Morongobill's Backporch

A new feature top left column of the page with---

2012-01-25T20:13:00.001-08:00

Some words by the writer, Marshal South, whose home site named Yaquitepec
I recently visited.

After making the trip down to the home site, I decided to pick up a book about
the man, which also includes most of the monthly columns he wrote for Desert Magazine. The pay for those articles was the primary means of support for himself and his family while living up atop Ghost Mountain.

I picked up a signed collectible copy at a real good price from a small bookstore
and I realize after the fact, that the smart plan would have been to buy the book first, read it, and then go make the pilgrimage, but of course, I did the opposite.

If I had read the book and studied the layout of the home inside, provided by
the eldest son, Rider, I would have been much more knowledgeable, and more
awed by all the family accomplished, atop that barren, windswept ridge.

You live and learn. I will be going back for a second visit.

I am going to make a strong statement. Having read through page 105, I feel like I have read enough to say Mr. South has to go up there with a very small
group at the top of the wilderness writers pyramid. Having read Abbey and others, reading Zane Grey, the western writer, etc- the word paintings found in this book are as good as any I have read.

Take a look at that new section on the left column of this page. From time to time, I will pick out a small paragraph that has meaning, in this case personal
meaning to me- and put it in this new section. Read it and think about it.

When I saw this part of a paragraph, I was overwhelmed almost by the memory of the smell of the giant creosote plant after a rain in my backyard of my Joshua Tree house. Alas the new owners tore it out right after they moved in, this pleasant memory they will never hold dear, as I do.

Another great paragraph which I will probably highlight next was when he remembered his father- just a wonderful description- the man was truly a master wordsmith.

I guess I went to Yaquitepec to visit the ruins, but since coming back home, I am finding out about the man, as the writings seem to be a direct pipeline to his soul.

Here is a photograph of my copy. It is in like new condition and signed by Diana
Lindsay, the editor. I also enjoyed the information from Rider South at the beginning of the book, especially his memories of his parents and siblings, and how life was at Yaquitepec.

This really is a great read and I highly recommend that you reading these words here, go out and get a copy- read it at night before laying down, and dream of life in the desert- you may wake up smelling that desert rain.

Vaya con dios.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: yaquitepec,marshal south,rider south,diana lindsay,ed abbey on the value of wilderness,zane grey,great wilderness and western authors,marshal south wordsmith

Self criticism and an invitation.

2012-01-20T07:18:00.001-08:00

Consider the title as an invitation to pile on , I am a big boy, I can take it.

The behind the scenes look at this blog journey shows a lot of posting during
the first year, when I was underemployed and had lots of free time(slow time in
the bus business), was on a mission(try to stop Ivanpah), and a few personal
issues. Some have asked about the drop in activity here, that is the straight
answer to the question.

Several friends have told me that I write best when mad, that is true. But as one mentioned in an email, negativity; negativity I feel was poisoning me,slowly but surely.

It took a long while to finally get it- that I was making exactly no headway with
my criticisms, getting more and more worked up, on the way to a stroke, whatever, the time came to back off, and move on to more peaceful writing,
and to spend time enjoying this Mojave Desert that I love, while the time and
enjoy remain to me to enjoy it.

Here is a quote from the writer whose home site I visited recently, Marshal
South, which sums up my feelings about the desert:

“The desert! Either you will love it or you will hate it. If you hate it you will fly from it and never wish to see its face again. If you love it, it will hold you and
draw you as will no other land on earth.”- Marshal South

I love it. I would like to live out my remaining days there. I would like to show
others the beauty of it. And of course, I would like to help save it.

I will do what I can.

I hope that you will join me, in whatever way that you can.

It is my fervent wish to see you out on the trail.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: marshal south,self criticism,loving the desert,saving the desert,an invitation

Informative Youtube video regarding Marshal South and Ghost Mountain.

2012-01-16T07:23:00.001-08:00

Well worth a viewing. I learned a lot from this video about life up there, and
that I completely missed his sun dial that I had read about.

This man is very knowledgeable about the history of Yaquitepec and Marshal South.

I think this is the best video up on Youtube about this place.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: marshal south,ghost mountain,yaquitepec

Your mission is to watch these two videos in their entirety, updated.

2012-01-14T20:42:00.001-08:00

Subject matter- the endless wars, with words in one, and extremely graphic
subject matter in the other. First up is Phil Donahue discussing Ron Paul and
being anti- war with Piers Morgan on CNN.

A must see!

Next up is a video from Aletho News which you will never see broadcast on American television news, I guarantee it.

I d/l’d this from Aletho, then couldn’t re- find it, amazing how Google can find anything.

Folks, I have said it here many times. We can’t keep up this bombing and killing of the brown and black peoples of this planet, with out facing some
serious blowback at some point in our future. I believe it will come sooner rather than later.

How long can this mayhem go on before it completely destroys what remains of this country’s soul?

After sleeping on it, my impressions after watching the second video. It is extremely difficult to watch this once you pass the 3 1/2 minute mark. The sounds of the children screaming in terror as missile after cowardly missile
strikes nearby, the destruction unfolding before your very eyes, the scenes
of the little boy being held down in the hospital writhing in pain as they attempt
to clean up his head wounds, the child with the shrapnel wound(?) in the abdomen beyond the point of crying, due to shock- if you have any sense of compassion and decency, these sights will rock you to the core- forget all the
f---ing propaganda coming to you from the American news media- this is hard to watch and to take.

To all the my country right or wronger’s out there, just imagine that is your kid
being held down on that exam table, or you parents that just got vaporized by
that drone missile, how would you feel about it? Wouldn’t you vow that one day, no matter how long it took, that you would get your revenge?

