in Montana, Oregon,Idaho or one of the northwest states.Don't have any proof o r nuggets with meto send you from here but will when I gethome at the end of summer. I ' ll send ablack nugget and a copy of the letter toChoral Pe ppe r that is, if you thinkDesert reade rs wo uld still be interested. Ifyou or Choral Pepper still have my originalletters in the files (Ed. Note: We do), thiswill be the absolute proof (by comparingthem) that I am the man who foundPegleg's Black Gold. Sincerely,The man who found Pegleg's Black GoldPostmarked Ashton, IdahoSo there, Mr. Southw orth! We show ed

this letter from Mr. Pegle g toMs. Pepper wh o verified theauthenticity o f its style. And as to theauthenticity of its author, she w ent onto say: "I beli eve our Mr. Peg leg fou ndhis nuggets where he said he foundthem and until I'm proven wrong, I'llgo right along believing that on e ofthe fun things to do o n the desert is togo looking for more of the same."

O ne of the Greaof the

C R E E K - I N NU R N A C E8 NOVEMBER, 1980


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Sure, we're interested and so are ourreaders. Proof is in the eight nuggetsremaining in thecollection originallysent toDesert byMr. Pegleg whichareonce again ondisplay at our offices.A NOTE ON PRIVACYHow ironic that your sensible editorial,"Waste Not,Want Not," (Desert, Sept.1980) should be on the pag e facing thenotice to subscribers that you have rentedyour mailing list to whomever you chooseso they can defoliate our trees with tons ofbulk mailings that no one asks forand fewpeople w ant. It appears that avariceoutranks conservation when it comes tothe bottom line; anything for that almightydollar, right? Forsham e! Your editorial didmouth such good words. AndI thought Iadmired you!-Anne LorensenLos Alamitos, Calif.A large majority ofAmerica's mostrespected consumer publications(over 2,000 titles) rent theirsubscription lists on aone-time basisto organizations that in their opinionoffer auseful product orservice, orthat solicit moneys for aworthy cause.Most conservationist organizations, infact, raise thebulk oftheir funds bydirect mailings topersons likeyourself who, by their choice of

magazines, have indicated an interestin thecause ofconservation.Allpublishers do,though, have theobligation tooffer privacy to thosewho wish it. That is the reason for thenotice onpage 4 of this issue.TWEEDLE DEE,TWEEDLE DUMWhile your magazine isgood, I feel that itcould stand much improvement. I was inthe hope that youwould pr int moreinteresting articles as did themagazine inlate 1959 and theearly 1960s.Floyd RuhlVista, Calif.I have noticed a change in your magazinelately. It is more like it used to be back inthe 1940s and 1950s. I feel this isgood, asthis is the type ofmaterial that got me tosubscribe in the first place.Francis G. HallSan Bernardino, Calif.GOOD NEIGHBORLINESSMy wife andI have traveled inMexico formany years. Wehave camped out in Bajaan d on themainland since 1945and nowthat we are older, we have a trailer and goto Mexico at least once a year fortwo orthree months. Wecertainly agree with theeditorial in the August, 1980, issue ofDesert. We find the people ofMexico if

given a chance most graciousand helpful.George H. GeislerYucca Valley, Calif.OWLS HEAD MTN. OPENIn your Sept. 1980Rockhound column,Rick M itchell says "... allroads tothe OwlsHead Mtn. collecting locations have beenclosed bythe Death Valley NationalMon ument administration." That isn't true.The major road into Ow ls Head (offHarryWade Rd.west ofSaratoga Springs) is stillopen and well maintained by the PacificTelephone Company which needs it foraccess to itsmicrowave station atthe top.Dick Rayner, Ch. RangerDeath Valley National Monum ent, Calif.

The editors ofDesert Magazinewelcome theexperiencesandopinions of readers andwillpublish asmany letters as spacepermits. They should be addressedto us at P.O. Box 1318, Palm Desert,CA 92261. Nounsigned letters willbe considered, butnames will bewithheld upon request. Please bebrief; otherwise, we cannotguarantee toprint your letter in itsentirety.

wHistory like the National Monu-

ment and the Borax Museum.Natural desert beauty like the Artist's

Palette. And man-made luxuries of theInn and Ranch, camping facilities,

and a private landing strip. Plana Furnace Creek vacation today.

See your travelagent, call

800-227-4700,or call direct

714-786-2345.

RANCH-RESORT


10/56

CURIOUS NAMESI WILDFLO WERS :article and photographs by

W A N E P. A R M S T R O N G

CHINESE HOU SETHE FLOWER CLUSTERS OF CHINE SE HOUSE S

SUGGE ST THET IE RE D ROOFS OF ANORIENTAL PAGODA.

W W WT he common orvernacularnames ofplants areoftenstrange andeven amusing attimes. Thepineapple is not inany way related toeither pines orapples, and peppergrass is not a pepper ,nor is it related to the Grass Family. Thelogic behin d nam es such as bouncing bet,ramping fumitory, bastard toadflax,lady-of-the-night, and go-to-bed-at-noon isnot readily apparent. It is also ratherdisappointing to discover that Kentuckybluegrass wasintroduced from Europe andthe California pe pp er tree isnative to Peru.But in spite of the numerous irrationalnames for plants, there are many commonnames that are descriptive and meaningful;however, you mayhave to look verycarefully to see the obvious derivation ofthe name.

All plants also have a scientific nameconsisting of a first nam e (genu s) and a lastnam e (specific epith et), sort of like the firstand last name s ofpeople. Scientific namesare commonly derived from Greek or Latinan d are spelled the same way throughoutthe world. Therefore, Pinusponderosarefers to the same tree, regardless of thecountry or native language. Since plantsmay have m ore than one common name ,10 NOVEMBER, 1980

LYRE P O DTHE FRUITS OF LYRE PODLOOK LIKEMINIATURE VERSIONS OF AHARP-LIKE

INSTRUMENT CALLED A LYRE.

W W WW W W

GROUND CONETHESE CONE-LIKE STRUCTURES ARE THEFLOWER STALKS OF ASELDOM SEEN

WILDFLOWER CALLED "GROUND CONE."N O T E THESMALL ROW ER S BETWEEN

THE SCALES.


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and s ince commo n names m ay havedifferent translations, scientific nam es a reused in publications and scientificcorrespondence.Scientific names, however, are notalways completely logical when youconsider a yellow violet nam ed Violapurpurea, and a one-leaved (or is ittwo-leaved?) plant named Unifoliumbifolium. The wildflower Afu7/a is ananagram derived by spelling its closerelativeAlHum backwards. You canprob ably th ink of a pop ula r laxative that isalso an anagram. Although there is somedisagreement among botanists, commonnames can be very useful, particularlywhen they describe a plant in a meaningfulway that is easy to rem em ber andpronounce .There are n um erou s desert natives withvery descriptive com mo n nam es. Theflowers of dyeweed are covered with littleorange glands that produce asaffron-yellow dye which readily rubs offand was used by Indians for art work. The

thorns of catclaw acacia are so effective thatthis shrub is sometimes called"wait-a-minute bush." Desert fir has darkevergre en leaves that look something likethe ne edles of the cone-bearing fir tree,although they are not related . A wildflowercalled "tackstem" looks like som eonedrove small-headed nails into its stem. The"tacks" are actually small glands. The namesandpa per plant is readily apparent w henyou r ub th e leaves of this little de sertshrub . Creosote bush is nam ed for itsolfactory similarity to the pungent woodpreservative used on fence posts andtelephone poles, although the commercialsource is wood tar derived from th edistillation of several eastern woods.Cheese bush, another common aromaticshrub, actually smells like cheese.

