All the Wild Places- Anza Borrego New Years

[RedRoxx44]

It's another Anza Borrego escape--I haven't been there in a year and can't let that happen--- so New Years it was. I had a very interesting time of it; nothing huge just interesting. I had a short overnighter up Rockhouse Canyon in the northern part of the park, I had dayhiked to the lower rockhouses once and now planned a grand tour of the valley. Here I had a wonderful "real life" dream up on a hill spur that commanded a great view all down the valley, the Santa Rosas, the Lagunas and other mountains I did not know the names of.
I will call this dream "The Wild Child". Here is how it started---
A man, woman and child walk up a narrow and rocky canyon. They are scouting the area in advance of their group, three other families, camped on the edge of a great dry lake in a mesquite bosque. There they dug for water, wise to desert ways, and await a report for the way to proceed. The three that go are known for their uncanny ability to find the way and to find water. So they set out.
The clan have come far and traveled long. The man is a shaman and his wife is known as the "quiet one", watchful and knowing. Their girl child ( hey it's my dream) is different in that in her dark looks she has pale dreamy eyes. The family left the lands far to the south because she was considered for human sacrifice to the gods, the live beating heart to be taken from the dying body, the city's lords intriqued by her different looks.
They walk the wash, the canyon walls rising, the conglomerate mud walls changing to rocks, and narrowing, littered with huge boulders, different rock forms mashed together, a lot of the stones glittering with crystals in the sun. The canyon deepens and in the shadows it is cold. They quicken their pace. They soon come upon a small spring, issueing from a rock crevice, announced by a little green and cattails. They scrape away the sand and open the ground with sharp rocks. The water wells up, small and slow, but enough for a drink. They fill their bellies and walk on. The little girl scrambles up rocks and calls out "Come Momma and Poppa, we must go on!!"
They do. The woman notes wonderous things about the rocks, boulders bearing talismen markings. A spiritual place. Suddenly the narrow canyon opens to a wide valley graced with tall mountains on one side. The large plain is mainly bouldered alluvium cut by rocky washes. From experience they know water can be found in canyons at the base of such mountains. They walk toward the upper end of the valley, toward a prominent hill spur, looking for the canyon beyond. Again, the little girl calls out as she spots a multihued rock "Look, it has all the colors of the sun when it sets"-- the father smiles and agrees, and will remember this stone later.
After a time of walking a lovely, soft bedded wash showing signs of recent rain flow, they leave it and crest the hill. Below the wide canyon shows a line of trees, and a deepening gully with the promise of water. They descend, to find only dry leaves in a run off chute, but as they climb higher and round a bend, little gleams of light reflect off hidden pools. They find the spring, and rest here. The valley is filled with light and it is warm. The man and woman feel it is a good place to be. The clan is on the move, and will likely not homestead here. To stay or to go??? The man decides they should stay the night on the hill spur, pray, and seek guidance whether to break from the clan or not.
They walk up the steep hill, the child is tired now, but cries out once they reach the crest. The view is beautiful and expansive. She dances a little dance, then sits on the ground and picks up a few rocks--"Can we stay here tonite??" They agree on a spot, clear the rocks, take wood for a fire, and watch the sun lower giving the clouds a blazing red glow, and changing the sky blue several shades. "The rock has these colors--the sun must have touched it" exclaims the child. Around the fire they sit and talk to the spirits. The night cools and they scrape out depressions for their hips and shoulders and lay down around the lowering fire. Sleep comes. In the early dawn they set out again, back toward the clan to report in. They walk a slightly different path in the valley. On a low ridge a sandy flat with plenty of wood beckons. Here they could have a home, and a hint of a spring nearby would provide the water. All is open and the hunting on the mountain would be good. The man, woman and child decide they will build their home here. They will tell the clan and recommend this way for their continued journey but they will stay behind. The spirits quide them here, as they will quide others in the future. And as it will be for others after them to find the traces of the past in their own walks years later.

The next morning I remember sitting on the hill with my wonderful view and remembering this dream as if in technicolor. I could see their faces clearly and watch them move as if in a movie. I've had a few dreams like this and they are always intriquing, lasting, and fulfilling.