This ain’t no damned video game here, folks. Real people are getting blown to hell across the globe, by young guys sitting at a video game console at Nellis Air Force base.

I hope the guys doing this and those profiting off this un-American policy burn
in hell.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: piers morgan,phil donahue,ron paul the only anti-war candidate for 2012,drone attacks

Now this is a hard hitting political video.

2012-01-12T10:08:00.001-08:00

Not that it matters for my purposes here, to showcase an effective ad; this
was paid for and made by a PAC supporting former house speaker Newt
Gingrich, and it really tears into Mitt Romney- you know the one referred to
by Governor Rick Perry of Texas, as a “vulture” capitalist.

Too long to go viral, but well worth watching, all 28 minutes of it!

As a liberal politically, it does my heart good to see something like this. As
a blue collar worker, it feels good to watch one of the “vultures” get it as good
as they got. I don’t care how they slice and dice it, these guys come in to a
business, sell them a bill of goods, put their own people in the key spots, and then proceed to suck the lifeblood out of a business, leaving the picked over
carcass behind.

Translation: closed businesses and factories all over this country, with layoffs
and pinkslips floating away with the breeze.

Someone had to tear into these guys, with the democrats cowering in fear, afraid to go out on a limb, and the only race being on the republican side, perhaps this will put the brakes to the Romney Express, with Perry and Gingrich gleefully pouring it on!

Bully!

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: newt gingrich,rick perry,vulture capitalism,bain capital,mitt romney express

Yaquitepec and Marshal South, final thoughts.

2012-01-11T11:37:00.001-08:00

After sleeping on it, I am still no closer to solving the riddle that was Marshal
South. Odds are that I never will be able to figure him out. As a friend says,
get out of the square box- I am, and it still doesn’t help.

Never in my wildest dreams, would I move anywhere without a water supply,
or in such a remote location such as Ghost Mountain, and especially not during a major economic downturn, but that is exactly what this family did. It
would require a lot more faith than I have, that’s for sure.

Having said all this, it is a historical fact that the family lived atop that barren ridge for about 16 years. The ruins speak to that fact. The historical record proves that it did happen.

Perhaps I will never understand the why, but I can definitely figure out the how,
from my visit to the ruins of the homestead, and from the reading that I have done about the man and the family.

I said in one of the videos that this was “real history.” It was an event that was
ongoing decades ago, and despite vandalism and the weathering effects of time’s passing, you can still go see the site and try to understand what it was like to live there atop that boulder strewn ridge, gazing out upon the magnificent vistas laid out before you- it was and is a moving sight, and it gave me a whole new appreciation of the man who was Marshal South, a man who dreamed of making it on his own terms, far from the madding crowd that is modern day civilization.

I am very glad that I made this trip, I still don’t get it all, my mind just can’t
totally wrap itself around such a bold act, but it definitely exposed me to another way of thinking, that’s for sure. If one is in the area, I do recommend a visit to Yaquitepec; venture there soon, who knows how long the site will remain in the shape that it is in now.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: yaquitepec,marshal south,ghost mountain experiment,ghost mountain,blair valley,anza- borrego state desert park

Visit to Yaquitepec, home of Marshal South atop Ghost Mountain, pt 2.

2012-01-10T14:06:00.001-08:00

See pt 1 here if you haven’t read it already for context, or just keep reading
here and save it for later. This part will be told more with pictures and videos
possibly, we will see how it plays out.

After arrival at the trailhead, I set out upon the trail, one mile long, up towards
the top of the ridge- destination, the home of Marshal South, Yaquitepec.The
trail starts out steeply and pretty much continues that way.

I am going to put up several photos taken going up the rocky trail, which by the way has many switchbacks. Alongside the trail, in a couple of places, I had
close encounters with cholla, and had to pull out several of their needles, luckily there was no blood drawn.

A beautiful lichen covered boulder alongside the trail.

Can you imagine going up this with a heavy jerry can filled with water in each hand?

Speaking of cholla’s. Also note the couple heading downhill, the lady had a hip replacement surgery and look at
her hiking! That was truly inspirational to me, I thank them for giving me the heads up on the trail going on up.

There are almost too many succulents to count in the above photo. I sure wish I was better educated regarding desert
cactus species.

One of many, many juniper trees that I encountered along the trail to Yaquitepec. I sure hope that Senator Harry Reid
doesn’t see this blog post as there isn’t a juniper or pinyon pine tree safe anywhere, that he doesn’t want to burn in
one of his so-called renewable energy biomass plant schemes! I say harvest the berries and make bathtub gin.

The view looking back toward the exit. What are those stalks that come up from a plant resembling an agave?

This is similar to the plant that the tall stalks grow from.

No special camera angles, yes, it really is that steep! Check out all the different plant species!

What is the name of these plants with the tall stalks?

What an awesome view. This hike was worth it just to get to appreciate the beauty of the surrounding desert landscape.

I don’t know, I think I have wandered off the path. Just kidding!

The view out the front door. You can see the Borrego badlands way in the distance I believe. I am sure that if I am mistaken,
someone will set me straight.

This flower or plant left here by someone else, for some reason, was a moving thing to see.

The context for the flower picture above.

Taken from inside the home looking toward the kitchen area and the location of the water cistern.

I took several videos but these 3 are the most important and were taken 1) on
the trail just before arrival at the ruins, and the next 2 from the home site area.
The last video, is really where I put it all together in my thoughts and onto video. Please note, the video is shaky, I forgot to take my tremor medication- I
apologize in advance for the loss of video quality. Please be assured though
that everything that I had at the time- knowledge of the individuals, my feelings
and thoughts went into these video vignettes.