Wildflowers are named after just aboutevery conceivable thing, includingpincushions, brush es, houses, musicalinstruments, jewelry and the anatomy ofanimals. Just a few exa mp les arepincushion flower, Indian paintbrush,Chinese hou ses, scarlet bugler, goldeneardro ps, mule ears, steer's head, deer'sears, elephant heads, cat 's ears, ox tongue ,lamb's quarters, goosefoot, bird's beak,and stork 's bill. W W WThe nam es of m any desert natives arederived from Spanish and in som ecases, are spelled the same way onboth sides of the border. The vivid redflowers of chuparosa are frequentlyvisited by hum min gbirds ichuparosas).The verb chupar me ans "to suck." Whatbetter nam e could have been given to thedesert tree with pale green bark than palover de (gre en stick)? An attractive grayshr ub with yellow daisy-like flowers isappropriately called incienso because th eresin was burned as incense in earlySpanish m issions. It is perhaps mo recomm only known as britt le bush be causeof its easily, bro ke n b ranc hes. The nam ecalabazilla or little gourd aptly describes

the trailing vine that is so com mo n alo ngdesert washes and roadsides in latesum me r and fall. The com mon shrub ofthe high desert, yerba santa, had manymedicinal uses by Indians and early settlersand literally mea ns saintly or holy her b.The large senita cactus of southern Arizonaand M exico is nam ed after the word senita,meaning "old one." The uppe r ribs of thiscactus are covered with whisker-likespines, suggesting senescence.W W WThe less apparent com mo n nam es areeven m ore intriguing, especiallywhe n yo u discover why d ie plant hasits unu sual nam e. One of thestrangest and most interestingwildflowers of the southwest mountains iscalled "ground cone." The plant is seldomseen by the casual observer, perh apsbeca use it usually pushes out of the soilnear or un der the branc hes of shrubs. Theabove -groun d flower stalk is strikinglysimilar to a small pine c one , and with agelooks even more like an old,

weather-beaten cone. But you can be sureit is not a pine co ne w hen you see smallpurplish flowers between the numerousoverlapping scales. The fleshy flower stalkarises deep in the ground from a largepotato-like mass (tuber) which is wrapp edaround the root of a nearby host shrub.Grou nd c one is a root parasite related tothe strange broom -rapes which appea r indesert riverbeds and in the fields of iratetomato farmers. Broom-rapes were namedfrom their one-sided parasitic affair withcertain leafless shrubs called brooms. Oneof our desert b room s is called turpentinebroom (Jhamnosma montana), a strong-scented little shrub with purple flowersand gland-do tted fruits. It is one of the fewnative me mb ers of the C itrus Family foundin the southwest.On e of the loveliest wildflowers of loosesandy soils and sand dunes is duneprimrose (Oenothera deltoides). It has v eryshowy, large white flowers that turnpinkish with age. It often grows inprofusion with beautiful pinkish-purplesand verbena, produc ing a spectacularwildflower display.Another common name for duneprimrose is "desert lantern," and for years Iwas puzzled by the ch oice of this name .There is a reason. Dune prim rose has avery interesting growth form con sisting ofa central asc ending flower stalk withradiating branches extending in alldirections along the ground. At the end ofthe spring flowering season, the greenishbranche s eventually dry and curl upwardtoward the central axis. Woody seedcapsules that split into four pro ngs nowoccupy the positions wher e the largeflowers used to be. This entire driedstructure is the source of the c om monname "desert lantern." Some naturalistsuse the name "desert bird cage" which isperhap s even m ore descriptive because ofthe outer up turned branches (like verticalbars) aro und the main central axis. These"lanterns" or "bird cages" are often over

31 centimeters (on e foot) tails hue becausethey are frequently partially buried bydrifting sand, their complete form is notreadily discernible.Another close relative of dune prim rosewith much smaller flowers in den seterminal spikes is called desert bottlecleaner . Each little white flower deve lopsinto a woody, four-pronged seed capsule.The dried flower stalks, with n um erou sand crowded four-pronged capsulescompletely encircling it, greatly resemble atest tube or bottle cleaner, both in generalappearance and size.

There are many different species of wildbuckwheats in the southwest, but one ofthe most unusual is desert trumpet(Eriogonum inflatum). As the specificepithet implies, the stems areconspicuously inflated or flared just belowthe point of branching, vaguelyreminiscent of several wind musicalinstrum ents. If you look very carefully youmay see a small hole near the top of theinflated area . This is the en tranc e to aminiature food storage room andincubator for a minute wasp. The femalewasp packs the cavity with insect larvae andthen lays her eggs upon them. H owever,some desert trumpets do not have theinflated stem s, so botanists haveingeniously nam ed these as varietydeflatum.

Two other wildflowers with peculiarseed pods are lyre pod and spectacle pod..Lyre pod is an interesting dese rt native ofrocky outcrops and canyons, often foundgrowing am ong clum ps of other shrub s. Itproduces small seed pods with the generalshap e of a lyre, a small stringed harp-likeinstrument used by ancient Greeks toaccompany singers and reciters. Curiouslyenoug h, a lyre-shaped m arking occurs onthe head of a seldom-seeh snake thatinhabits nearby rocky outcrops and hidesduring the day in deep crevices and un derexfoliating gran ite slabs.

Any discussion of wildflowers withunusual names would not be completewithout men tioning desert candle. Thisannual is nam ed for its inflated, tape ringstem which resem bles a candle. Candlesoften appear in profusion along roadsidesin the Mojave D esert.w w wIt wo uld take volum es to d iscuss allthe descriptive, bizarre, hum oro us,logical and Illogical names ofwildflowers. In fact, ther e arethousand s of interesting names in thedeserts of the southwestern United Statesalone. A num ber of wildflower boo ks areavailable, some of which includederivations of the com mon names. You canoften learn interesting details about awildflower's gro wth habit, flower, fruit o rearly uses just from its com mo n n am e. Alsocatchy names are easier to relate to andcommunicate about, and easier torem em ber. It has been estimated that eventhe best bo tanists can only recall 5,000plant names from mem ory, so don't feel


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S MP SThat Pass in

DESERT SANDSMiOST DESERT dw ellers arefamiliar with an old Indianlegend ab out an ancientvessel that came floatingi like a great b ird w ith wh itewings into the C oachella Valley basin nowfilled by th e Salton Sea. Chronicles of 17thCentury Spanish pearlers, accounts ofgrizzled prospectors, evidence uncoveredby an early Imperial Valley farmer and evena contemporary weekend cam per havereinforced the possibility that the Indianlegend may have been based on fact.But first, how could it have happened?How could an ancient v essel, be it a Vikinggalley, Spanish pearler or pirate raider, lieburied in the sands of the Colorado Desertof Southern California? Did the legendarise from a drugged dream produced bynative hallucino gens? A misty m irage? A

that name) and primitive Indian fish trapsalong the ba se of the Santa Rosa M ountainstestify to this. Probably both theo ries areright, the water invasions occurring atdifferent epochs.A song re corded in the 1920s by ananthropologist studying the Seri Indians onTiburan Island in the Gulf of Californiarefers to another mysterious ship. Thisonce-m urderou s tribe preserved its historythrough songs passed on for generations.The story line of on e tells of the "CameFrom Afar Man" wh o arrived in a hug e boatcontaining men with yellow hair and awom an with red hair. The strangersremained on the island for many dayswhile the men hunted with arrows andspears. One m an, their chief, remainedbehind with the woman. After the hu ntersreturned with their game, the boatdeparted the land of the Seris and wasnever seen again. Could it have beencaught between freak tides wh ere theColo rado River met Gulf waters, andthen been shunted through a rampaging

savory stew bub bling over the campfire,the garrulous old prospec tor told them of astrange ship he had seen sticking out of acanyon w all a few days earlier.Unbelieving, bu t still curiou s, the Bottstraveled on the following day "yonder upthe canyon" as directed by the prospec tor.When they could force their old Ford nofurther, they set up cam p and then hikedalong the floor of a narr ow defile until th egrade becam e so steep and rough, they hadto rest.Myrtle saw it first. Juttin g o ut of th ecanyon wall over their heads was theforward portion of a large and very ancientvessel. A curved step swe pt up from itsprow. Along both sides of the vessel w ereclearly discernible circular marks in thewood, possibly left by shields which hadbeen attached to the vessel. Near the bowon one side of the ship were four de epfurrows in the wood The craft was highenoug h to hide its interior from the Botts'view, and the side of the canyon was toosteep for them to scale.