After leaving the valley I move on to the southern section of the park. I car camp near a boulder outcropping on a sand flat and have great star viewing. Someone else is camped in another boulder outcrop not too far away, and is playing a horn, big band style type music. The notes wail in the silence, and I lay on the ground enjoying the impromptu concert. It stops, and I fall into a sound sleep, waking only to check the stars, and watch the big dipper progress around the sky.
The next day I hike to Mortero Palms and to the Goat Canyon railroad trestle. In the day, I used to hike the tracks ( an illegal activity, but the rail line at that time was inactive) to the trestle, the best day hike I have ever done IMO. Now SDA&E is running some freight trains again, and the hike off limits. This is the only legal way to the great trestle, said to be the worlds longest and highest curved wooden trestle. The rail line was completed in the early 1900s and this trestle a little later after a tunnel collapse and this was built as a detour. It's a short day hike but a lot of bouldering after climbing around in the dense palm grove, about 100 palms here, lots of frond debris fun to play around in. You climb up the gully, over house sized boulders, wear good shoes for the water slick granite, then find a use trail that takes you up and over the crest of the Jacumba mountains. The descent down Goat Canyon is like being in Cougar or Sheep on steroids. Lots of dry waterfalls to negotiate, scree, rock hopping in abundance until you get to a good sized marble slick dry fall to get a view of the trestle and tracks. If you have a good telephoto good pics can be had, the dry fall bypass is a nasty loose dirt butt slide that is a mutha to get back up. Of course I have to do it, have to get to the trestle and touch it. The trip back up is steep but short. Near the end had a reminder of the pleasure and pain principal, slipped and put my hand down on a cholla ball, driving those spines home, a couple went through the sides of my fingers. Couldn't pry it loose and my little knife seemed too dull; so at the car used scissors to cut it off, then tweezers and pliers for a couple of the splines--52 of them to pull out. Irrigated it, antiseptic cream, 4 advil, cooled it off with a cold drink, and worked on it on the drive back to Tucson so could manage to close it to a fist without too much problem, so looks to be ok.I was able to drive along the train tracks for a ways; it seems the trains run infrequently. Future hiking here??---oh yeah.
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You can rest when you're dead

[Matt Hoffman]

Awesome Letty!

So Goat Canyon is like Cougar on steroids? I just put it on the to-do list. I thought Cougar Canyon was a work-out with all the scrambling, bouldering and climbing....I can't imagine Goat Canyon. I've seen a picture of the trestle and I'd like to see it in person. I'm not a train geek, but I worked on the railroad back east, so it's still in my blood a little bit.

I'm planning an end of February - beginning of March trip to ABDSP. It can't come soon enough. You are partially responsible for introducing me to this wonderful place. Thank you!
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[threedogz]

Maybe the dream was really something that happened there a very long time ago.

Cool write-up. I felt your pain about the story of the Cholla spines. Ouch.
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[evenstar]

Awesome as usual, Letty! thanks!
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When the Man waked up he said, "What is Wild Dog doing here?" And the Woman said, "His name is not Wild Dog anymore, but the First Friend, because he will be our friend for always and always and always. Take him with you when you go hunting."
--Rudyard Kipling, from Just So Stories, 1902

[BoyNhisDog]

Sublime, transcending!
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[azbackpackr]

Okay, Letty, got a question for you. Have you hiked up Alder Canyon? Back in the early-to-mid 70's, during the backpacker craze, Cougar, Sheep and Indian Canyons were known to backpackers. But there is another canyon in that row of canyons called Alder Canyon. Since it wasn't so well-known we headed there. It had no real trail up it. The first trip we went up only two or three miles, or maybe less, camped by the stream. The second trip, which was where we spent New Years of about 1975 (not sure the year) we scrambled for miles. We had to beat through very thick thickets and do lots of ledging and scrambling. It appeared as if nobody had been there in years. Finally, as I recall, the canyon opened out a bit. I think we ran out of time, too, had to turn back after two or three days of this battle with the landscape.

So, there's a heads up for you--Alder Canyon. On some of the old topo maps it was also shown as "Adler" Canyon. Know anything about it? I hope they never did build a trail up it and it is still a rough SOB!

Also, have you climbed Rabbit Peak? Or Villager? I have also backpacked Rockhouse Canyon. Haven't been back to Anza-Borrego in 30 years, though--I left San Diego in '78.

Interesting tale you tell!
Elizabeth

[RedRoxx44]

Nope, haven't been in Alder Canyon near Sheep etc. However there is also an Alder (or Adler) canyon branching out of Rockhouse. I went up that a bit, it got quite narrow and had some more dry waterfall scrambling, found some small pools up it until it got to be a bushwack.
I have been up on Rabbit and Villager, I did the summits in the same day but overnighted it. It was a good hard trip and great views.

Still a lot for me to see in Anza Borrego, as it seems everywhere else too. Wish I had started hiking and backpacking when I was 20.
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You can rest when you're dead

[Matt Hoffman]

[azbackpackr]

I no longer have my topos from back then. This Alder/Adler Canyon, you went up Coyote Canyon first and then turned off to the left on a Jeep road. The road ended, though. I need to see a topo map, maybe will reseach the net for one.

[Matt Hoffman]

Just to clarify, we are talking about the same canyon. My map shows a jeep road going almost the whole way through it.
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