Yaquitepec# 7 from bill mcdonald on Vimeo.

Video on the mountain trail on the walk up to Yaquitepec, home site of the writer, Marshal South, who lived there from 1930 to the late 1940's.

Yaquitepec #8 from bill mcdonald on Vimeo.

A walkthrough of Yaquitepec,home of writer,marshal south,atop Ghost Mountain in Anza-Borrego State Desert Park.

Yaquitepec #9 from bill mcdonald on Vimeo.

Continuing the walkthrough of the ruins at the home site of writer, Marshal South, known as Yaquitepec, atop Ghost Mountain which is located in Anza- Borrego State Desert Park.

Folks, that is it for today. I will have further thoughts on this which I will put into
pt 3, the final post on this trip report. This will hopefully go online tomorrow. I just feel like that something is missing, I don’t know what the missing piece is;
perhaps after sleeping on it, it will come to me.

Feel free to comment if you have any thoughts on this, or any suggestions for future trips- as the saying goes, I am all ears.

If anyone has further information and you would like it made available to the readership, please consider contributing a guest article. Just email me at the address to the left, and we will get it up right away. Sorry, the pay is nonexistent as this is a labor of love, so to speak, but occasionally this blog does get some “heavy hitter visitors” and who knows, they might write me and ask who wrote that fantastic guest blog post!

As I say somewhere, maybe on the youtube page, this site can really only be appreciated truly by making the pilgrimage to it. Videos and photos do not substitute for the awe inspiring views from the top and the difficulties encountered making your way up and back. Most importantly, do not stay too late, unless you have a good torch and are experienced in night hiking, this trail
is tough enough in the daytime, don’t tempt fate by going up unprepared and having to trek down after sunset.

Until we meet again, vaya con dios, mis amigos.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: marshal south,anza- borrego state desert park,blair valley,yaquitepec,ghost mountain,ghost mountain experiment

Visit to Yaquitepec, home of Marshal South atop Ghost Mountain, pt.1

2012-01-09T18:19:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, Sunday morning, I got up ready and eager to drive down for my
first visit to the Anza- Borrego State Desert Park, the site where the writer,
Marshal South and his family lived on a ridge top in the desert for 16 years,
building a life away from civilization during the Great Depression, and finally
abandoning the homestead in the late 1940’s after a breakup between the writer and his wife, details of which you can read on the website linked earlier
and in other places on the web, or in books or magazine articles.

I strongly recommend that you click on the above link, and read about this man,
if you are unfamiliar with him and this article which discusses Marshal South along with another 1930’s explorer, the young Everett Ruess, as well as Ed
Abbey and others. A truly great read, especially about Marshal and Everett.

Let me say that it is not easy to get to the site via state highways 78 or 79, here
is a screenshot from a video I took while driving that illustrates the difficult terrain and highway conditions.

My first destination was the visitor center in Borrego Springs, where I was bitterly disappointed. I had read online that in their theater, they showed the
15 minute film, “The Ghost Mountain Experiment,” instead another film was
screened about the park instead. They did have the film and a book for sale
in their gift shop about Yaquitepec and Marshal South.

After a 20-25 minute stay, I took off in the Morongomobile for Park Hwy S-2
and the 3.2 mile long dirt road leading to the home site. After about a 17 mile drive, I arrived at the turn off and slowly began the dirt road journey, dodging
the potholes, and hoping no vehicle would meet me head on, as most of the
way the road is only wide enough for one vehicle, someone would have to back up to a turnout.

In the above video capture, one vehicle could pull off to the right, further down the road that just isn’t possible.

The temperature was in the high 60’s F and there was no wind when I arrived
at the trailhead.

This is as good a place as any to stop and process my videos and photographs
taken this day, while you readers check out the links mentioned above. I can
not over-emphasize that if you have never heard of either individual, you really
should read a little about them to truly appreciate, in Marshal’s case, the desire
to build a life way out from the world, in the remote Blair Valley, in the Anza- Borrego area.

Part 2 will come shortly, please do return for it, here is a video capture image
showing the view across the valley, near the home site, Yaquitepec.

In the video, overcome by the beauty of nature laid out before me, I said
that if it wasn’t so much effort, that I would ask my brother to spread my ashes
here when I was gone, that is how awe- struck this sight made me.

This poor photograph does not do justice to this scenic view.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: marshal south,yaquitepec,anza-Borrego state desert park,everett ruess,ed abbey,blair valley,borrego springs,ghost mountain,the ghost mountain experiment

Sometimes you can’t win for losing.

2012-01-04T09:28:00.001-08:00

Some of you may recall the other day I mentioned my resolution for 2012
was to try to buy a home and move out to the desert. I finally stepped out
of the “square box” and let my imagination and longing free.

Now for the latest news, which will surely have a major effect on my plans.

My company that I work for, a major national bus line which I will not name,
filed for federal chapter 11 bankruptcy yesterday, which has thrown all my
plans right out of the window.

Picture this scenario. After filling out all the papers, being told it looks good,
my loan package goes to the underwriter’s, one of whom says “his company is in bankruptcy, there is no guarantee that his pay rate will not change, nor that he will even be able to hang on to a job, he could be laid off tomorrow!”

It is not in the cards for me to make a major commitment under this much of a cloud, if it happens it will have to be the best price deal of all time, for me to
jump on it. I will keep looking, but now will be even more careful.