PALM SPRINGSPALM DESERT' NDtOCO AC

SUPERSTITION MTN. , E LCE NTR O', '\ CALEXICO _- ",

W> < . , - - - - "~ " ' " . MEXICALI

Waterline ofan& emLake Cahuilla can beclearly seen fromHighway C- 8 6 nearPt. Travertine.

cove r for a jewel thief? A hoax?Were it not for fossil ev idence of ancientseas and th e fact that the Co lorado Riverran amu k in 1906 to create the Salton Seaand prove once and for all that seas canappear overnight, the old Indian legendwould sound less plausible. Countlesstransitions from sandpit to sea appear tohave occurred in the past. Some scholarscon tend that the Gulf of California once ,exte nd ed as far no rth as Banning and as farwest as the present Yuha desert, whe re vastpetrified oyster-shell beds intrigue desertwand erers today. Others claim that theseseas were fresh water on es caused by theColorado River cutting new trough s intothe below-sea-level Salton Sink. Tiny freshwater shells left from an ancient LakeCahuilla (no relation to the present lake of

canal into a temporary sea flooding theColorado D esert?In the late 1960s, I interviewed MyrtleBotts, a librarian from the picturesque oldminin g town of Julian in San Diego County.An ama teur b otanist, Myrtle was on e of thefounders of the popu lar wildflower s howthat attracts thro ngs of visitors to Julianeach year. On a wee kend camping trip in1933 to search for new spe cies of desertwildflowers, the Botts family cam ped in thevicinity of Agua Caliente Springs. WhileMyrtle prepa red dinner, a sem i-literateprospec tor arrived to replenish his watersupply. The Botts invited him to join them,hoping he could enlighten them aboutremo te areas where they might finduncommon desert flora.Instead, mellowed by the scent of a

Taking note of all landm arks, the Bottshiked back to their car. Almost the mo men tthey em erged from the canyon, they werethrown to the ground . As they clutched theearth in panic, they watched their campshaking itself to pieces. When theaccompanying rum ble finally ceased, theygathered up their scattered belongings andraced b ack to Julian.The earthquake had been a severe one,causing extensive damage all the way to thecoast. But, as in th e case of most naturaldisasters, it was soo n forgo tten. Notforgotten by the Botts, how ever, was thestrange ship in the desert.A preliminary search in he r libraryconfirmed Myrtle Botts' impression Ithe vessel most nearly resem bled an 1Viking ship. Knowing that most peo ple

by CHO RAL PEPPER12 NOVEMBER, 1980


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would doubt her sanity if she told the story,she decided to return to the site andphotograph the craft to support herdisclosure.The B otts again set forth to camp in thedesert, equip ped this time with a camera.Onc e again they hiked up the steepcanyon, but when they reached the spotwhere previously they paused to rest, theirpassage was blocked. Tons of unstableearth from the mountainside had falleninto the canyon, shaken loose by the heavytrembler . There was no sign of the ship.Discouraged as they were, the Botts had tobe grateful that they had escaped thecatastrophe. Along with the ship, theywould have been buried alive.

'AS THIS THEancient' vessel in the song of theSeris, the ship carrying^Vikings into unchartered' waters in a strange land?Santiago Socia might agree. He was a Mexicanwith a quick temp er who had fled from thelaw in LosAngeles and escaped to the bordertown ofTecate. The re, while aw aiting thearrival of his wife, Petra, who was to followhim, he heard about an olla filled withgold buried about forty kilometersnortheast of Tecate, above the border.Santiago waited for Petra to arrive, then setforth alone to capture the treasure,chancing the trip across the border. Hereturned a few weeks later with no ollafilled with gold, but bearing a souvenir discmade of metal which Petra ever-after usedfor a griddle to heat her tortillas.

Santiago's story, which became well-known around Tecate, described anancient ship projecting from a canyon wallin a remote area of the desert northeast ofTecate. The bow of the ship was curved andcarved, like the long neck of a bird. Aseriesof large, round metal plates were attachedto the side of the ship. Santiago oftendisplayed Petra's griddle to prove his story,but since no t reasure appeared to beconnected with the ship, his listenersspeculated over its origin, but didn'tbother to visit it.Was this the Viking ship see n bythe Botts?Of lost pearl ships that purportedly ranaground in the desert, the most likelylegend concerns an expedition led byCaptain Juan de Iturbe.In 1615,Iturbe departed San Bias withthree ships assigned to a pearling m issionoff La Paz. Sixmonths later, with his shipsladen with pearls, he prepared to return toSan B ias. Within an hour after hisdeparture, the ships were attacked by theDutch c orsair, Joris van Spielbergen, whopromptly captured one of the ships andremoved its cargo of pearls. Iturbe

dispatched the other ship to warn theoverdue Manila galleon of the corsair'spresen ce, then fled in his own ship to thenorth. Thecorsair elected to chase Iturbe,knowing that eventually he would trap himat the head of the Gulf.However, when Iturbe reached the endof the Gulf, he found that it narrowed intoa wide channel. He sailed into it on the tideand, to his amazem ent, found himself onanother large sea.Charts at that time sh owe d clearly thatBaja California was a peninsula and not anisland, but there wasn't a naval officer alivewho didn't secretly cherish the idea thatprevious explorers were mistaken and thelegendary Strait ofAnian actually existed toprovide passage from the Gulf to thePacific Ocean.Convinced that he had found it, Iturbesailed north and then around themountains to the west. Atapproximately 34degree s latitude, which is the present siteof the Salton Sea, he found hispassageblocked. Other than a river entering thesea, there was nothing but desert sand,foothills and distant mountains.Disappointed, he turned south, but thewide channel through which he hadentere d from the Gulf was now nothingmore than a small stream, barely largeenough to permit passage for a longboat.He turned back toward the north. By thenthe river that fed the inland sea hadvanished. He was landlocked. When theship ultimately ran aground, Iturbeabandoned it with itsvaluable cargo ofpearls, hiked back to the Gulf, and withhis crew eventually m ade his waybackto Mexico.

