What If Anza Had Too Much Stuff?

[YukonBob]

We're back from our Death March to Yuma in July. Everyone survived.

The trip exceded expectations. It was hotter than we thought possible. I can cross the El Golfo to Puerto Penascoroad off my list of roads to travel. Al forced me to take it and it was a great drive. He's a pretty good tour guide.The Sierra Pinacate was between us and home so we detoured (as opposed to toured) several of the famous sites. We "forumed" some opinions about the best approach to the confluence at 32114.

Details to followhttp://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/supercool.gif

[GoodTimes]

Glad to hear everyone survived the death march. Can we continue to call it a death march since no one died?


olllllllo <---- If you can read that, roll me over.

KG6OWO

Price is soon forgotton, quality is not.

[YukonBob]

Goodtimes said...
Can we continue to call it a death march since no one died?Probably not. I just kind of liked March in July. I think for me it will always be know as the too much stuff trip. Read on.

[YukonBob]

We pulled into the Yuma Crossing State Historic Park at high noon. Except for two cars parked under the only two trees, the parking lot was empty. We parked in the center of the parking where shade would not have a chance of reaching the trucks and threw down the gauntlet. Come on Mr. Sun! Bring it on! We were ready!
</o:p>
I gather my historic photos and drawings of Yuma Crossing and grabbed the first ranger that emerged from the shade. I peppered him with all the stupid questions that my four-dollar admission fee entitled me to ask. Where was this picture taken? How about this drawing? Where was the best vantage point? Somewhere else and not here, were my answers. It seems that the Yuma Crossing State Historic Park is dedicated to the Army Quartermaster Corp and the Bureau of Reclamation. They even put up a big fence to make sure you could not get out to any places that might have to do with Yuma Crossing. We could see people playing at Yuma Crossing through the fence but could not join them.And the damn sun was relentless.
</o:p>
We made our break from the prison known as Yuma Crossing State Historic Park and joined with the people frolicking at Yuma Crossing. We could see the church and where the fort had been. We located the vantage point that many artist and photographers felt was the essence of Yuma Crossing. It only remained to walk across the Colorado River as so many others had done. We walked east under the Interstate 8 Bridge, the old Ocean-to-Ocean highway bridge and the railroad bridge to a point just below the Yuma Prison.
</o:p>
I had read an account of how you could see the confluence of the Gila and the Colorado from the guard tower above us. I could not see the confluence but this look like as good a spot as any to make my crossing. I started out across and the water started rising. I tied my camera around my neck and pulled my shorts up so my pockets stayed dry. I made it across with only minor water damage to the stuff in my pockets. I had done Yuma Crossing and I felt great. I had forgotten about the sun.
</o:p>
I looked back to the other side for Al. I was in a hurry for the sandal-slapping ceremony to begin. Al wasn’t coming across. He declined to make the crotch-high water crossing because he had too much stuff in his pockets. Too much stuff? I pondered the significance of that statement. What if Juan Bautista de Anza had not led his group of pioneers across the Colorado River to San Francisco because he had too much stuff in his pockets? How would the history of California have been changed because of stuff? Did Juan Bautista de Anza have pockets? Maybe the sun was getting to me. We retired to Jimmy Dee’s for some air conditioning, cold beer, and pleasant conversation about our accomplishments of the day. The sun could not get us there.
</o:p>
Tomorrow, we travel to El Golfo and end up in Rocky Point.
</o:p>

[WhiteThaiGer]

Congrats on the walk http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/beertoast.gif Hm, nowI want to take that walk across the river, sounds like it was just a little more than knee-deep for some of us http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/lol.gif . Yuma is not that far I'll wait for it to cool down and then go there.


***************************************
http://www.confluence.org
http://www.usgo.org

[BajaTaco]

Now the title of this thread makes sense to me http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/biggrin.gif I knew something was missing, but I didn't want to ask... I knew it would be revealed to me eventually. Bob, your tales are too much fun. Bill Bryson, eat yer heart out.

POCKETS!!! Wow - that is intriguing, to wonder if Anza had pockets when he crossed. So, I had to dig around a little bit...

It seems as though he did indeed have pockets, and they were quite deep according to his diary http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Right here a beautiful island, which I named La Santísima Trinidad, is formed by a branch of the Colorado River which enters the Gila before it unites with the former, and is the residence of Captain Palma of the Yumas. More than six hundred persons, ranging from eight to fifty years of age, of both sexes, having assembled on the island, I arranged to give presents to them all, to see if they would leave us in peace for a while, because since daylight it had been nothing but get near us, touch us, and ask us about everything we use, and other impertinence's of this nature. To prevent any one from twice getting the little gift of beads and tobacco which was given to each one, and which they greatly esteemed, I stood them all in a row.