The other day before I made my hike, I rode around looking for one house in Whitewater, also known as West Palm Springs Village, and never found it.
Next, I rode up to Morongo Valley, found the house which wasn’t bad, but on a very short street, a street where the first house I passed by on the way, was an
obvious bank owned repo, totally trashed, with a love seat and couch, coming out of the smashed picture window, I kid you not.

No way I would buy on that street, no way.

Late addition. I just found this property via hotpads.com and redfin.com which
is in pending status and this is the first time that I saw this. This is exactly the type of situation that I am looking for, just so you know.

So all way around, I am taking incoming fire from all directions this morning.

If I didn’t have to work today, I would be heading for the desert wide open spaces so fast that it would make my head spin.

Morongobill

Not much of a hill climber, as these videos will prove.

2012-01-03T10:39:00.001-08:00

After making the drive yesterday to do a little more exploring at the ridge line
area near the windmills off I-10, I decided to head around the other side of the ridge and walk down toward Snow Creek. On the way, I stopped to attempt
another climb up a steep hill utilizing the existing offroader trails which went straight up.

On the way I stopped and rested on a rock outcropping where I did this self
portrait with my cell phone.

How did I not manage to get my arm holding the phone into the picture? Looking at this photo, it is obvious that
when they passed around looks, I must have heard books and went off looking for my library card!

By now, a few of you must be wondering what is so fascinating to me, that
I keep returning back to the same area off the freeway near the windmills.
I have pondered that question as well. Here are a few reasons. It is relatively
close to me, around 90 miles or so, and it is desert terrain with tremendous
scenic mountains and hills looming over the area. There is a wide variety of
plant and animal life in the area, as well as good mountain biking and dry camping opportunities, for those who want solitude but still to be near a city
and in cell phone coverage. Plus there are truly challenging hike and hill
climbing, as well as bouldering and mountain climbing, that you can do- and
by the way, the Pacific Crest Trail passes through this small area.

I will continue coming here but my next hike will be in a different area, think
Yaquitepec and Marshal South, that is the only hint that I will give you guys.

Okay, one more, Ghost Mountain, google it, check it out, let me know if you
want to come along with me.

Here are a few videos that I made yesterday for your viewing.

pt 1

pt 2

pt 3

pt 4

There you have it, 4 videos which, let me put on my fortune teller’s hat, will
end up being viewed about 3 times. God bless the 3 of you that do watch them.
It is for you, the less easily bored by poor video, that I put myself out there.

One of these, I will figure it out, of course, by then, I will be down to 1 viewer!

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: desert hike,desert hill climbing,morongobill's poor videos,marshal south,yaquitepec,ghost mountain

Shaking out the dust from the keyboard and other year end matters. And a couple of vows.

2011-12-31T19:45:00.001-08:00

Why don’t I get right down to the nut cutting, and let all of you know my number one priority for year 2012- my vow to myself and to the world is to
do my very best to move back home, to the desert, to where I feel the most
comfortable within my own skin; the sooner, the better.

Let me tell you how this came about.

Recently, while driving a trolley with a security officer in an undisclosed OC
city, I casually asked if there were security guard jobs available, say in the
Palm Springs area, for an old timer, one too old to chase down and physically
subdue teenage suspects, for example. His reply, there are many gate guard jobs, etc due to the high number of rich communities out there. That got me to
thinking.

Then on the hikes out to the windmill area off I-10 and Hwy 111, I noticed a guard on patrol inside the fenced off area, driving a new white suv, windows up, air conditioner going- driving to one windmill and parking for 10 minutes or so, then going to another random windmill, and I thought, I could do this- no
people only the desert, just drive around, not a bad gig.

I have no problem with this, these windmills have been here for decades, somebody has got to do it, might as well be me. Plus with my bus driving license, perhaps I could drive for a local company part time.

Rents are a hell of a lot cheaper, my credit has improved to a 773 credit score,
perhaps I can even buy a cheap house while still working here, and when and if it closed, commute for a while(short I hope) until I found something out there
to pay the bills- I think I am going to make one last effort to grab the brass ring,
to secure a cheap mortgage payment for my so called golden years.

As I have told friends and family, I do not want to die here in the big city, no way!

So there you have it, my vow, my one and only New Year’s resolution, wish me
luck, I may need it.

Now on to some desk clearing, or should I say a couple of brief and mild rants,
after all I don’t want to spoil your festivities.

I just want to say a couple of words about two things that I care for- the southwestern deserts and this country of ~~ours~~ the rich elites, our owners.

I have written thousands of words about the nightmare going on in the desert, in places like Ivanpah and Blythe. Several months ago, I realized that nothing
that I could do would stop or change the process in any way so I quit writing
on the subject. The powers that be don’t give a damn what I or any of us
think, and especially they are not bothered in the least by a small fry blogger. Maybe my attempts at giving advice to others in the struggle might
have been naive, or amateurish, but it was freely given in good faith, and ignored, as it probably should have been.

I will most likely be writing little about the rape of the deserts. However, be warned that I sometimes have a short fuse, and a particularly outrageous act
by the industrialists may cause me to go off. I apologize in advance for any
discomfort reading my future rants may cause you. Most likely this will occur
after driving out to see what is happening. Now here is what I can do. I can try to support the good works of the fine people over at Solar Done Right or the Desert Protective Council or Basin and Range Watch, for example. I suggest
that you do the same if you are able to, at least check out their websites on the left side of this blog, from time to time.

What I said earlier about the elites not caring, may apply to me, but I can assure you that they are very aware of the good groups mentioned above, that
are doing their best to work within this system, to try to effect a change in our
renewable energy strategy, to put the solar on the rooftops, and not out in tortoise country.