NOTHER CHRONICLER ofdesert lore, explorer-writerHarold Weight, tells of a first-hand interview with an old-t imer who had foundremnants of a lost ship. These pieces werediscovered in 1907 on a ranch in ImperialValley w he re one Elmer Carver, then a boyof seventeen, worked for a farmer namedNels Jacobso n. The farmer hadgone to LosAngeles on a business trip and had hiredyoung C arver to guard Mrs. Jacobson andkeep an eye on the ranch. During thisinterlude, the lady revealed the truth aboutsome hogpen s that had aroused the boy'scuriosity. Made of planks two to threeinches thick, eighteen inches wide and upto thirty feet long, they we re fastened by

iron bolts through holes bore d into theplanks, rather than nailed together as wascustomary. Carter couldn't imagine whysuch fine timber would have been hauledinto the valley, nor why it would be usedfor hogpens.Mrs. Jacob son the n ex plained that the

planks had com e from an old boat that laypartially buried in a hill behind the house.When Carver investigated, he foundadditional imm ense tim bers, along withribs of the boat, still in the sand. As far as hecould tell, no iron had been used in theboat 's construction and the t imbers wereso hard they appe ared to be petrified.As he gained Mrs. Jacobson's confidence,she further confided that an iron chestfilled with jewels had been buried insidethe boat. One of the jewels she displayed, ared ruby,,was worth m ore than all of theother jewels together, she believed. Amongthe other jewels were emeralds and agolde n crucifix set with sapphires. The realreason for Jacobson's trip, Carver learned ,was to consult with a lawyer and apawnbroker whowe re conspiring with theJacobsons to sell the jewels.When Jacobson returned to his ranch thefollowing week, he had no further need for

Carver, who left the area and never sawhim again.In his research, Weight discovered anhistorical acc ount about early valleysettlers. One i tem refe rred to NelsJacobson, "awell-known Imperial rancherw ho had come to Imp erial with $4,000 andhad left seven years later with $137,350."Perhaps this gentlema n farmer was theonly one to have profited by a ship thatpassed in the desert.Not allburied ships have remainedunidentified, how ever. In 1940 RandallHenderson, founder of Desert Magazine,made a trek to the delta between theColorado River and the Gulf of Californiato investigate reports of a rusting hulkpartly burie d in the silt of a channel longabandoned by the fickle wa ters of theColorado. Although little more than ribsremained, there wasenough evidence todefinitely identify it as the Explorer, a56-foot stern-wheel steamer built by theU.S. WarDepartment in 1860 toaccommodate a Colorado Riverexploration conducted byLt. Jose ph C.Ivesof the U.S. Topographic Engineers (seerelated article, page 46). TheExplorer wasknocked down in eight sections andshipped by boat to the Isthmus of Panama,thence overland to the Pacific, again byboat to San Francisco, and finally to themud flats at the mouth of the ColoradoRiver where it was reassembled.

It was the reconnaisance by this ship tothe presen t site ofHoover Damthat firstproved the Colo rado River navigable. Afterthe expedition, the Explorer wassold toYuma rivermen and used to haul wooduntil itbrok e from its moorings one day,floated downstrea m and disappeared.Seventy-nine years later it was found by anaged Cocopah Indian, whose reportinitiated He nderso n's trek.And so they lie, some found and somestill missing, elusive testimo ny to aroma ntic history, those m ysterious shipsthat passed in desert sands. 0


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L A V A C A V E S C E N T R A LN EARLY EVERY vista in ce nt ra lOregon recalls the land's flamingorigins, forged and shaped byancient vo lcanic activity. The eviden ceabounds: immense fields of solidified lavaflows, long dead volcanic craters andmountains of obsidian, all hinting at theawesom e forces that once bent andtortured the desert landscape in a dim anddistant epoch .But there is an aspect of Oregon'svolcanic history which is not as readilyevident as the buttes and rimrock whichdominate the skyline. For scatteredthrough out th e high desert of centralOregon, just beneath the surface of theland, lie cave systems and isolated cavesknow n as lava tube s. To study and e xplo rethese und ergro und tunnels is to discoverone of the m ost fascinating p rodu cts of thedese rt's volcanic past.Basalt, the igneou s rock that is so ev identhere , and ind eed it is everywhere, chunksof it scattered among the sagebrush andjuniper, is the vital ingredien t in themaking of a lava tube as it is the only rockfluid enough in its molten state to permitthe tu bes to form. This basaltic flow of lowviscosity manifests itself in the form of asmoo th, wrinkly lava known as paho ehoe.Flows of molten basalt also come in moreviscous varieties, blocky and rough AA,which are not conducive to lavatube formation.Lava tub e beg inning s go far back in time,as far back as 12 million y ears. Imaginebasalt, dee p in the earth, u ndertemp eratures as high as 2,000 degreesFahrenheit which render it into liquidform, contained in subterranean pools andcham bers. Imagine this molten rockmaking its way up through the earth,forcing aside and melting overlying rock asit rises, oozing out on to the earth's surfaceby way of a vent. The lava flows along, in astraight line, meandering, branching offinto forks, following t he lay of the primevallandscape.Now the first of many natural forceswhich shape and m old a lava tube beginsto act upo n this river of liquid rock.Exposed to the cooling air, the lava beginsto harden, even as it continues to move.Eventually the ou ter surface of the flowhardens solidly and ceases its forwardprogress. But the innerm ost lava, beinginsulated by the slowly solidifying outercrust, continu es to flow. Finally, whe n the

supply of lava from t he vent is exhau stedthe still liquid rock in the flow's cente rdrains away, leaving a hollow tub e beh ind.This then is the process that initiallyforms a lava tube cave. But the pro cess isfar from com plete. If you can pictu re anewly formed empty tu be of rock, a visit tosome lava tubes will make plain thechanges that the relentless forces of windand water have produced over the ages.A num ber of well formed and easilyaccessible lava tube s can be fou nd just ashort drive south from the city of Bend,reach ed by gravel roads off of Highway 97.These caves, located on th e eastern fringeof the Deschutes National Forest, provideexcellent ex amp les of lava tube form ationsand phenomena.The entrances to these lava tubes arenot, as on e might logically surm ise,through the original entrance, where lavadrained away, but through cave-ins, termedcollapses in th e jargon of geologists.As soon as a lava tube is formed, it isattacked by weathering. Wind and waterwear away at the out er surface of the tubeand make their way through th e entranceto erod e the interior, constantly weakeningthe cave. Through the interveningcenturies subsequent lava flows may burythe tube, sealing it completelyunderground. But the weathering processnever ceases and eventually the lavasurroun ding the tube is worn so thin that asection will collapse of its own weight,creating an opening to the outside. Thesize of the op enin g m ay vary from a smallskylight only a few feet in diam eter to avery large collapse 100 or m ore feet longwhich no t only forms an open ing, but fillsin a considerable p ortion of the tubewith rubble.Wind Cave, nearly 4,000 feet long andon e of the largest tubes in the Bend area,provides a graphic example of the po werof the weathering process. Entrance to thecave is gained throu gh a rather smallopening at one end of a long, narrowcollapse. This unim posing entrance leavesa cave explorer un prepa red for the sightinside. This tube opens up to almostcathedral-like proportions and the floor iscovered with massive piles of boulders,som e reach ing the n early sixty feet to theceiling. These bould ers, eroded from theceiling by wind a nd water action, aretermed breakdown and make exploringthis cave a strenuous proposition. Another

( R ig h t ) T h is s m a l l u n n a m e d t u b e lo c a t e d n e a r C h a r c o a l C a v e h a s y ie l d e d m u c ha r c h e o l o g ic a l e v i d e n c e of o c c u p a t i o n by t h e a b o r i g i n a l i n h a b i ta n t s of t h e r e g i o n .M o u n t a in c l im b i n g r o p e s ( i n s e r t , t o p ) are r e q u i r e d to s a f e ly d e s c e n d t h e s t e e p ,p e r p e t u a l i c e s l o p e in A r n o l d I c e C a v e . M u c h ofB o y d C a v e ( in s e r t , b o t to m ) h a sb e e n f i l l e d in w i t h sand, w h i c h f i lt e r s in t h r o u g h th e e n t r a n c e a n d r o o f fr a c t u r e s .article a n d photographs b y JIM YUSKAVITOH