Bob, it seems that what you and Al needed to keep your pockets dry was a good horse http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/cool.gif




Wednesday, February 9.–Observing the same precautions as yesterday, at nine o'clock today we began to cross the Colorado River by a special ford to which Captain Palma guided us. The crossing was effected with all success in the presence of more than six hundred men, most of whom, and even the women and children, assisted lest we should stray from the places where they told us it was the shallowest. With this help we all succeeded in crossing on horseback without wetting anything of importance. In celebration of the crossing, which could not have been done with the same facility in any other part of this river, and because this was the first time it had been done by the arms of the king, I had a salute given by firing off some rockets. This volley pleased the Indians, although the roar frightened them so that on hearing it they threw themselves on the ground.–From Tubac to the junction of the Gila and Colorado rivers, 138 leagues or a little more.


http://www.bajataco.com
Vibram or BFG - getting there on rubber and seeing it all!

[YukonBob]

Of course, a horse.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/idea.gif Peggy had a lot of good ideas for me after I got back. Problem was we didn't have anybody to give us good ideas while we were in the heat of crossing so to speak.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/headscratch.gif


We found the current confluence of the rivers several miles to the east. It wasn't until we were visiting the Yuma Prison State Historic Park (which surprised us by being about the prison) and saw a photo of the confluence from the prison that we were sure were the confluence used to be. They two rocks that Anza talks about going between in the river are pretty accurately shown in the drawing by Browne (http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/attach.aspx/14/jrbftyuma.jpg)that I had posted earlier. They form thepillars for the railroad bridge and the one on the right is where the Yuma Prison was built. Different irrigation projects have changed where the conflunce occurs.


I'm behind on my story for tonight and need to get to work on it. My drawings need a little polish also.

[BajaTaco]

YukonBob said...

... visiting the Yuma Prison State Historic Park (which surprised us by being about the prison)
http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/rofl.gif

...and saw a photo of the confluence from the prison that we were sure were the confluence used to be. They two rocks that Anza talks about going between in the river are pretty accurately shown in the drawing by Browne (http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/attach.aspx/14/jrbftyuma.jpg)that I had posted earlier. They form thepillars for the railroad bridge and the one on the right is where the Yuma Prison was built. Different irrigation projects have changed where the conflunce occurs.

Whoa! That's amazing that it moved that far.
I'm behind on my story for tonight and need to get to work on it. My drawings need a little polish also.
Drawings? What drawings?


http://www.bajataco.com
Vibram or BFG - getting there on rubber and seeing it all!

[YukonBob]

Bob on June 24th said...



I'm not sure we're going to be able to send any pictures. Melting cameras and all that mess. When it gets too hot, you find alternatives. What I will try and do is draw some pictures. I have attached a sketch by J Ross Browne for his 1864 book Adventures in the Apache Country. It is a view of Fort Yuma from the Arizona side. I presume that is the Gila coming in from the right side. I've seen a lithograph that pretty much covers the same area and I'm going to guess that we'll be able to find the observation point. All I have to do is learn to draw between now and July 4th. Uwe became a HAM in less than two weeks so maybe it's possible.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/biggrin.gif But you can forget about my drawings. I just checked and I failed my drawing tech test. I'm not allowed to transmit any drawings. Just as well,the little stick figures didn't look that good. I thinkAl got some pictures on film.

[BajaTaco]

AWWWW!! C'mon, I wanna see the drawings!!

http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/jumpin.gif


http://www.bajataco.com
Vibram or BFG - getting there on rubber and seeing it all!

[YukonBob]

