Amboy Crater

*Editorial note - this blog first appeared in 2018, but this is one of the best times of year to visit Amboy Crater. John traveled there during the middle of summer - don't do that! It is dangerously hot, as is stated in the article. That written, Go Out and Explore this Marvel of Nature.

Amboy Crater, as seen from above

Roughly ten thousand years ago, according to all the scientific types, there was a huge volcanic eruption not far from the city of Barstow. So close, in miles as those crows fly, which anyone living there would have looked up into the eastern sky and scratched their heads in wonder.

What was that? What could that have been? Is there something we should be doing at this time with all that smoke and fire in the sky? I wish we had finished that living trust before all this, don’t you?

Of course, there is no evidence that anyone lived in the Mojave Desert during that time. Then again, this is still up to debate. 

Anyway, that volcanic explosion would have been something to witness - from a distance. Bring out the popcorn and suitable drink for the show of a lifetime. Probably should also have a fire retardant umbrella, just in case of floating fire cinders or something else hot enough to ruin your day or life. 

John R Beyer pointing to the distant Amboy Crater

Actually, according to several scientific resources, the first suspected volcanic activity in the area near the present small town of Amboy, was about 80,000 years ago and it kept burping up magma for thousands of years.

Anyone who has traveled Route 66 eastbound from Barstow knows something catastrophic happened here. Miles and miles of magma fields, giving the landscape an almost out of this world appearance. Driving that lonely stretch of highway, away from the hustle and bustle of Highway 40, gives a person a chance to slow down and take a look around at the gorgeous desert.

And in that middle of the desert is a 250 foot tall and nearly 1500 foot wide ancient volcano named appropriately, the Amboy Crater. 

Amboy Caldera

But what is a volcano? 

Come on, we all know after watching, Dante’s Peak. It was a big Hollywood hit in 1997, and made us all experts in what is really happening down in the bowels of the earth. Who can forget, unless you never watched the film, Harry Dalton – played by Pierce Bronson (enough to go to Netflix now?) stating, after finding two people boiled to death in a seemingly cool pool of mountain water.

It’s really hot down in the earth. Dalton said, as he scratched his two day growth of beard on his handsome face. So hot, that sometimes yucky stuff comes to the surface and really makes a mess of things – including my hair and make-up.

I made those script lines up – literary license provoked.

According to NASA, a pretty decent resource in itself, a volcano is an opening on the surface of a planet or moon that allows material warmer than its surroundings to escape from its interior.

I had a thought about a spicy burrito being the cause of a volcano, but that would be childish.

So, a road trip to the Amboy Crater was in store.

Being summer, Laureen had a comment about that idea of mine.

“You know it is summer.”

“Yes, I looked on my phone – you are correct.”

“It’s not really a great idea to hike in the desert during the summer.”

“When have I ever done anything stupid?”

For the next three hours, Laureen went through an entire litany of the things I have done in my travels which be questionable, as either being stupid or supremely adventurous.  

I went for adventurous.

When hiking in the high desert during the summer, one has to be prepared. A backpack full of yummy snacks, bottles of water, a first aid kit, and a bit of smarts.

It does get hot in the summer months, and it was early

So, I arrived at the Amboy Crater trail around seven in the morning – it was warm but not the melting type of warm. Laureen, being smarter than me, had only shook her hear head as I left our abode for my morning hike to the Amboy Crater.

“Stupid idea.”

“Adventurous.”

The crater is only about two and half miles west of the small town of Amboy along Route 66. Being a national natural landmark, it is well marked with an easy drive across black asphalt to the parking area just at the beginning of the trail.

After a hike, stop by Amboy for a cool drink

There are restrooms, picnic tables, and kiosks telling the visitor what they are viewing in the near distance. The volcano looms up from the desert floor like an impregnable castle from the days when knights controlled the countryside. Well, that would be knights like in ancient Europe and not the United States, but the sight is pretty awesome.

Walkways, tables, and kiosks for the visitor at Amboy Crater

Hardened black flows of ancient volcanic rock covers the entire area, comprising of nearly 24 square miles. When this thing erupted the last time, it sent volcanic debris flying in every direction and also rivers of molten lava covering the desert floor like bugs on road kill. That was gross, sorry. 

