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Friday, June 7, 2019

Mount Rubidoux


One of the entrances for the trail up Mount Rubidoux
Spending roughly three decades in Riverside, John knew the iconic landmark, Mount Rubidoux intimately. During his three months in the police academy for the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, he, along with the rest of the cadets, used to run the three mile asphalt road which led to the top of Rubidoux. The run wasn't that difficult, since the cadets were in good physical shape, but it was the yelling by their drill sergeant which caused the pain during the run.
Maybe it wasn't Sgt. Carter but someone was always yelling at the cadets
So, when John and Paul Bakas, decided to head to Riverside and hike up Mount Rubidoux, memories of the 1331 foot mountain flooded fondly back.

The winding black asphalt rolled out in front of the two casual hikers; the route up and around Rubidoux is an easy hike, as was evident with moms pushing strollers and older folks strolling while talking about this or that with their friends.

Paul, looking back and wondering: are we hiking or taking photographs?
Not being strenuous, allowed a good deal of time to soak in the beauty of the valley which holds the city of Riverside. The San Gabriel Mountains to the northwest, the San Bernardino Mountains to the southeast, and the San Gorgino Mountains to the east lock in this city of nearly  330,00 people. The sights from along the roadway are picturesque and the multitude of people walking, running, bicycling the path seem to enjoy the views immensely. People stopping here and there to snap a selfie or take a photograph of the scenery proved that this venture was appreciated.
Yes, staged pose of John
A wooden bridge which intersects two different routes
View, eastward from half-way up Mount Rubidoux
Looking north from the cross base toward the American Flag
The former name of Mount Rubidoux was Pachappa. The mountain was once part of the Jurupa Rancho, which had been granted to Juan Bandini in 1838 by the Mexican government. As the Rancho expanded, Pachappa was reassigned to a smaller hill to the southeast as the boundary marker for Jurupa Rancho

In 1906, Frank Miller, of Mission Inn fame (written about in a previous blog), along with Henry E. Huntington and Charles M. Loring, purchased the mountain with the idea of building a road to the top of the mountain. The view, they believed, would be a wonderful gift to the city of Riverside.



And it was.

Looking east from the top of Mount Rubidoux over downtown Riverside
The mountain is well known for having Easter Sunrise services at the top with thousands of people venturing up the long and winding road to listen to a non-denominational service. At the sunrise service in 1912, an estimated crowd of 3,000 people attended and by the 1920's, the crowds had grown to over 30,000. It was an event known around the country with people coming from many different states to take part in the early morning trek on Easter to the top of the mountain.
Easter Sunrise Service - 1920's. John is third from the right on last step
It is believed, the Mount Rubidoux Easter Sunrise Service became the catalyst for many other locations around the United States, and the world.

Even the Hollywood Bowl got into the act after Riverside
As a honor to Father Juniper Serra, a gigantic white cross was erected at the very top around 1907. But a snag was put in place one hundred and five years later in 2012, when the group, 'Americans United for Separation of Church and State', took the city of Riverside to court. The anti-Christian group, wanted the cross removed from public lands, as it may offend non-believers.

The 'Cross' - oh, that 'Cross'
 In a meeting in January of 2013, the city council decided to sell the cross and the approximately 1/2 acre of land beneath it, thus making it no longer public land.

'Totally Mt. Rubidoux' was formed, and won the bidding at $10,500. The group was sponsored by the Friends of Mount Rubidoux and others, which raised in total, over two-hundred and fifty thousand dollars. There was plenty of money left over when the bidding stopped to ensure the area around the cross was taken care of for good.

The people were speaking loud and clear!
The city of Riverside played a serious legal battle to maintain the cross on top of the mountain, which has and does call tens of thousands of believers every year. The anti-Christian group, was not happy - but, hey, where there's a will there's a way, and Riverside found the way to preserve a portion of it's history.

I didn't win - I have to win - listen to me!!
 The road to the top is an easy hike and the views fabulous, the history fascinating, and the idea that a public government would stop at nothing to ensure a cross stays put for their community is awesome.

So, next time in Riverside - take a few hours and climb up to the top and see the valley. It's worth the time and effort. 