Al and I decided to get a leisurely start. It seemed like a good idea unless we wanted to leave the Yukon behind. The alternator had gone out on the way into Yuma, the first casualty of the oppressive heat. How many others would fall before this madness was finished?
</o:p>
I found a Toyota dealership open on the Saturday after the Fourth and they agreed to take a look at the problem. It seems like they did not have any Toyotas to work on and jumped at the chance to fix something. They had us on the road before we finished breakfast, but my wallet was the second casualty. The toll was mounting.
</o:p>
Al guided us down the road to El Golfo and gave me a tour of the town. We checked out the motels in town and Al showed me all the local ends and outs. The town was full but it appeared to be mostly tourist from Mexico at the motels. I had never seen so many vehicles parked on a beach in my life. Life in El Golfo is all about driving down the beach so it figures that Al took me north to the dump. It would not see the great beach again until the Sierra Pinacate when Al showed me some pictures from his last trip. I was no longer a rational thinking human being. Things were probably going to get worse.
</o:p>
Al’s plan was to drive north away from the beach until we got to the railroad tracks. Do some exploring and head southeast until we got back to the beach near the lighthouse. We would drive the 20 or thirty miles of the beach back to El Golfo. At least this was the plan that he shared with me. Somewhere along the route, I got the idea that he had other things in mind. At a stop along the way, I mention that we really weren’t that far from Rocky Point and we could certainly make it if we wanted to do it. His response was that he had never been there and he wanted to go.
</o:p>
Once again we headed north from the beach. The railroad tracks were twenty-three miles to the north and Al explained that it would be our closest approach to the confluence at 32114 from the south. We had to go and see if there were any roads heading north. The logic made sense to me but it is certain that the sun had made fools of both of us.
</o:p>
The drive turned out to be very quick and very pleasant. Most of the road was along mud flats or coastal tidal flats that are dry, flat and smooth most of the time. They are the superhighway of Mexican dirt roads. Al searched for the mythical road to the north while I feigned an inventory of my stuff. If he was headed north across the dunes, I wanted to make sure my pockets were full. The good news was neither of us had a vehicle with a thermometer so we did not know how hot it was.
</o:p>
We are now thirty-five miles from Rocky Point and probably 70 miles from El Golfo in the middle of a lot of sand. Al wants to know which way I want to go. He has led me to the center of nothing and now it is my choice. I feel like a member of a cult that no longer has free will. What choice? I thought we were going to Rocky Point.
</o:p>
The road for this point to Rocky Point is very interesting. Although we were never more than 100 meters from the railroad tracks, we were not always sure where the road went. Sometime we were not even sure where the railroad tracks where. I do not believe that I have ever been down a road that had more abandoned vehicle hulks. They blowing sand had taken its toll and I do not think it needed the help of the sun. I was hoping Al had just the right amount of stuff in his pockets to guide us through this.
</o:p>
The last ten miles or so were kind of anticlimactic. Al thought it was boring because there was no fear of death and I talked with Peggy on the cell phone. It certainly is a matter of perspective. We no longer feared the sun and civilization was imminent.
</o:p>
We pulled into Rocky Point on a Saturday night of a holiday weekend about six and the good news was almost too much. We found a motel room without a problem and almost immediately a restaurant that was not too crowded and then we got the best news of all. The Mexican elections were being held on Sunday and the entire country was not serving alcoholic beverages for forty-eight hours prior to the election.
</o:p>
This meant that we would not be bothered with drunken college women exposing their breast. There would not be any girls gone wild. We could have a nice quiet dinner with lemonade and plan for our early morning departure. I bet those dogs on the northern trip wish they were so lucky as to not have distractions. My dog collar did not go off once. Except for the alternator, my wallet and the ability to reason, the casualties had been light.
</o:p>Tomorrow we detour the Sierra Pinacate and scout the confluence

[WhiteThaiGer]

YukonBob said...

......</o:p>
I found a Toyota dealership open on the Saturday after the Fourth and they agreed to take a look at the problem. It seems like they did not have any Toyotas to work on and jumped at the chance to fix something....

Toyotas http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/supercool.gif

...Al explained that it would be our closest approach to the confluence at 32114 from the south....
....Tomorrow we detour the Sierra Pinacate and scout the confluence

Finally talk about the a real confluence, after all that talk about river merges http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/smilewinkgrin.gif

Pictures would be nice.... Can't you recover anything from the heat damaged equipment? http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/lol.gif


***************************************
http://www.confluence.org
http://www.usgo.org

[BajaTaco]

OMG - it's a good thing I work here alone in my office- the roaring laughter was pretty LOUD http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/lol.gif

That is a pretty cool accomplishment - an intrepid adventure from El Golfo to Rocky Point in July - very eclectic - I like it http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/biggrin.gif You guys (figuratively speaking - I mean you too Peggy!) are pretty cool.

Yea, the Toyota techs are kinda like the Maytag Man - always bored because there's not much to do.


http://www.bajataco.com
Vibram or BFG - getting there on rubber and seeing it all!

[AlWalter]

On our first day, we managed to tour the Yuma Territorial Prison before we had some cold cerveza.

http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/beertoast.gif

Iwalked over half way across the Colorado river, which put me in California. Mission accomplished. My companion, I noticed, didn't climb up out of the river on the west side&amp;stand ondry land. Was this a true crossing?

Dinner Friday night was had at the respected establishment "Fat Harveys".