That was deep and shallow at the same time.

The trail to the top of the Amboy Crater is an easy stretch of a little over a mile with signs indicating which way to go. The climb to the top of the craters rim is a bit steep, but nothing that sturdy shoes cannot handle.

I was the only one there for the nearly two hours of hiking, and it was a wonderful experience. To look at this crater and realize I was standing on the top of something so powerful was intense. Though I have never been to the moon or any other planet besides the one I currently reside on, I wondered if this is what future explorers will witness. 

Just some of the hiking trails within Amboy Crater

Well actually, I hope if we visit another planet there may be people or beings we can talk with. I don’t want wind up in a cook book. Twilight Zone, get Netflix.  Just a thought.

On a serious note, and I hate those, hiking during the summer in the desert must be well thought out beforehand. If there are signs warning of excessive heat precautions, those I ignored, stating that hiking is not recommended, then heed the signs. I’m a professional – okay, that doesn’t cut it for moving around in the desert when it is four hundred degrees. Take ample precautions, start very early in the morning and be done well before the sun is directly overhead. Otherwise, then any other time of the year is a wonderful time to explore the beautiful Amboy Crater area.

Heed the warnings, may save your life

San Bernardino County Museum

John R Beyer at the county museum 

 According to David Myers, Chief Deputy of the San Bernardino County Museum, nearly eighty thousand people wander the hallways, admiring the exhibits. Heads twisting this way and that way, gaining as much knowledge as they can during their visit.

“That’s a lot of people visiting a county museum,” I stated, while Laureen was sipping on her morning coffee.

“Shall we visit, then?”

“Oh, we shall,” I responded. 

So, one sunny Saturday morning, we headed south on the I-15 for a day of exploring what the museum had in store for us.

“We might get hungry walking around the museum, since we didn’t eat breakfast,” Laureen said.

“Taken care of.”

DJ Coffee shop on 40th Street in San Bernardino did the trick. The place was rocking, as it usually is on our visits. We like the old establishment – great people working there, food is always good, and it’s been a mainstay in the neighborhood for decades. 

One motto of mine is to dine before exploring. It’s sort of like never go grocery shopping on an empty stomach.

“Why did you buy twelve boxes of Twinkies?”

There is no good reply to that question.

Before leaving, I did some research on the museums core values. Not sure why, but I thought it would make me sound more academic.

‘Through the lens of the region’s dynamic cultural and natural history, the San Bernardino County Museum develops visitors’ appreciation of our diverse identity to spark their curiosity, to stimulate inquiry, to challenge their assumptions, and to invite them to contribute to our common future.’

That is one heavy mission statement. I am exhausted just typing it.

Once we reached the museum, we noticed it is set up in a logical sequence. As though the hosts wanted the guests to flow easily and rationally through the halls.

“Many of our exhibit components are designed to be explored in chronological order which aids in adding context to the exhibit story,” Myers noted. “However, other exhibits may be organized thematically or even geographically. It all depends on the exhibit and how the visitor chooses to explore it.”

Chronological order? Thematically? Geographically?

“I say we just follow the map; the nice lady gave us as we paid our fee at the entrance,” I stated.

“Of course,” Laureen replied. But I knew that of course was really a rolling of her eyes. I like things simple, she’s the brains in the family and likes the chronological, thematically and geographically concepts.

As we entered, we started through the Hall of Earth Sciences which features a life-size mastodon and her calf. There were other ancient fossils, a redundancy there, allowing the visitor a glimpse into the past of the marvelous living animals who once roamed the county of San Bernardino.

Mama and baby

An extinct Giant Sloth

“I guess the theme here is big animals,” I stated.

No reply. But I think I actually heard her eyes roll that time.

Wolves stared down at us from a rock faced overlook as we made our way through this exhibit hall and moved onto the Hall of History. I didn’t want to guess their theme.

Here we learned how the first people in what would become California referred to the land as the Sacred Earth. How the locals made baskets, pottery, tools from the native plants and soil. How they lived off the land and prospered.