Sunday, May 19, 2019

Disney's Magic


Well, maybe not this time
When someone mentions the words, Mark Twain, the immediate identification is that of one of America's foremost story tellers, Samuel Clemens. But in reality, Mark Twain is a phrase with two meanings. Mark - meaning the measure of - and Twain -meaning two. When ships sailed or steamed up and down the Mississippi River in the 19th century, the pilots, that's the captain of the boat for landlubbers, would request a depth notification from crew. They needed to know the depth of the water they were sailing through for safety reasons.

Each fathom was six feet in depth, so when 'mark twain' was yelled up to the pilot after the measuring, the pilot knew they were in good stead with the water depth. Even though most river boats in the 19th century only had drafts of four to five feet, the extra depth was especially reassuring since the muddy Mississippi often had hidden dangers below the waterline. A little extra distance from the bottom was always welcomed.

Bad things can happen in shallow water 
Clemens actually worked on a paddle wheeler, learning the ins and outs of piloting a river boat as a cub pilot for two years before the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861. Under the tutelage of Captain Isaiah Sellers, Clemens learned a thing or two about mastering the helm and about writing. It seemed Sellers would pen paragraphs about current conditions on the river and have them printed in a local newspaper.


1861 Paddle wheeler on the Mississippi River
"The old gentleman was not of literary turn or capacity, but he used to jot down brief paragraphs of plain practical information about the river, and sign them 'Mark Twain' and give them to the New Orleans Picayune. They related to the stage and condition of the river, and were accurate and valuable; and thus far, they contained no Poison," Clemens once stated when asked about his use of the pen name, Mark Twain.

Clemons felt, as he had moved west to Virginia City and began working as a journalist he needed something special for a name.



"I was a fresh new journalist, and needed a nom de guerre: so I confiscated the ancient mariner's discarded one, and have done my best to make it remain what it was in his hands - a sign and symbol and warrant that whatever is found in its company may be gambled on as being the petrified truth; how I have succeeded, it would not be modest in me to say."

But, this blog is not about Samuel Clemons or Mark Twain the writer.


Sorry, Sam
So, now on to the blog.

No, it's about another famous Mark Twain, which paddles it's way in near oblongs, many times a day at Disneyland. The 105 foot long, 1/3rd sized replica of a 19th century riverboat plies the Rivers of America, located in the world famous park located in Anaheim, Southern California. Hundreds, if not thousands of guests line the three decks as the graceful and beautiful ship makes it's twelve to fifteen minute journey, allowing those same guests a chance to view different sections of the park. 

Passengers awaiting boarding upon the Mark Twain 
Laureen was surprised with a ticket to the 'Happiest Place on Earth' by daughters and sons-in-law for Mother's Day. And to entice John - there had to be an enticement since he had spent his early childhood visiting the park so many times, he'd hide out on Tom Sawyer's island until his cousins got tired of looking for him. A ticket for him to? Okay, deal with smiles and laughter. But what? No invite to the exclusive Club 33? Maybe next time. Being the good sport that John is - at least sometimes, he had a great outing.


Good Sport - not Old Sport. Learn your lines, DiCaprio
Since no one in the group of six had ridden the Mark Twain for many years, it was agreed that it would be nice to sit and rest. Fit-bit's go crazy at Disneyland where walking 20,000+ steps in a day is nothing. One must rest once in awhile or venturing from one make-believe world to another make-believe world would become a chore and not a joy.

As the party waited in the authentic 19th century appearing riverboat landing area, a bearded gentleman dressed in period clothing walked past and said something snarky to John. Of course, John returned the snarky comment with a bit more spice. Within seconds both men stood toe to toe smiling and exchanging harmless and comical comments to each other. Finally, the Pilot, we were to learn, told our entire group to come with him.


No, this isn't the Captain and John - we just stole this picture to make a point
We were escorted onto the Mark Twain before the other hundreds or so waiting passengers and led to the pilothouse. This was a special treat since it is rare to allow folks into the lair of the Captain of the ship. Three decks are the usual haunts for the passengers but we all were treated to the 'fourth' deck. The pilothouse was small but roomy enough that no one was smashing elbows with each other and the view was awesome. 

A non-disclosure agreement had to be signed - Not!
Roughly, thirty feet above the waters edge, gave us all a birds-eye-view of the park as the ship traveled it's course along the Rivers of America.

Unobstructed view of Disneyland - or at least most of it
Each got a turn at the helm, which was fine until Jessica took a hold of the large wooden wheel and John desperately wished Disneyland served alcohol. "I could use a drink," he was overheard muttering to himself. He watched as his daughter deftly spun the wheel to starboard, thankful there was only open water in that direction.