14 NOVEMBER, 1980

examp le of the toll taken he re byweathering is the skylight enco untere d ashort distance from the entrance. NamedDark Hole Skylight, it prov ides a w elcom eshaft of sunlight in the glo om of the cave.Wind Cave derived its nam e from thesoun d of the wind blowing between theskylight and the entrance.While Wind Cave has a groun d levelentran ce as well as a skylight, a skylightmay be the only means of entry into som elava tubes . Skeleton Cave is just such atube. Although the Forest Service hasconstructed a stairway through the skylightto provide a safe means of descent, some ofthe cave's earliest visitors did not have thisluxury and paid the consequ ences. In thelate 1920s a number of prehistoric bearand horse fossils were discovered in thecave. Their presence was probably theresult of the animals blundering throughthe skylight and being killed from the fallor starving to death after being u nable toescape. Skeleton Cave's name refers to thediscovery of th ese fossils. J j J T H I L E THE INITIAL flo w thatW^wM creates a lava tube is alwaysMr flr pah oeh oe, cave floors of sharp ,jagged lava know n as AA are notunco mm on. This is the result of secondaryflows of A A emanating from the same ventthat the tube-forming pah oeh oe floworiginated. These secondary flows not onlyline the cave floors with rou gh lava but alsofill in the original tu be to varying degre es.

Such an occurrence is found in SkeletonCave. Secondary flows of A A have coatedthe floor, filling in po rtion s of the cave inthe process. The impact of these secondaryflows on lava tube terrain becomes evidentas one proce eds from the entrance orhead, to the end, also know n as the foot.Beginning at the he ad of Skeleton Cavethere is plenty of room to walk u pright.Initially, pene tratin g th e dep ths of this3,000 foot long tube is a matter ofnegotiating piles of breakdo wn andfighting the ragged floor which constantlygrabs at your boots. But as you make yourway further, the ceiling becomes lower andlower, althoug h in reality it is the floor thatis becom ing higher. Com bining this withthe breakdown makes for som e tightbelly-crawls alon g the way.Skeleton Cave also has a side tu be w hichformed wh ere a tributary lava flowintersected the main flow. In addition, asecond tributary streamed over the top ofthe tributary tube, creating an "up perlevel" lava tube.Another pervasive element found in lavatubes and especially in nearby Boyd andBat Caves is sand. Sand along with sticks,leaves and other detritus is borne by windinto the caves through collapses, skylights


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3 s


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Sunlight streaming in through the en-trance of Wind Cave reveals hugeamounts of collapsed rock in the cave'sinterior.and fractures. Particularly curious are th elarge mounds of sand, occasionallyencou ntered, piled against the tube's wall.A closer in spection will inevitably reveal acrack in the wall. Placing a hand in th ecrack reveals a light bre eze making its wayfrom the outside and solves the mystery ofthe sand piles. Sand, over a long period oftime,- is sifted into the cave from theoutside through this crack, slowlyaccumulating against the wall.There is a surprising am ount of color ina lava tub e. Not brilliant but s ubtle a ndmu ted. Blue-grays of lavacicles, whe redripping lava from the ceiling hardenedinto features rese mb ling tiny stalactites,compete with the whites of heat-glazedbasalt and slowly crystallizing mine rals.Dee p blacks and rusty red s streak the gray,blocky walls.Because of basalt's insulating properties,lava tubes maintain a constant temp eratureof aroun d 40 degrees Fahrenheitthroug hout the year. But under certaincircumstances a cave will becom e coldenough to maintain frozen water the yearrou nd, creatin g a special kind of lava tube an ice cave.Arnold Ice Cave has just these sp ecialcircumstances, a large enou gh entrance toprovide goo d ventilation with the op eningorie nted so as to avoid the direct rays ofthe sun. A thick roof cou pled with basalt'sinsulating value also plays a prom inentrole. Because of thes e factors, waterseep ing into th e cave from rainfall an d16 NOVEMBER, 1980

snowmelt remains frozen throughout theyear, resulting in a substantialaccum ulation of ice. This ice was verylikely used by the early Indians of this areaas a sou rce of constant water. In the earlyyears of this century, the ice was m inedcommercially and sold in Bend during thesum mer mon ths to supply the city'srefrigeration need s. The Forest Service hasconstru cted a stairway into the cave whichhas long since fallen away and be encovered by encroaching ice, requiring theuse of mountaineering rop es to descendthe forty feet dow n a thirty-degree iceslop e to the b ottom of the cave. This lavatube was initially much larger but has beenfilled in consid erably by iceand breakdown.T'fiE ORIGINAL discoverers andutilizers of these lava caves w erethe aboriginal people who onceinhabited this region. Wherever the cavesoffered s helter an d sanctuary, they we reprobably occupied to some extent. Theselong-gone peo ple have left beh ind richarcheological e viden ce as well astantalizing m ysteries.On e such mystery is Charcoal Cave, alava tub e which has suffered so mu ch rockcollapse that most of the cave is filled in,renderin g it more of a rock overhang thana bonafide lava tube .The pu zzle of Charcoal Cave lies on itsfloor in the form of a ten- to sixteen-inchdeep layer of charcoal, representing atremendous amount of wood bu rned bysom e forgotten people for reasonsunknow n. One piece of wood taken fromthe cave was determined to have been cutand bu rned around 1370 AD, althoughinitial use of the cave could g o m uch

further back in time. Nothing, such asutensils, hearths or arrowhead s w hichwould indicate human occupation hasbeen found in the cave, furthering themystery of the hu ge fires and theirpurpose.Exploring a lava tube is the best way tolearn about and experience theseund ergro und tunnels. It doesn 't take a lotof expertise to safely investigate th em , justa few precautions and some commonsense. The standard rule for hikers andcamp ers don't go alone and leave wordas to your whereabo uts and return time goes doubly for the lava tube explorer.Warm, thick clothing is also a must, notonly for warm th bu t for padding againstthe uneven and sometimes hazardouslyragged rock. A pair of heavy boots areneede d for foot protection and suppo rt inthe harsh lava tub e terrain. And a helmet orhardh at is an absolute essential as it isnearly imp ossible to exp lore a lava tubewithout bumping your headwith regularity.