There were no vacancies at the El Golfo motels, which created the choice of camping on the hot &amp; humid beach, or finding a nice air-conditioned room at Puerto Penasca. I believe the baking sun helped us make our decision.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/skull.gif

</DIV>

[YukonBob]

Al said...
Iwalked over half way across the Colorado river, which put me in California. Mission accomplished. My companion, I noticed, didn't climb up out of the river on the west side&amp;stand ondry land. Was this a true crossing?I spit on dry land.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/headscratch.gif That should count. Oh, my a crossing controversy.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/shakehead.gif The shame!http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/blush.gif

[GoodTimes]

Uh-oh......better go back and do it again!


olllllllo <---- If you can read that, roll me over.

KG6OWO

Price is soon forgotton, quality is not.

[WhiteThaiGer]

Yes, let's go back there. I want to walk across the riverhttp://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/jumpin.gif . All the way! Let's wait till it's a little cooler. What about the water level over the course of the year? Any times better than others?


Still no pics from any of the 4th July trips....http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/nono.gif


***************************************
http://www.confluence.org
http://www.usgo.org

[YukonBob]

WhiteThaiGer said...
What about the water level over the course of the year? Any times better than others?The flow is controlled by dams upstream. It's pretty constant. The best time to go is in July. The water level is about three feet lower due to evaporation. Hard to believe there could be three feet of evaporation in twelve miles but it was hot.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/headscratch.gif It turns out that another twelve miles down the road there is no water.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/rolleyes.gif

[BajaTaco]

LOL! Damn salt cedars...


http://www.bajataco.com
Vibram or BFG - getting there on rubber and seeing it all!

[YukonBob]

Pinacate is the Spanish name for what we call a stinkbug. One of those little guys that sticks his rear up in the air and fills it with nasty smells if you do not heed his warning. The name of this volcanic region is the Sierra Del Pinacate so I’m going to guess that he lives there. I’ve never seen one but you usually do not see a lot at midday in July in the desert. I think the next time I go, I will see if I can find one. Something else I will not have to wonder about. It will probably be easier to find one of those then to find the Imperial Woodpecker in the Sierra Madre. Madre, by the way, means mother and I have seen a lot of those there.
</o:p>
We drove as close as we can get to Volcan Santa Clara, the highest point in the Sierra Del Pinacate. Kino had climbed this peak 1698 and saw the waters of the Adair Bay. It reinforced his belief that there was a land route to California but the large sand dunes that protect the confluence of 32114 prevented him from passing direct to the Colorado River. It was a few years later that he became the first European to travel the road we now know as El Camino Del Diablo and reach the confluence of the Gila and the Colorado. It is a little known historicalmyth that on his first crossing he did not touch land in California. He simply got close enough to spit on California and was so excited he rushed back home to tell his story. It wasn’t until his second visit that he went all the way across.
</o:p>
Al was enjoying the plants along the way. He spotted a huge clump of cotton top cactus and we got out to make a drawing. Another clump had one of the cacti eaten and it left a little saucer of green where the previously sharp cactus thorns protecting the succulent insides had resided. He found a small bush that resembled an elephant tree and he was pretty excited with that discovery until we came upon one of the main lava flows and found real elephant trees growing out of the lava. This was much farther north then they are found in Baja and Al was pleased.
</o:p>
We visited a couple of the more famous maar type volcanic craters (http://landsat7.usgs.gov/gallery/detail/201/)and took a look at the approach to 32114 from the east. At a distance of twenty miles, it looked just as uninviting as the route in from the south. I was starting to think that spitting from a helicopter would be a good way to approach this Confluence Del Diablo. We did get some ideas on approaches from the north and I have some map work to do to show you. I’ll post them on the confluence thread.
</o:p>
It got a little warm during the trip and it wasn’t too bad. It was just bad. I think you become used to most of it. I’m looking for another hot place to go. I see the Furnace Creek Ranch in Death Valley is having some special rates. I’m thinking August.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/biggrin.gif</o:p>


Post Edited (YukonBob) : 7/12/2003 2:10:29 AM GMT

[BajaTaco]

OMG, the whole thing is good, but this...

"It is a little known historical fact that on his first crossing he did not touch land in California. He simply got close enough to spit on California and was so excited he rushed back home to tell his story. It wasn’t until his second visit that he went all the way across"

You're too much Bob... http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/lol.gif

http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/beertoast.gif


http://www.bajataco.com
Vibram or BFG - getting there on rubber and seeing it all!

[YukonPeggy]

I love Death Valley in August. I'll go on that trip - count me in!http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/supercool.gif

Peggy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When life hands you lemons, ask for a bottle of tequila and salt.