I really appreciate and admire their never ending vigilance and good works.
As the Lord said, faith without good works is dead, I paraphrase, they are truly
doing good works.

Let me say a little about what is happening in this country and I will clean this
up. We are on the wrong path, we cannot continue this way, with our Nobel Peace Prize winning president bombing the hell out of the black and brown peoples of this planet. This cannot go on, nor do I believe that they will stop, unless somebody or something stops them. You all have heard over and over,
my disappointments with this man that I voted for. Such high hopes and expectations, thrown away at the altars of war and mammon.

I vow that I would rather write in Richard M Nixon for president, he’s dead you know, than vote for this butcher-in-chief again. As God is my witness, I would rather die than vote for him again.

That’s all that I am going to say, vote your conscience.

To those who I have infuriated, feel free to get a conversation going with me and my readers, via the comments, or send me an email- however, be warned that a really well written and thoughtful email or comment, may result in your
being asked to write a guest post, in response.

Now I will take the gloves off a little.

To the President and the other warmongers, as well as the industrialists and their lackeys such as our retread Governor Brown and His Excellency Ken
Salazar, I sure as hell hope that the damned door hits your asses as you go out.

That is how I feel ringing out the old year, and welcoming the new one.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: ring in the new year,out with the old year,richard m nixon for president,butcher in chief obama,raping of the desert,solar done right,basin and range watch,desert protective council

A hike to remember, as my right ankle keeps reminding me!

2011-12-18T13:12:00.001-08:00

The day after Lee Murray and I did a short walk out by the Palm Springs windmills in the windy pass off I-10, I woke up ambitious and decided to head
back out and really get a hike in.

Ultimately for the day, I walked 6.25 miles, including up a very steep jeep road
which was very sandy, all on dirt roads of various conditions, and visited what
I thought for years, was a spring way in the distance against the base of the mountain, and where I got a real big surprise.

Sorry folks for my huge file size photos recently, these have been shrunk to a
much smaller size and will allow the page to load much faster.

There will also be a video which shows what I found when I arrived at the spring, or what looks like a spring in the distance.

The view across the wash looking toward the wind farm. If you look straight ahead, past the windmills, you will see the jeep
trail going straight up that hill, heading toward the gap. The top of that gap was my destination.

The sign warns in spanish that the electric fence is charged with 7,000 volts. At the bottom of the fence, the wires are
less than a foot apart, about 5 feet up, they do get farther apart. The barb wire fence in front is really for show and to
get you to slow down and not miss the electric fence behind it. This sure seems like a lot of security, considering a few
years ago, I hiked into and did photography inside this very windfarm. Also a security guard in an suv patrolled often in
the farm; actually that wouldn’t be a bad job, sitting in an air conditioned suv, looking out at the mountains, away from all
the people of the city. But I digress. Below is a photo of yours truly in this very same wind farm some years ago, before they got all the new fangled security.

A more svelte but still as bald Morongobill above inside the windfarm seen in the pictures above, circa 2004 or so.

Here is the dirt road after you pass the corner of the wind farm and start out
along the perimeter of the mountain. It seems I was always going up or down
hill.

Walking around the corner a ways, back going downhill, I decided to forgo the
visit to the springs(?) which are the very green areas in the brown mountainside, until after I tried to climb up to that gap first. Here is a photo of the road veering off to the springs(?).

Below is a closeup of the possible springs location. You can see this from I-10 which is over 1/2 mile away.

Along the way, I met this little fellow, patiently going about his business and doing his best to ignore me.

Along the way to the hill with the gap, I passed several rock grottos and
formations. Sorry, I did not photograph them due to the sun’s angle blinding
my digicam sensor.

At last I made it to the base of the hill. Appearances are deceiving sometimes.
Just as when I was walking the dirt road following the perimeter of the base of the mountain, I can not see the top of the hill in this photo; you have to climb up to a higher level to catch the next view up, same with the mountain, the next craggy ridge line is out of sight to you as you look straight up at the immediate ridge in front of you.

The view looking back down. You see way in the distance at the end of the windmills, the ridge line going down from left to right is the one that I believe has the ancient trail used by the native peoples here for centuries, judging by how worn into
the ridge, that the path looks.

Upon this large rock, I rested and ate a little bit of trail mix, surveying the
beautiful scene laid out below me, and tried to decide how much further up
to go. I ended up walking to the boulders in the shade straight ahead, and after looking up, decided that I had enough climbing for one day. My destination was to make it up to that antenna you can see in the distance, up top the ridge. By the way, check out this track that I say to the right on the ground below my perch up on that big rock. On the way downhill, I followed
what appear to be mountain lion tracks, going downhill. Big enough to almost
put your fist in, and sunk in good- a big one, no wonder I felt so nervous sitting
up on that rock, like I needed eyes in the back of my head.

Folks, my ankle is still bothering me, almost 2 weeks later, and I believe the
problem was caused by this steep hill climb. As stated here previously, the
Morongobill hasn’t missed too many meals, I would take about 30 steps, digging into the sand with each one, then hang onto my staff for dear life, resting up for the next 30. So it may be a while before I do that again.

Enough of my belly aching, I hiked on after coming down and took the fork up
to the spring area. The dirt road was more lightly used, there were creosote bushes everywhere blowing with the breeze and also this unknown object was seen.

Check out all the bullet holes in what may be part of an old truck above. Another shot of the area below.

I would like to come back here on a mountain bike, bringing a tent, and set up camp behind one of the giant creosote rings,
and kick back for a couple of days. At this distance you don’t hear the freeway, and hardly anyone comes out here except for
a few people on atv’s, and the ones I saw stayed on the dirt roads or rode down the main wash near the freeway.