Finally, thre e s ourc es of light flashlights with extra batteries and bulbswork just fine along with cand les andmatches for emerge ncies are standard,requir ed gear. In the absolute darkness ofthese caves, on e wants to have plen ty ofspare light sources . Making your way out ofa lava tube with its breakdown, side tubesand crawlways without the benefit of a lightwould b e a long and unnervingexp erien ce. But in spite of the fact thatgoing down into these dark tunnelways,once antediluvian rivers of molten rock,can be exhausting and dirty work, thosewho make the effort will be rewarded withsome astounding sights in a remarkableundergrou nd world. 0


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A SHORT HISTORY OF NATIVE INDIANJEWELRY-AVANISHING DESERT ARTSomewhere West of Denver, and South of the Great Salt Lake, an old man sits in the morning desert^sun, patiently grinding bits of coral and turquoise into tiny hescke beads. Although he 's old, and,.as wrinkled as the canyo ned hills that surround his pole hogan, his craft is older.When the Spaniards, relative late-comers to the Indian country, brought the coral from theirsea voyages, silver had long been mined in the hills , or traded out of old Mexico. And precious 'turquoise and bits of shell had been tribal currency for centuries.Later this day, or perhaps another, the old manwill build a hot fire of pinon and mountain oak, andwith crude leather bellows and a primitive forgesmelt down lumps of silver or old coins and thenhammer them into thin silver sheets.Cold nights of the desert winter will find himbefore his fire, patiently fashioning the silver;filing, shaping and solderinguntil he has formed tiny intri-cate fixtures and ornaments tocomplement the summer's

hescke beads. When he's finished,astute collectors will count theproduct of his patient ancient toilworth more than its weight in gold.He will die soon, and a bit more of thisancient art will die with him. The priceswill rise a bit more for the hand-madepieces, and the unsuspecting will be sold a few more "fac-to ry " pieces in place of the old man 's ancient art. **Of such sad events are values made. And the wise person today buysvalue with beauty when possible.Desert Magazine is one of today 's valu es, with beauty. Each full-colorpage is an enchanting exercise in bringing you the desert as it is today, or as

it was in past glory. While Desert can 't bring you into direct contact withthe ancient crafts, it can and does bring you the real desert with each andevery monthly issue. For lasting value we suggest you enter your subscrip-tion todaythe desert's beauty is truly timeless. This special offer is not!SAVE AT LEAST $8.00!One year Only $10 (12 Issues)

Mail to: Desert Magazine, P.O. Box 28816, San Diego, CA 92128Please enter my subscription to DESERT. I have read and I understand yourguarantee below, which applies to every future issue I am to receive as part of mysubscription. Please enter my new subscription Please enter my renewal.For 1 year at $10 (12 issues) 2 years at $19 (24 issue s).MY NAMEMY ADDRESSCITY STATE ZIP

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18/56

CAMPRUCKERThe Army'** Forgotten Outpost

PRINGTIME HAD reduced thenormally treacherous waters of theWhite River in southeasternArizona to a thin stream dotted with tinypools. Within the p ools scattered oakleaves, caught by gentle breezes, floated incircles like miniature sailboats. As wecrossed the river bed, using storm tossedrocks and bou lders as stepping stones, Iwondered what surprise my host had nextin mind.Glenn Boyer, co-author of Josep hineEarp's book, I Married Wyatt Earp, wastreating me to a tour of backcountryhistoric sites that had taken him a lifetimeto discover. Earlier in the day we hadvisited Johnn y Ringo's grave, de serted

Article and photographsby BUDDY NOONAN

(Top) An extremely rareportrait of 2nd L t. JohnAnthony "Tony" Rucker.Amazingly still intact are(above) the windows androofs of many of thebuildings at CampR ucker. Free rovingranch dogs deterred mostvandalism over theyears. Rustic andpicturesque (right) is thesetting of Cam p R ucker'sstable and corral area.


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stage stops and the obscure, isolatedClanton ranchsite of Tombstone fame."Now," he said, "I'm going to show you thebest spot of the day. Look through thosetrees. Do you see it?"What I saw was unbelievable. There,through the d ense oak and pine was whatappea red to be a very old Army outpost. Aparade ground w as flanked by num erousadobe buildings, their roofs still intact. "Itsnam e is Camp Rucker," Boyer said,anticipating my question , "and it wasnam ed after a Lieutenant John Rucker whodied here in a flash flood during the 1870s.That's all I know."Closer inspection didn't turn up manyclues. How ever, several buildings such as abakery were well marked with whatappeared to be Forest Service signs.

book, Arizona Place Names. That said littlemore than what Glenn Boyer had told me.So it was sheer chance and great luck w henat random, I happened to phone the U.S.Forestry Service in Douglas, Arizona. Didthey know anything about about CampRucker I asked. "Did they kno w anything,"the receptionist replied, "The man thatknows more than anyone else on thesubject is standing here right now." RalphVelasco had spent a lifetime gatheringRucker material and maintaining itsgrounds. He agreed to meet me at CampRucker the following week.

J " " E WAS ALREADY there when IM-~m arrived. He had with him rareJ . JL documents and photographsdetailing the little-known history of Camp

Supply (later to bec om e Cam p Rucker) tobe established on April 29, 1878. It wasnever officially dedicated. Stationed undertwo officers we re 45 m en of Company "C"of the 6th Cavalry. Also in and out of campwere two companies of Indian Scoutsunder the commands of 1st Lt. AustinHene ly and 2nd Lt. Joh n An thony "Tony"Rucker. Rucker, 27, was extremely wellliked by the Indians. Communication withother ca mps and forts was maintained w itha t r ipod-mounted hel iograph, a devicewhich, by the use of mirrors and a shutter,turned the reflection of the sun's rays intoMorse code.

The camp never saw much action,Geron imo and other Indian leadersapparently skirting it for easier pickingselsewhere, but a full-scale attack surely

Still a mystery to Cam p Ruckerhistorian Ralph Velasco is this adobebuilding across from the Post Trader's.The purpose of its construction remainsunknow n. There are no window s ordoors in the far walls.Skillfully carved, they, along with a bronzecommemorative plaque and CampRucker's generally well-preservedappearance, indicated that someone once,or curren tly does, have an interest in theold outpost. Had it once been a state parkand then deserted? If not, what was thestory. I had to find out.Numerous letters and phone callsproved fruitless. Even the knowledgeableFort Huachuca Museum offered no morethan a short para graph in Will Barnes'

Rucker. Unlocking the main gate, thenleading m e along the original cavalry road,Ralph talked. As he did the area seemed tocome to life again, peopled by those whohad lived here so many years before.The year w as 1878. Indian warriors,including a then little-known renegadenamed G eronimo , were causing havoc anddestruction throughout the New Mexicoand Arizona Territories. Supply campswe re ne ede d to reinforce a network of U.S.Army forts. These p ressu res caused Camp

would have been considered had therenegades known what was going on.Camp Rucker had a major problem, a softunderbelly, and that belly contained bo oze.Life at the post, as revealed by the oldreco rds, reads like episod es from TV's " F'Troop." In fact, during one period aCompany "F" was stationed there. Forexample, read the official charges againstPrivate Joh n T. Winn: "(1) Pvt. Winn whileon guard duty allowed his prisoner tobeco me drunk. (2) Pvt. Winn also was sodrunk that he was unable to perform hisduties. (3) Pvt. Winn did feloniously, andwith intent to kill, assault Indian ScoutCorporal Honeycone, discharging a leadenbullet from a U.S. Army Colt revolver athim without cause."