All small ships and children, watch out!
The Captain, which was his name since no one had jotted it down, advised us that the Mark Twain was under steam power delivered with bio-diesel and free floating along it's course. He also reassured us that the river was forty feet deep, so no fear of snagging underwater objects.


Justin and the Captain with no name - we're bad
Since John and Laureen believe in research, research was done and the fact checking proved that actually, the Mark Twain runs along a hidden steel I-beam to guide it's way through the water, and the depth of the river is not even a Mark Twain. The bottom is anywhere from 6 to 8 feet deep but looks deeper with the green and brown dye used for special effects. 


Are those guide rails we see?

 40 feet deep ? We don't think so, or those men are giants. 
This is all part of the Disney Magic, and no disparaging remarks or thoughts against the Captain for the 'fibs' he told us. It's all about make-believe, and we enjoyed the fantasy of believing this large ship was being guided by a bunch of neophyte pilots.


Hey, I just work here and recite what I'm told to recite.
Cruising the river, from the advantage point of the pilothouse, we could all see the new Disney attraction set to open May 31st of 2019. Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, an all New Land. Though, we could not see every detail of the 'Black Spire Outpost' on the planet 'Batuu', the glimpses we did enjoy proved to be enough that another trip to see this 16 acre addition to Disneyland is in the works.


On the left, a spaceship in the New Land

A glimpse of the 'Black Spire Outpost' on the Planet Bantuu
Even the ever-faithful, Trekkie. Laureen agreed this would be an adventure worth exploring.


A Trekkie traitor or just seeing the light saber - bad pun
At the conclusion of the voyage, each 'pilot' received an 'authentic' certificate claiming how they had managed, without incident to pilot the Mark Twain without sinking her.

Only room for 4 'Skippers' at a time in the wheelhouse
It was a memorable moment on a memorable day honoring mothers all through-out America and many places around the world.

The 'Happiest Place on Earth,' made many people very happy that day and the thrill of being in that rare group to be in the pilothouse aboard the Mark Twain, only made the experience that much happier.

Happy sails to you.

Credits:

Photos - JandLResearchandExploration
               Justin Barr Photography - https://www.justinbarrphotography.com/ 

Friday, May 3, 2019

Calico Early Man Site





Many times during research, we come across a lot of interesting facts. Most research is pretty straight forward but this blog's research turned out to be something unexpected - a very curvy bit of history was discovered.

Anthropology and archaeology are high interests for both Laureen and John and one place they have visited in the past was the Calico Early Man Site which is about 15 miles northeast of the city of Barstow, near the town of Yermo, in Southern California.

The history of the Calico Early Man Site is fascinating, with big time scientific names putting the place on the map for a potential history changing event. 

When did early humans actually populate the Americas? That question was thought to be solidly answered with evidence that approximately 12,000 or so years ago the first humans ventured upon the lands later to become the United States. Of course, some anthropologists postulated that it could be as early as 30,000 years ago but all of this up to interpretation of sites found around the country.

Then along comes the premier anthropologist of his day, Louis Leakey to shake the academic world up like a can of dropped soda.



While Leakey was working in the British Museum in 1959, he had an encounter with a fellow scientist which would change his remaining years forever. The world renowned discoverer of million-year-old hominids in the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania was suddenly looking at what appeared to be early stone tools from a place named Calico. San Bernardino archaeologist, Ruth DeEtte (Dee) Simpson had visited Leakey in London to obtain his professional judgment on what she had carried half way across the world. Was what Leakey seeing simply naturally formed geofacts or truly human made artifacts?

The British Museum - London
A geofact is a naturally occurring ‘flaking’ of a rock that can appear to be made by the human hand whereas an artifact was created by a human from the past.

The celebrity anthropologist believed that the oddly sharpened stones he was holding were truly man-made. These tools were very similar to ones he had discovered, along with his spouse, Mary, from early human dig sites from around the globe.

Geofacts or Artifacts - you judge
By 1963, Leakey had garnered the support of National Geographic Society which funded the dig site where Leakey, along with Simpson, spent considerable time from 1964 until 1970.

Simpson and Leakey at the Calico Early Man Site
What he found or believed he had found tarnished, and some in the anthropological spectrum believed ruined his credibility totally.