This is really a nice area to hike in, or ride a mountain bike. The dirt roads follow along the mountain base and go all the way
to Cabazon in one direction and to Palm Springs in the other, highly recommended! Email me for precise directions.

As I walked up the scenic trail to explore the springs, I kept a sharp eye out for
the roadrunner that I saw earlier when I passed the trail cutoff on my way to
try to climb up the gap. It really was almost an idyllic scene except for the signs of man, like the shot up car or the complete aired up car tire and rim buried half way into the dirt near the springs. Here is a video shot as I walked up to the springs, and this has the surprise that I mentioned earlier.

Sorry those may not be edible.

Below is a screen shot from Google Earth of the day’s hike.

See the tiny patch of green above here? That is the spring area.

That’s it for today folks, thinking about heading over to the buffet, all this writing
has built up my appetite.

Visit often, any chance you get- light’s always on along with the coffee pot out
here on the backporch.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: desert hiking water conservation,desert springs,desert graffiti,windfarm off I-10 in Palm Springs

First post attempt with new tablet

2011-12-13T07:13:00.000-08:00

This ain't gonna work out at all, very slow and tentative.

I am attempting this on my new Asus Eeepad transformer. I knew that I should have

bought the keyboard dock as well.

Late addition:
I am sitting in my trolley at a construction site waiting for the vip's to come out, and I thought I would add a few more comments.

I originally planned on buying one of the Lenovo Ideapads but saw that for a hundred bucks more, I could get
what the reviewer's say is the hottest Android pad out, so I bought the Asus Transformer. I do plan on doubling down, by also getting the keyboard dock soon.

At the time, it seemed like a good idea. I remember hauling my laptop in my day peak up the side of Kessler
Peak in the Mojave National Preserve, doing a short video and then continuing with the hike. Of course, it nearly yanked my back out of place, lugging it up the hillside but I don't want to dwell on that aspect. That event really got me to thinking tablet pc, small enough to not weigh too much, and capable of filming video and then uploading to youtube as well.

What I never counted on, having never had a smart phone to practice on, was how hard it is for me to type with this screen keyboard. You talk about a learning curve- too bad, I better start learning asap as I can't take it back.

Here is an image showing the one I bought.
image from amazon.com 2011.

We will see how it goes. By the way, the late addition was typed out on my laptop ;-)

Morongobill

Wrap up of the recent hike out near the Palm Springs windmills, with a real surprise. Late videos addition.

2011-12-07T22:50:00.001-08:00

I left off with the possible weather station found on a ridge top. The next phase
was to go up what looked like a steep atv/ jeep trail to the next level of the ridge.

Video taken as I walked up this jeep trail in the photos.

Finally I made it up the steep trail and was met with this view in the photo below.

This awesome view of Mt. San Jacinto makes the hike up worthwhile.

This video is the trail I talk about in the next paragraph.

Once I got up there I followed this trail on along the ridge. This is one of the
big surprises here- in the sandy spots of this trail, I found no footprints, just
animal tracks in places. And then I came to this spot where the trail crossed
over a rock outcropping. Take a close look at this photo. What stands out in the details of the rocks?

Here is another photo of the same area.

What could possibly cause the wear and weathering in some sections of the rock outcropping?

Here the path continues up the ridgeline.

Hmmm--- something or a lot of somethings, have definitely been using this trail! And they are not human.

The path is clear here but further up, I lost it, and didn’t feel like trying bouldering either.

At first I thought that I had accidently hooked up with the Pacific Crest Trail,
and later on after searching online and on a map that I have, I believe that the
PCT actually passes by on the Palm Springs side of this ridge at ground level
in the wash, and crosses under Interstate 10 at a nearby large culvert to continue on northward.

So what kind of trail did I find? Could it be that I happened onto a centuries old
trail used by the original people that populated this area? The rocky area with
the worn down areas in the rocks, those like marks made by footsteps over a long period of time. This ridge which rises up toward the mountain is one that
would be easily traversed by a people that were in good physical shape- I don’t
know the answer but it sure is intriguing that’s for sure.

Anyway, I continued to the next uphill section where I took a break, pondering all this and enjoying the 180 degree view that my ringside seat provided me, leaning there against that rocky hillside.

Above is the view to my left, below is the view to my right.

Below is what I was really enjoying right at the moment.

To my right and slightly below, the burnt remains of an old juniper perhaps?

Looking up the hill behind me- perhaps soon I will be trying to go further up the ridge.

Just an awesome spot to hang out, well worth the effort to reach this point!

I know what I told you guys, believe or not, I decided to go straight down this hill to get back to the switchback road.

What a sight if I rolled down this hillside!

There you have it folks. I made my way down that hill, very carefully, and hiked
back to the morongomobile. Along the way, I did a few videos which will be up
fairly soon at my youtube page, along with a hundred or so others all for your
perusal.

12/6/2011. I have added the videos into the text where the events occurred.

That was it for this day.

This past Sunday, I talked my friend and fellow blogger, Lee Murray, into coming out and doing a short walk with our cameras in the same area, and we
walked alongside the ridge a ways and took a few photos. Check out the desert graffiti here.

And another view of the same rock formation.

Of course, I had to climb up and investigate. Down below in the wash, you can see Lee discovering that his battery
died in his digital slr.

Evidently we weren’t the only ones walking around the area, as you can see below.

Note the curved rear pad above in that track above.

Well I am running out of energy and the eyes are getting dim. Let me leave you with this photograph to consider. How would you like to go up and check out this view?