I suggested that Laureen try making sandals from the Joshua Tree; she is very crafty. But when I looked around to see her reaction, I found myself standing alone as she was moving away from me and my comment, toward the ascending ramp. No sandals in the Beyer home, I guess.

We moved to the second level where more and more awesome sights were awaiting us.

The Hall of Biodiversity had an incredible collection of wildlife commonly found in and around San Bernardino County. There were birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and I believe a model of a space alien found in the High Desert. Then again, it could have just been the model of the Old Woman meteorite. 

Everywhere we looked were in depth descriptions of how the climate and geography of the region personally effects all living things, be that animal or plant.

A great place for school fieldtrips, I would assume. And correct I was.

Myers stated, “As the pandemic ends, we expect fieldtrips to return, and we look forward to welcoming students back.”

Speaking of schools, (and who isn’t nowadays?), all the ‘hands-on’ exhibits were temporarily closed to nasty and germ ridden hands of humans.

“We believe hands-on interactive exhibits extend the learning experience and increase engagement, and we look forward to bringing them back when it is safe to do so.”

Well, there was one hands-on experience Laureen found near the new exhibit, ‘Here comes the sun: solar science and spirituality.’

I caught up with Laureen at a large plasma ball. The ones if you put a hand on the globe, arcs of light magically go from the center of the ball to the touching hand. I’d go into greater detail but, I don’t have a clue how it works. It was developed by Nikola Tesla. Enough said.

Laureen was there with two cute and very curious young boys who were showing and explaining to her how to hold her hand on the globe. The boy’s mother was taking photographs with her phone as the boys continued their lesson. I think Laureen learned a lot.

I loved it. This mom had taken her two very young boys to the museum and allowed them to wander, with her right there alongside, and investigate all there was to investigate in that museum.

We parted ways and I knew I had just watched two future scientists in the making.

This exhibit also featured a substantial space with threes huge screens immersing the visitor in dramatic and colorful footage from NASA’s solar dynamic observatory.

Dramatic is really an understatement. The sun’s surface changed colors constantly but slowly, allowing us a chance to marvel at the intensity of that natural fusion reactor we wake to each morning.

Yes, where stellar nucleosynthesis transforms lighter elements into heavier elements with the release of energy. Binding energy for different atomic nuclei.

In all modesty, I Googled that.

This exhibit was so dramatic, that we spent several minutes posing in front of the burning suns surface. It was fun and silly.

According to Myers, “One of our newest and most visited exhibits is the solar one. It helps to tell the story of how the sun has shaped the culture of Southern California.”

I didn’t need an exhibit to tell me that. Smell the sunscreen at any Southern California beach during the summer and we know how the sun has affected us all.

“I think you’ve laid out long enough in the sun.”

“No, I want to be lobster red tonight. It’s such a great look with my white shorts.”

We found all the exhibits well laid out, explained perfectly, and positioned just right for visitors.

“Different exhibits appeal to different visitors,” Myers said. “Some people love the immersive cave and giant ground sloth in our Sculptured by Time exhibit, while others enjoy a more relaxing stroll through our new outdoor Ethnobotany Garden space where they can learn about traditional ecological knowledge of the areas indigenous peoples.”

Okay, this David Myers is one smart guy. All I know is that when going outdoors of the museum, there are lots of cool looking plants to stroll through in a relaxed fashion.

According to Barb Williams, bellevuebotantical.org, ‘Ethnobotany is the study of how people of a particular culture and region make use of indigenous (native) plants.’

It is fascinating how humans looked at all the different varieties of plants growing nearby and determined what needs could be taken care of by these plants.

“Hey, this tree bark may stop the pounding in my head.”

“This river reed may make a snazzy pair of sandals.”

“And maybe this green plant may, wow, is that Jimmie Hendrix?”

We wandered here and there and thoroughly enjoyed our trip through the halls of the museum. It’s open and the place was packed while we were there. Seemed to us that most guests were families with young children.

That was a great sight. After a year of pandemic lock down, parents were taking their children out an about. And one of those places was the museum.