[YukonBob]

I've changed historical fact to historical myth. I was having a lot of fun with that part of the story but even in jest I shouldn't be saying something is a fact when it's a joke. There is already too much misinformation floating around on the Internet and it gets difficult separate the wheat from the chaff. I am pretty sure somebody spit on California.


I would like to thank Al http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/ok-kewl.gif for supplying some of the material for this story. He's great traveling companion and tour guide.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/hop.gif Hey, I just noticed the little bouncy guy without fire is back.http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/ok-kewl.gif . Jack must be home!


I'm working on some graphics for the trip.

[YukonPeggy]

al said...
My companion, I noticed, didn't climb up out of the river on the west side&amp;stand ondry land. Was this a true crossing?






[quote]BTW Mr. Al, sounds like you were too busy taking care of your stuffed pockets http://www.rxtx.com/4wdtrips/forum/emoticons/nono.gif to see my foco cross to dry land (or spit on dry land). I bet you just missed the whole thing.


Peggy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When life hands you lemons, ask for a bottle of tequila and salt.

[YukonBob]

I have attached a space image with our GPS track georeferenced. It is an exact record of our travels. I have broken the track into different colors to try and make it easier to follow along.

The red heads north out of El Golfo to the railroad tracks and then southeast to a salt evaporation pond. Our original plan was to go south from here and follow the beach back to El Golfo. There are many roads along this route and these are the ones that we took. You could take others.

The green follow the coastal tide flats up to the railroad.

The blue follows the railroad tracks to Rocky Point (Puerto Penasco).

The purple is our detour through the Sierra Del Pinacate volcano field and on west to Yuma.

The orange is the Arizona-Sonora border and just north of it there is a little sliver of a red line. This was a previous trip along the road known as El Camino Del Diablo.

The little number one in the middle of the sand dunes is the confluence at 32114. We had it surrounded.

[Ursidae69]

Wow, this has all been a great read! http://www.4wdtrips.net/forum/emoticons/beertoast.gif The green and blue routes on your map loom very fun. I've looked west many times from Rocky Point wondering if it was doable!

A few Pictures of my 2001 GMC Sonoma ZR2.
106k and still running strong...
http://www.imagestation.com/album/?id=4290567759
Please Tread Lightly: http://www.treadlightly.org/

[YukonBob]

Ursidae69 said...
Wow, this has all been a great read! http://www.4wdtrips.net/forum/emoticons/beertoast.gifThanks Chuck, at least for my part of it. When I completed the map, I thought to myself that was a really great route and I'll bet that anybody that had a chance to go and didn't is sorry. Especially, since we made it back alive.http://www.4wdtrips.net/forum/emoticons/smilewinkgrin.gif

[BajaTaco]

YukonBob said...

[quote]... that was a really great route and I'll bet that anybody that had a chance to go and didn't is sorry...
[quote]From Bob'sprevious post:
[quote]"It got a little warm during the trip and it wasn’t too bad. It was just bad."Nope, I'm not sorry. http://www.4wdtrips.net/forum/emoticons/joker1.gif


http://www.bajataco.com
Vibram or BFG - getting there on rubber and seeing it all!

[JackSilb]

How can we compete with reports like this?

Good job Bob. Sorry I am late on the compliments for the report. I am catching up on the Forum...

-JACK

So much to see, so little time. Try using your 4WD tosee and do more.
Tread Lightly! empowers generations to enjoy the outdoors responsibly...

[YukonBob]

That's ok Jack. I know it's hard to look at what someone else is doing when you are working on your own trip report. Boy, do I know. I haven't finished Ship Rock and I haven't started Baja.

[BajaTaco]

And I thought this trip was crazy... (http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0724deathvalleyrun-ON.html)


http://www.bajataco.com
Vibram or BFG - getting there on rubber and seeing it all!

[JackSilb]

Now, you can imagine that you can not run from this wife. No matter where you go...

-JACK

So much to see, so little time. Try using your 4WD tosee and do more.
Tread Lightly! empowers generations to enjoy the outdoors responsibly...

[BajaTaco]

JackSilb said...
Now, you can imagine that you can not run from this wife. No matter where you go...

-JACK
</div>http://www.4wdtrips.net/forum/emoticons/baja_rofl.gif http://www.4wdtrips.net/forum/emoticons/rofl.gif http://www.4wdtrips.net/forum/emoticons/baja_rofl.gif


http://www.bajataco.com
Vibram or BFG - getting there on rubber and seeing it all!

[JackSilb]

I am serious. She will get you and kick your b%^.

-JACK

So much to see, so little time. Try using your 4WD tosee and do more.
Tread Lightly! empowers generations to enjoy the outdoors responsibly...