In 1970, Louis Leakey conducted an audio recording for the Pleistocene Coalition News. In this recording, Leakey came up with some pretty hard to swallow statements concerning objects being found in what would later be known as the Calico Early Man Site.

“I have consistently refused to say more about Calico than that it is over 50,000. And I have consistently warned the crew that it may be a great deal more than over 50. But the safe thing is to say that it is certainly over 50 – beyond the range of carbon dating.” (official transcripts from PCN).
Some of his statements concluded that the site showed evidence of human settlement of over 200,000 years.

Leakey’s idea that over 60,000 hand tools had been created at the site without the tiniest bit of human habitation evidence, besides the tools, caused skeptics to simply shake their heads. 

The basis for his theory was there were too many different languages/dialects within the native population of America to have developed within the past 12,000 to 15,000 years (typically agreed upon years by most anthropologists). He believed that many more thousands of years would be needed for the variety and different languages that were being spoken across the Americas.

If, Louis Leakey’s calculations were correct, then the Calico Early Man Site would be the oldest human location ever found in the Western Hemisphere. 

Louis Leakey was so adamant about his finds and would not stand down from them that Mary Leakey and he split up in 1968 after decades together searching the earth for any signs of past human life. Together they had made remarkable finds but this Calico obsession of her husband’s was too much for Mary.

“I ended by losing my professional respect for Louis; and it had been very great indeed,” she wrote in her autobiography after Louis’s death in 1972.

Louis and Mary Leakey in Tanzania - happier times
Of course, this brought out disbelief and worse for those in the academic world. It was called a hoax or worse, Louis Leakey’s last attempt at fame.  

But was the site a hoax or truly a discovery to match the ones Louis Leakey and his spouse, Mary had found in many of their most famous early human digs?


The Controversy begins
It is known that the area compromising Barstow, Yermo, and Daggett was once a large fresh body of water named Lake Manix. The last major glacial episode, during the Pleistocene age, approximately 2,588,000 to 11,700 years ago the area was covered with thick ice which slowly melted. Lakes such as Manix formed about 400 to 500 hundred thousand years ago.

Map of dig site(s) and where Manix Lake once covered the area
During this era, the area surrounding the large lake was lush with grass and a variety of plants allowing such animals such as camels, mammoths, saber-tooth cats, eagles, ducks, and whole plethora of other animals to exist.

The lake emptied about 18,000 years ago – probably due to tectonic movements during earthquakes along the Manix Fault, leaving behind what we now know as the Mojave Desert. With that draining and thousands of years of drying the lake bed turned into what we now recognize as the Mohave Desert. Most of the animals, except a few like coyotes and rabbits, became extinct.

In 1972, after Louis Leakey’s death, the area was taken over by the California Bureau of Land Management and soon the site was open to the public. 


The following decades the site was visited year round by the curious, the amateur anthropologist, the college student, and anyone interested in knowing the hidden history of the desert.

Unfortunately, this historical site in the Mohave Desert was closed to visitors approximately two years ago, according to Katrina Symons, Field Manager for the Bureau of Land Management at the Barstow office.



“The extent of the damage was enough that the bureau decided it had to close it,” Symons stated while discussing the vandalism and theft which occurred at the site. “Vandals tore doors off of the two cabins which are at the site along with stealing various items from those cabins. The damage was extensive.”

There's also another reason for the sudden closure of the site. “There is a very serious chance of the Hantavirus at the location,” Symons stated. “That is why the area is secured with double fencing. No one is allowed out there until these concerns are first taken care of.”


The Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is a highly contagious respiratory disease which is transmitted by infected deer mice and other wild rodents, according to the Centers for Disease Control website. The area of the site is home to many of such rodents which could be infected with the disease.

The Bureau of Land Management considers the entire area of the Calico Early Man Site as a public health safety concern, according to Symons.

But, they're so cute
When the site will re-open depends, according to Symons, when the bureau receives funding from the Federal Government. “Before there are any repairs, we must get the all clear on an environmental analysis of the area, especially around the cabins.”

I said, I don't know when it will re-open. Why'd you ask again?
On a side note, when asked separately concerning the controversy of the findings at the site, Symons stated: “The job of the bureau is to honor historical sites such as the Calico Early Man Site and does not delve into the authenticity of the findings. With Louis Leakey working here, it is a definite historical site.”