Indeed, drinking seem s to have been themain problem at Camp Supply aswitnessed by the following official notice


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from the Post Commander to the PostTrader: "Owing to the m any cases ofdrun kenn ess at this camp, it is herebyordered that in the future not more thanthree drinks of intoxicating liquor be soldor given to any enlisted m an in any on e dayby the Post Trader or his employees, atleast two hours occuring between eachdrink." Even with the three drinkmaximum, the cavalrymen continued tostay drunk. They staggered throug h theirduties, did poorly at the firing range, anddese rted. Finally, the Post Surgeon, Dr.W.W Douglas analyzed the locally-madeliquor and found it unusually high inalcohol content. His report concluded bysaying, "The whiskey is certainly veryinferior and must have an injurious effectupon anyone who used it."Sobriety for everyone at Camp Supplycame suddenly on July 11, 1878 with theonslaught of an unusually heavy storm. Asrain waters rose in the White River whichfronts the cam p, Joh n R ucker and his pal,Austin Henely, attempted to wait out thestorm with tw o civilians at a nearby off-post

and John Rucker were bu ried at the postcemetery near Fort Bow ie, ArizonaTerritory. In honor of the Lieutenant whowas so well liked, the name of CampSupply was changed to Camp Rucker onNovember 30, 1878.VENTS LEADING to the closin g ofCamp Rucker took place ten m onthslater. Previously, rations w ere givenonly to Indians at the San Carlos Agency.On October 6, 1879, an order was issuedallowing rations to al l Indians enroute tothe Agency. Seeing an ad vantage in this,which in part meant 1,750 pounds of freshmeat for his me n, Chief Juh and 125 of hisrenegade Apache followers "surrendered"their forces at Camp Rucker. Spokesmanfor Juh, who stuttered, was the Indiancalled Geronimo. In reality Geronimowould never truly surrender until 1886 inFort Bowie after a long and bloody career.But with the action of Juh and Gero nimo ,the need for Camp Rucker seemed ended.On November 22,1880, CaptainMacGowan signed an order relinquishing

pocket, he secured documents andphotographs from Washington, D.C., thenproceeded to give the outpost a facelift.Lumber and other materials were donatedby nearby ranchers. Learning that the Camphad never been officially dedicated, heorganized a dedication day in 1973 atwhich time a plaque was set in placecommemorating the Camp's significance.History is everywhere at Camp Rucker.Ralph picked up a metallic object,examined it, then dropped it back to theground. It was an empty rifle shell casing,one of many left scattered at the Camp'sfiring range over a century ago. Onehun dred yards away, portion s of anoriginal iron military target remained inthe branches of a tree, long since graftedinto it by nature. On a hillside, almostinvisible due to heavy brush, three solitarygraves were marked simply as "AnUnkn own Arizona P ioneer." A CivilianConservation Corps crew passing throughthe area in 1936 discovered hum anremains in shallow graves, reburied them,and constructed epitaphs. Ralph believes

(Water, Restrooms)RUCKER CAMPGROUND $

WHITE RIVER (in whicht_t. John A. Rucker""perished.)A dedicated preservationist, RalphVelasco expresses his hopes that Cam pRucke r will som eday becom e an historicstate park.saloon. Durin g wh at they felt was a lull, allfour attempted to cross the raging riverback to Camp Supply. The mule-mountedcivilians were successful, Henely andRucker were not. They committed the fatalerror of riding side-by-side, and theboulder-laced flash flood knocked them offtheir horses. They disappeared under theswirling, murky waters and weren't seenagain until discovered dead a mile anda half away by Indian Scouts thefollowing night.Camp Supply's community was stunned.Reflection of that can be seen in a telegramsent by the Post Commander to Rucker'sbrother-in-law, General Phillip Sheridan,which reads in part: "We are crushed withgrief. Tony's (Rucker's) Indians seemawestruck. They were perfectly devoted tohim. I know of no o ne mo re universallyliked and esteemed. I send the remains ofboth into Bowie at once." Austin Henely

his command, and the troops departed.Velasco went on to tell me whathappened after closure: "There was oneslight revival for the camp as a supplydepot in 1886, but it was downhill fromthere," he said, explaining that farmersliving at Camp Rucker over the yearscontributed heavily to its presentwell-preserved state. Free roving, loudbarking ranch dogs proved a deterrent tovandals, but the reinforcement of saggingwalls, repair of roofs, clearing of footpathsand erection of sign markers had all beendon e by Ralph.The determ ined Forest Service fire

control officer had taken it upon himselfto tackle the entire project singlehanded . Anative of the area, he can't explain why hefell in love with Camp Rucker, but he did,and, in I960 while stationed here, decidedto repair the site as best he could.Financing the project out of his own

that they could very well be Camp Ruckercavalrymen.Heading back through the Camp'scompound, we passed by its bakery,stockade site, enlisted men's quarters,officers' quarters and hospital. Afterre-crossing th e White River wh ere JohnRucker had met tragedy, I looked back. Icould see the entire Camp in miniaturethrough dens e oaks, framed by m agnificentmou ntains. And, as breezes rustled leavesoverhead, it was easy for m e to und erstandwhy Ralph wants to see th e Camppreserved for future generations to enjoy.Perhaps someday his dream will cometrue. Then, Camp Rucker would no longerbe a forgotten Army outpost.Y, Velasco, a one -m anrestoration committee, hopes for theday when all of Camp Rucker's sixty

acres might become an official state park.Only then will he feel his work has beenaccomplished. His next step in thatdirection is to arrange pub lic hearings andsupport. Anyone wishing to help can do soby writing Ralph Velasco, 28 Grace,Pirtleville, AZ 85626. @


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8 2 50 millionfederal projectthreatenssecurity ofColorado'sDolores River.

E s s a yb y

R U S S E L LM A R T I N

J V E R O F O U R L A D Y O FWe pu ll ou r patched and haggard boatsashore an d m ake cam p at the gates of thecanyon . Haughty sand stone w alls risesud de nly, powerfully up at this spot, and th e


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beneath the rock, The beach is wide and sm ooth, pleasantly outof sight of the hum pe d tr usses of the Gyp Valley Bridge, out ofmind of the flat benc h b eside it, that being a tangle of rustedsedan bod ies, crumbling co ncrete pilings and thick,shoulder-high sage where w e once spent a dreary, dust-drivennight waiting with The Professional Boatman for some errantpassengers he would haul into and out of the Canyon.But comm erce plays no part this afternoon. W e've spent awh ole day padd ling just from Poverty Flats to this point, takingitinerant time to swim, gawk at petroglyphs and pry pe anut butterfrom th e roofs of our mou ths. And Moody, the freckled Hawaiian

wh o swells to life like a kind of delig hted, de -hydra ted surferwhe n he 's back on the water, has spent ho urs playing in his kayakin every eddy and stretch of rippled cur rent that we've passed.Tomorrow holds sublime promise. There'll be nothing else todo b ut float into the last section of the River that rema ins trulywild, aimless except for that, naked and u ncon cern ed on thebrown back of the River.When dinne r is done and our greasy bowls are scour ed w ithsand, the darkness comes on, seems to lay itself down in foldsbetwe en the Canyon's walls. Som eone banks the small fire,everyone shares slashes of scotch. Alan, Montana cow hand andIdaho forest ranger, recites Robert Service "The Crem ation ofSam M agee" and "The Call of the Wild" corny, sentim ental,appropriate. The poems, their maudlin themes and stretchedrhymes bright and delightful, are m eant to be he ard aloud. Andborne by Alan's drawl, the words fill the night.At home now on a derelict farm four miles from the River'ssouthernmost bend, those nights come foremost to mind when Ithink about the Dolores. Not because ther e have been so many ofthem, the re have been too few, of course. And not because thosetimes characterize my relation to the River. No, the mass of mycontact over the years comes from w atching the curren t from acar window on a highway bound out of the m ountains thatparallels the channel; it's been pulling Dolores River water out ofthe kitchen tap, the showe r head, throug h head-gates and intodark furrows in fields. I 'm a Dolore s River consum er a nd havebeen, off and on, all my life.

