Example: (see below for links to lists applicable to this index map) Wilderness Area #34 Bigelow Cholla Garden Wilderness is located approximately within; Subsection 322Am – Piute Valley – Sacramento Mountains Ecosubsections BLM Wilderness... Read More »
Opening Shots Apple Valley’s Dinosaur Park – by Myra McGinnis If you drove north on Central Avenue in Apple Valley, about 3 miles from Highway 18, a strange sight might give you a moment surprise: a group of dinosaurs would appear on the horizon. This meant figures represent the work of Lonnie Coffman, a soft-spoken, wiry,... Read More »
About 2009 I read an article titled “Cottonwood Springs” in the December, 1959 Desert Magazine (50 years old) written by a gentleman named Walter Ford. I wasn’t sure where the place was, although the photo included in the piece that sparked some kind of vague memory. I couldn’t quite remember where it was though. First... Read More »
by Glenn Adams A rental sign could honestly read, “Doublin Gulch, modern cliff dwellings for men only.” But these living quarters, carved out of the earth, are never rented. They belong to the occupants while they live there, and the first man to move-in is the next owner. It is not a written law, but... Read More »
by Peter Reyner Banhamorld: “Las Vegas is a symbol, above all else, of the impermanence of man in the desert, and not least because one is never not aware of the desert’s all pervading presence; wherever man has not built nor paved over, the desert grimly endures – even on some of the pedestrian islands... Read More »
The Wheeler map made in the 1880s shows a volcano between what is Victorville and Barstow. The questions is; Is the “Volcano” either Stoddard Mountain or Bell Mountain? So it looks as if the “Volcano” is nowadays known as Stoddard Mountain. Maybe next time; Is Stoddard Mountain a real... Read More »
Does this … … Blow your mind? — Cajon Junction (el. 2950′) at I-15 and Hwy. 138 is actually at about a 300′ higher elevation than Victorville (el. 2650′). The slope from the summit to Victorville is gradual, not as noticeable, and provides us with the illusion that we are further up than we actually... Read More »
The Old Spanish Trail had become increasingly used as a pack mule trail between New Mexico and California, and with this traffic came the opportunity for those to take advantage of the distance and desperate nature of the land. California horses were beautiful creatures, and the mules were taller and stronger than those in New... Read More »
Fr. Francisco Hermenegildo Tomás Garcés, (April 12, 1738 – July 18, 1781) was a Spanish priest who crossed the Mojave Desert in 1776. This map shows his route across the Victor Valley. Following the Mojave River after crossing at Oro Grande he walked through what is now downtown Victorville bypassing the rocky narrows and connecting... Read More »
Dear Sir: When I came over here three months ago, I brought four copies of Desert with me. Needless to say they have become rather dogeared as I have read them from cover to cover several times, and passed them around to my friends who have enjoyed them immensely. The last day I was in... Read More »