You guys have my email, let me know when you are in the area. Let’s go
hiking!

Thanks so much for viewing and reading this little blog, remember you are
always welcome company out here on the backporch.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: pacific crest trail near palm springs,desert hiking,desert mountain hiking,hiking near the palm springs windmill,native american historical trails

A stalwart of desert and wilderness preservation, a giant amongst us, has gone.

2011-12-07T04:05:00.001-08:00

It is my fervent wish that his memory and good works will live on, and especially
within the young.

I am referring to Elden Hughes, longtime Sierra Club member and one of the main people responsible for saving some of California’s most scenic desert from
development, along with Senator Diane Feinstein.

The papers and online media have lots of details regarding his life and accomplishments, I would just like to touch upon one or two things.

The way this man went about lobbying on Capitol Hill for the Feinstein bill was
brilliant. By using the baby tortoises, he unlocked the doors to the powerful through the hearts of the staffers- a gesture so simple, but so powerful, at the
same time- this insight, so profound, had such an important effect; sometimes
the most powerful idea is one that can be summarized in a mood or a feeling-
it doesn’t have to be complicated to be believed- simple ideas that resonate with the average folk work- that’s the message for today’s current batch of leaders, on conservation issues, or matters of state- we owe Mr. Hughes big time for that lesson.

I read the same things the rest of you did about the man and I don’t know how
he can be replaced. He truly was a giant amongst us and the loss can not be made up, unless each of us, in our own way, makes the vow to ourselves to try to care, to try to make a difference, to do what we can, to conserve and save at
least some of the wilderness out there still remaining.

When I read about his passing, I decided that I needed to get out and go to the
desert, to let my mind wrap itself around this news in the background as I looked upon the “barebones of the earth” as he called the desert mountains, to
try to see things a little clearer, to blow away the city cobwebs- to just get away.

It has been reported that Mr. Hughes wants his ashes scattered in the area of the Natural Bridge in Utah, I confess that I hope on the way, that they stop somewhere, say in the Mojave National Preserve near Kessler Peak or the Kelso Dunes, or maybe in Sleeping Beauty Valley a few miles away, and leave
a few there as well. Let the land that he loved here also be watched over by his
spirit, which I believe will never be forgotten nor will ever die, as long as we hold the memory of what he did, inside us all.

Rest in peace, Mr. Hughes.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: elden hughes passes away,sierra club,desert preservationist elden hughes passes away

Ever view a photograph that makes you wish that you could walk right into it?

2011-12-06T12:48:00.001-08:00

Every now and then you come across a photograph that due to the subject or the lighting, really strikes a chord within your soul- may I present such a photo
today courtesy of Shaun over at the Mojave Desert Blog?

From our correspondence, here is what Shaun said about the taking of this photograph:

”I took the photo just west of the Newberry Mountains Wilderness area above Camp Rock Road in late April 2011. Probably 3 or 4 miles south of Daggett. It was a beautiful clear day that I spent much of the time in the desert south of the Cady Wilderness Study Area. I headed over to the desert south of Daggett later in the afternoon to photograph the sunset over the valley. It's a beautiful landscape, with creosote/yucca habitat, and this cholla was on the edge of a low ridge. I think it's a silver cholla. The clouds started blowing in probably about an hour before I took this photo, with a very light sprinkle of rain and plenty of wind. I think you can see the creosote on the right bending in the wind, or perhaps its just windswept from decades of exposure on that hill. I was heading back to the car when I stumbled on this sight. I got lucky when the sun peeked through the clouds before disappearing again behind more clouds and the ridge in the distance. I'm a big fan of cholla photos when the sun is low. It's like all of the needles light up as the rays run through the branches.”

Wow! Thanks for this information which is very helpful to those of us who attempt to do landscape photography from time to time. But sir, you are too
modest. Allow me to give my take on this photograph.

First, besides being technically perfect and framed properly to draw the eye
of the viewer into the scene, as if they were there alongside the photographer,
this image manages to accomplish something rare except amongst the
works of more well known photographers- it manages to evoke a mood, a nostalgia, a yearning for something, that often can not be found except in wilderness- it shows the Hand of God reaching down to us- and induces a feeling in some of us that we must do all we can, in our own way, to make sure that such sights will be there in the future, for those who follow us.

At least, that is how it makes me feel out here on the backporch.

Thank you Shaun for sharing this with us.

Folks, I have said it before and I will say it again- if you are looking for information about the Mojave Desert and wilderness, may I suggest you bookmark this link and surf over often, as I do.

http://www.mojavedesertblog.com/

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: mojave desert blog,shaun gonzales,great photograph at the mojave desert blog,invoking a mood with a photograph,desert photography,landscape photography,cholla,siver cholla,creosote bush,cady wilderness study area,daggett,camp rock road,newberry mountains wilderness area

Revisit to the base of Mt. San Jacinto near the windmills. Big surprise found up the hill. Part II.

2011-12-01T11:05:00.001-08:00

I don’t know what happened to me the other day with part 1 of this trip report.
For some reason, I just could not put events in order and tried the toss it out
there approach to blogging.

Today I will try to put things in some semblance of order.

This is where I have made 2 previous hikes. Here are the links:
http://morongobillsbackporch.blogspot.com/2011/03/interesting-short-hike-near-palm.html

http://morongobillsbackporch.blogspot.com/2011/04/return-to-little-ridge-top-in-which-i.html

This is just an interesting stair step like ridge which appears to go all the way the side of Mt. San Jacinto. From previous experience, I expected high winds and much steep climbing.