But it's the River's ceaseless, erratic rush to the Colorado that Ihold most important. Not for me, not for the farmers or thepeo ple in the towns. We simply ambush the River and bor row itsbounty. The important, essential River is the teeming thing thattrickles, rolls and surges runs dry from its high catchbasinsthrough valleys, plains and canyons in search of the low groundthat ultimately drops into the sea.

r f f l S S P A R E C A N Y O N A N Dmesa country that leans against the western face ofthe Rockies was formed and m olded by the w ork ofwater and th e persistent winds, laying down thegro und , the rock , then buffetting it, carving it withthe driven air over a span of years so long their numbers are juststrange ideas.In our age, the winds remain d eterm inedly at work, but it's theabsence of water that marks the critical difference. The plateaucountry gets little rain, not much snow, and the moisture thatdoes fall rushes into washes, arroyos and canyons before it can beput to work. The fertile grou nd lies suspend ed, and dry, abovethe water courses.As long as peo ple have lived in this region they have, out ofdespera te necessity, worked at trapping the w ater, holding it,putting it to use. The Anasazi, the Ancient On es, formed checkdams at the m ouths of washes, built reservoirs to catch waterfrom dripping springs. The water they caught nurtur ed b eans,maize, squash and them , for thirteen c enturies.The first Anglo settlers, aided only by burly teams of horses,sharp shovels and their own strong an d straining backs, set towork to divert water from th e streams and rivers and to deliver itto their meag er cro ps. In the farmstead coun try whe re I live, anirrigation system completed in 1889 still bends Dolores RiverScenic Slick Rock Cany on of th e Do lores, /


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The bitteres t land to benefit ison the Ute Reservation (abo ve).Dry farmers (rig ht) may or maynot wish to sw itch to irrigation.water away from its natural co urse and offers it to a noth erwatershed. But these are the last summers for that simplediversion system. Seventy miles upstream from that broad andsilent beach , a dam is begin ning to rise. And once that mass ofearth and rock reaches up and across the canyon, and the Riverbacks up behind it, everything will have changed.The federally-funded Dolo res Project, expecte d to costsom ewh ere in the neighb orho od of $250 million (figure almost$17,000 for ev en' local resident wh o may potentially benefit fromi t ) , will reduce flows by seventy percent, compared with amaximum of 44 percent that can be diverted now. Lands availablefor irrigation in wide, arcing Montezum a Valley will nearlydouble, offering late-summer security for the already-irrigatedfarms, crop diversity on lands now dry-farmed in pinto beans andwinter w heat; offering the first steady, dep end abl e supply ofwater to the pe op le of the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation sincetheir great-grandparents w ere should ered into that bare countryin the 1880s.Everyone w ants a piece of the action, the wealth, the movingwater. And in that regard, the dam and th e reservo ir it will holdwill bec om e a kind of stingy tank and faucet. The irrigators wantcheap, durable water so they can feed us and keep the productioncredit peo ple at bay; the chamb ers of comm erce eye treatmentplants and long-term supplies, imagining shopping malls andsubdivisions; the energy giants offer us "energy indep ende nce"and a high-tech tom orro w if only we'll give them the water andthe rich skin of the land. And the recreation ists, peop le like youand me an d The Professional Boatman, want a little water as well,water forced o nly by its own n ecessities, loose and free inthe canyons.

H E N A M E D O L O R E S , S U I T Sthis River, is just right for it, but the re's p roba bly nologic in explaining why. I could n't associate thatnam e with anything else after so long, not a plac e, nota woman. Nor could anoth er name b elong to theRiver. In English, the sou nd is gentle , sonoro us. In Spanish, it'slovely and clear as a hawk's call.The full name, longer, never used but not forgotten, is Rio deNuestra Senora de Dolores. River of O ur Lady of Sorrow s. It wascalled that first in 1765 by Juan Maria de R ivera, a Spanishexp lore r investigating th e vast bank of land that lay north of SantaF e . Imagine why he wanted that name, why he chose that image

of the Virgen to identify this quick, erratic, mountain-bornstream.The Dolores takes shapes, begins its descent and collection ofwater in two rocky basins high in C olorado 's San Juans. The twostreams drop quickly through the angled tundra, enter forests offir and spru ce wh ich, in turn, give way to white-barked,shimmering quakies. The River's valleys grow wider, their slopessoftened by the timber and grasses.At Dolores the River abandons its southwesterly course, anglesagainst a low wall that prevents it from spilling into Mo ntezumaValley, and then turns abruptly north past the diversions andlateral ditches, past farms and houses, beneath a swinging bridgebuilt by a blind man, into the canyo ns.In the 190 miles between Dolores and the confluence with theColorad o, the River twists and drop s thro ugh a series of fivecanyons, each separated from the next by broad, barren valleysthat stretch away to mesas and reclusive buttes.This desert River, bound by rock, brown and surging in earlysumm er, reduced to stinking po ols by fall, is nothin g like thequick mountain stream it has grown out of, although its watersand much of its suspended silt are indeed the same, carried fromone kind of country down into another.The Dolores flows, from headwaters to m outh, thro ughaweso me, em pty, wild country cut out of 25 million years of rock,past fields, farms and frowzy tow ns, past relics of the hard-rockera in the mountains, among ruins of the last uranium rushbelow. The River is banked by gravel pits and abandoned cars,lined by roads and highways, spanned by bridges, tripped bydiversions, sucked by pum ps. But it flows, mind less of the likes ofu s , committed toward the Colorado.Nothing stays the same, I know. Not the shape of the land, n orthe p eop le up on it. The capriciou s, crazy River is the mo st volatileof all, I suppo se. Never steady, rising, receding , going dry.Twenty-three major commercial rafting companies offer tripson the Dolo res now, along with nu me rous pay-me-in-cashoperators and scads of quasi-commercial grou p excu rsions.Opinions on whether the River is over-run, henceover-burden ed, differ d epen ding o n the source. Glenn Sherill,Outdoor Recreation Planner for the Bureau of LandManag ement's San Juan Resource Area, tells m e his Agency (thattogether with the Forest Service, controls about ninety percent ofthe River corridor) has no plans to initiate a permit system thatwould regulate the nu mb ers of launchings. The BLM wouldprobably have a plan for the Dolores on paper, if not already in


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force, were it not for the likelihood that the Dolores Project 5McPhee Dam may handily erase the need. Boatable releases fromthe dam will be so sporadic (non-existent while the reservoirfills) that the numbers of river runners will inevitably decreasedrastically, perhaps even disappear.The Professional Boatman, Preston Ellsworth, operator of theDurango , Colorado-based Colorado Rivers-Tours, disagreesemphatically about the need for a management plan. He says that,provided the canyons have water, an effective permit systemwould mean twice as many people as currently float the rivercould enjoy excellent isolated white-water trips.But, says Ellsworth, the completion of the dam will mean "theDolores will be lost, the latest of Colorado's rivers to bedestroyed o r com prom ised." H e bristles a bit at my suggestionthat perhaps the commercial guides (whose passengers made upabou t fifty perc ent of last year's boate rs, he guess es) areinadvertently contribu ting to a loss of anoth er kind a loss ofisolation, of an idea of emp tiness, of the back of beyon d.

ON JA N U A R Y 3 , 1 9 7 5 , THENation al Wild and Scen ic Rivers Act, that in 1968 haddesignated segm ents often rivers for protection, wasam end ed to authorize study of 29 additional rivers,the Dolores among them, to determine whether they

possessed "outstandingly remarkable scenic, recreational,geolo gic, fish and w ildlife, historic, cultural, or o ther similarvalues." But because of the political comp lications of the p end ingDolores Project, the Dolores was singled out from the other 28rivers for "accelerated study." And, for the purposes of the study,McPhee Dam was consid ered "in place." If the Dolores was to b edeem ed eligible for protection it would have to be in spite of (theBureau of Reclamation argued because of) that hypothetical damand reservoir.A federally-appo inted study team w as given a year to investigateall of the River above the propos

Documents

198011 Desert Magazine 1980 November