Myers seemed excited about so many visitors once again. “We’ve missed our visitors and are thrilled to welcome them back with two new exhibits. In addition to Here Comes the Sun, in June we are opening Super Monster City, a traveling exhibit that explores the social and political context of superheroes and villains through toys and posters.”

The San Bernardino County Museum, located at 2024 Orange Tree Lane, Redlands, is a wonderful experience for all ages. Plenty of activities, displays, photographs, exhibits, and all the rest that make this place worthwhile for anyone who wants to learn the history of San Bernardino County.

And who wouldn’t want to learn all they could?

Laureen Beyer beneath the large welcome sign

A personal note: this blog was written during the ending of the Corona-virus pandemic. As of now, everything is open to enjoy.

Summer Solsctice

Summer Solstice  - A Time to Celebrate

The sun is directly overhead at "high noon" on the latitude known as the Tropic of Cancer, according to NASA scientists. No exactly a call to "draw yer guns," but it does become an interesting notion if you've ever been lucky enough to travel down south. And I mean way down south, on the Baja peninsula, venturing past Mulege and Gonzaga Bay, over to see the artists in Todos Santos. 

This event heralds the advent of summer in the Northern Hemisphere, winter in the Southern Hemisphere. Focusing our attention on the Northern Hemisphere, it is the longest day of the year. Although an argument can be made for other days spent waiting in anticipation or dread of upcoming events -- some of those days seem much longer than twenty four hours, but I digress. So, the longest day, meaning a lot of sunshine, right? But, and this makes sense when you think about it, the North Pole receives 30% more solar energy on that day than does the equator. Centered on June 21, the sun will rise and then not set for three months. Now that's a long day.

Al Ahram, Giza, Egypt

Interesting, but is it important? Well, it's not just NASA, but mankind has considered this even significant throughout the ages. J and L lives to do research and explore, so first the research.: The term solstice is derived from two Latin words. Sol meaning sun, and sister, meaning to stand still. The solstices and equinoxes are unique and predictable events which have created the changes in seasons which have given sustained life on this planet. So it stands to reason the Earth's journey around the sun would take on cultural and spiritual significance.

Sacsayhuaman, Cusco, Peru

Traditions, rituals, and events dates may vary slightly as you travel, but there is something special about Midsummer. In pre-Christian rites, most celebrations are held to ensure fertility and rich harvests. The night of midsummer was considered very potent for midsummer maidens who wished to conceive.Vikings, always big on burning things,  visited healing water wells and built huge bonfires in celebration.

Superstition would have you turn around clockwise three times upon waking from a night's sleep on the solstice! Worth a try....

Temple of Kulkulkan, Chichen Itza, Yucatan

The more you travel, the more you recognize the similarities in cultures across time and space. Pyramids and temples the world over have more in common than they have to differentiate them, and yet there's something unique in the design that defies modern understanding.

While admiring the craftsmanship and durability of  El Castille, I find myself wondering why at the Temple of Kulkulkan do a series of shadows form the shapes of serpents on the equinoxes and solstices? I wonder why during our summer solstice, their winter solstice, do the shaman of Peru celebrate Inti Raymi, the Incan sun god? Is that anything like the Egyptian sun god. Ra?
Well, no, of course not. But then again, hmmm. And Stonehenge? Half a world away, another structure aligned to the movements of the heavens. These ancient societies certainly knew more, were more observant of their world than perhaps we are.

Stonehenge, Wiltshire, UK

Why spend the mass effort and years to build these monuments?


And not just why, but how did these ancient people conceive such designs?

Saint John the Baptist

Perhaps I'm asking the wrong question. With the advent of Christianity, Midsummer celebrations took on a new meaning. As has often happened, the church took the pagan holiday and gave it in honor of Saint John the Baptist. The themes of Sun/Son and water seem to intermix in every culture. Perhaps it's natural the sun and bonfires and barbecues and beaches just go together along with Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Saint John and Vacation Bible School. I suppose it is enough that we tiny humans recognize and celebrate these cycles in our lives.

So whether you celebrate with family, friends, fireworks or in some other way, definitely take time to notice the passage of the sun, and time.

Ben Johnson: "not of an age, but for all time."