As blogged in part 1, on this day I vowed to make it easier upon myself by following the many animal trails in the area to reach my destination. I also was not hear to prove anything, only to get higher up that ridge line, anyway that I could.

So my goal this day was to hike cross-country to reach that road cut into the mountain side, the one that runs right to left, from the base of the hill, and ends
on the left end of that ridgeline, near the very tiny pole there in your picture.

And along the way, I vowed to utilize the animal trails and to look for interesting
sights along the way.

Take a close look into the gopher or snake hole above which appears to be abandoned. Zoom in on it.

A lonely barrel cactus living on a steep hillside, amongst the grasses and rocks.

Once I made it over to the switchback road heading toward the ridgeline, the climb up began in earnest.

I originally planned on hiking up a gap that I saw from the distance. Once there on scene I discovered that I would pass on the climb at that point.

So I soldiered on up that hill, and came upon this little plateau, where I discovered some sort of meteorological apparatus I am sure.

And looking down a little, another surprise.

Here is a short video that I made while sitting on that middle post in the photo.

Close up of gnarly old juniper tree growing on the steep hillside.

Folks, there is a lot more which will be up online tomorrow. And as promised,
I have a real surprise up there that I found.

Here is a preview photo.

Be well and don’t forget to come back for the conclusion to this day’s hike and
final thoughts.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: palm springs hike,ridgetop climb near the windmills at hwy 111 and I-10

Revisit to the base of Mt. San Jacinto near the windmills. Big surprise found up the hill. Part I.

2011-11-29T13:31:00.001-08:00

This will be a pictorial with some comments under a few of the pictures. These
were taken yesterday while hiking close to where Hwy 111 and I-10 meet, at the last windmills to the right prior to the junction, in the Palm Springs area of
southern California.

The temperature was mid 70’s with very little wind. It was a perfect day for desert hiking, hill climbing, and exploration!

Looking out over the wind “farm.”

Long dead junipers adorn the steep hillside.

Animal tracks were all over the sandy wash area and in the many animal paths.

Looks like a cloven hoof, the walking stick base is in the photo to provide some sense of scale.

A typical animal path or trail.

What happened? I have to shut this down and head off to the bus yard asap.
I will post more later today or tomorrow.

Here is a teaser photo.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: short hike near Palm Springs windmills near I-10 and Hwy 111

Amazing how fast you can lose your inspiration.

2011-11-27T21:26:00.001-08:00

While out in the Mojave National Preserve a week ago, it seemed that there
were lots of things to blog about. Something about being out in those wide
open spaces with nobody tailgating my car, or being out in the wilderness
with no one else around, it just seemed like it would go on forever- now I can
see how people like Ed Abbey could be inspired to pick up pen and paper
and try to express to the rest of us just how much it meant to them and to humanity to spend time in wilderness.

And how valuable it is to man, that we still have wilderness to go to.

It really was great while it lasted. While alone the whole time, I never felt lonely.

Now I am back in the great southern California megalopolis and not only am I
feeling lonely sometimes(with all this humanity breathing down my neck) but I
am also seeing the reawakening of my old issue, writer’s block.

So if there is a paucity of posts, you know why.

An interesting thing happened the other day. While wrapping up at Hometown Buffet, I focused on the music they were playing before I got up to leave. This
has to be one of the best 5 songs in a row that I have ever heard, played in the order that were.

First up was Stevie Wonder’s “Don’t you worry ‘bout a thing.”

A great start to a songlist.

Second up was the BeeGee’s 1979 hit “Inside and Out.”

I love these guys.

Next was “Oh, what a night!” This was by the Four Seasons and the lead vocals
were not done by Frankie Valli, but by the drummer, Gerry Polci.

Always one of my favorites.

Followed by Paul McCartney’s “Junior’s Farm.”

Great version!

Last up was Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes “The love I lost.”

What a way to end a songlist!

Wow, what a group of songs and the order played was just perfect, especially for my mood at the time. Hope you guys don’t mind me sharing.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: wilderness essential for humanity,losing your inspiration,great songlists for the mood you are in at the time,ed abbey on the value of wilderness

Just can’t get enough of the Mojave National Preserve- check out what I am reading this morning.

2011-11-22T06:54:00.001-08:00

Yes, I am reading the latest trip report from our friend at drycyclist.com. This particular page can be accessed here. I am really glad that he spent time in the Castle Peaks area and documented it on his site. I have always wanted to visit there but have been worried about the morongomobile breaking down or
getting hung up or something. The main site page for this trip made in May 2011 is in the link below. At the bottom left side of his main page are links to
other trips he has made there over the last 10 years or so.

http://mojave2011.drycyclist.com/main.php

I have traveled through the preserve off and on for about 15 years or so. But
my knowledge of the area, as they say back home, is a mile wide and an inch deep. This man has an intimate knowledge of the area, from the vantage point
of his Ten Ton bike as he calls it, traveling the main roads, mining roads, etc
to almost every nook and cranny of the preserve.

Did it again, couldn’t help going back to his pages, and reading- this picture is from a couple of pages further, as he made his way up to a small valley there between some of the pinnacles of Castle Peaks. I just love reading this kind of stuff.

I like the little detail there, the name and scientific name of the plant in
the foreground. I probably would have called it a dandelion!

Alright folks, that’s all for me today. May I suggest that you join me
perusing the many interesting trip report pages on the adventures to
be found in the Mojave National Preserve?

You want even have to ride a Ten Ton Bike in, just enjoy it from the comfort
of your computer chair.

Morongobill

LiveJournal Tags: mojave national preserve,castle peaks,mojave 2011 drycyclist dot com,ten ton bike