Welcome Sand to Snow national Monument! The Tortoise Reader Photo
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pring has sprung, the tortoises are out of their cozy burrows, doing their elaborate mating dances (they like to slow dance), and this year, they have one more reason to celebrate—a new national monument! The Sand to Snow National Monument ties together the low (Sonoran or Colorado) desert, with the alpine mountain enviArch MCCulloch submitted his photo of Mt. San Jacinto ronment of the San Bernardino Mountains, taken from Arch’s home in Morongo Valley, our hi-desert and the hi-desert (Mojave), helping preserve community that woke up recently to find itself surrounded the connections between these ecosystems by one of America’s newest national monuments! Thanks at a time when they seem to frequently be Arch! under assault (anyone remember Green Path North?). Incorporating existing preserves—Big Morongo tors will follow the Sand to Snow National Monument as Canyon Preserve (BLM), and The Wildlands Conservancy’s they turn north up Route 62, and will essentially follow Whitewater, Mission Creek, and Pioneertown Mountains a national monument or park boundary until they reach preserves, the new national monument, its desert, mounHighway 177 at the eastern end of Joshua Tree National tains, rivers, forests, and more, make it the most botaniPark. If visitors head north from Twentynine Palms to Amcally rich national monument in the country. You can fish, boy and Route 66, they’ll find yet another new national hike (including 25 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail), mounmonument, Mojave Trails, which helps connect them tain climb, rock climb, bird watch, snow-shoe, hunt, and northbound to the Mojave National Preserve, which enyes, drive and ride, around Sand to Snow. compasses yet a third new national monument, Castle There are historical, mining, and Native American Mountains. cultural sites within the monument, and overall, uses of A plethora of local and regional folks and orgathe public lands should not change dramatically with the nizations have all gone on record supporting the new new designation. national monuments, and our sister publication, The Sun Now, the national monument/park experience Runner, endorsed the legislation creating them when it for our two million or so annual visitors to Joshua Tree was initially introduced. We’ll get into the funding and National Park, begins in the Banning Pass area, and visimanagement of the monuments in the next Sun Runner.
In this issue: The tortoise welcomes our brand new sand to snow national monument!
Death Valley Jim introduces us to the man from the cave: chuckwalla bill
also... hi-desert happenings and our new hi-desert living page
Musician Victoria Williams gets a laugh at the Beauty Bubble from stylist Emily Hunter. Joshua Tree community activist, bobcat advocate, astronomer, and pretty funny guy, Tom O’Key, speaks at a recent public forum on the new national monuments hosted by senator dianne feinstein. watch out! tom’s enthusiasm is highly contagious!
Stay in touch with the Tortoise! www.jttortoisetelegraph.com
Helping out in the hi-desert the victoria williams fund We all love victoria williams, one of the hi-desert’s most beloved singers and songwriters. In mid-december, 2015, vic had a seizure, fractured her shoulder and seriously injured her back. Her medical insurance isn’t covering her costs and she isn’t able to work while she recovers. please donate if you can at: sweetrelief.org/program/victoria-williams-fund. 1
Scenes from Big Morongo Canyon Preserve and the Pioneertown Mountains Preserve, now part of the Sand to Snow National Monument. Photos by Steve Brown. We’ll have more details on our three new national monuments: Sand to Snow, Mojave Trails, and Castle Mountains, in the next edition of our sister publication, The Sun Runner. We’ll be looking into what changes desert lovers may expect, if any; funding for these new national monuments (if any); and how we can both support and benefit from these new national monuments in the California desert region. We’re so excited we can hardly contain ourselves! Time to go munch some wildflowers!
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The Man from the Cave: Chuckawalla Bill
Story & Photos by Death Valley Jim
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huckawalla Bill was born William Anthony Simon, in August of 1875; in Braddock, Pennsylvania. He spent his early adult years in the U.S. Army, fighting in the Spanish-American war, in the Philippines against post-war insurgents. Once his enlistment was completed, Simon stayed in the Philippines for an additional year. He eventually reenlisted, it was thought that he had done so for a free ride back to the United States. After his second discharge Simon became a transient, traveling the United States. In 1907, Simon again enlisted in the U.S. Army, only to desert in October of 1908. This ended his U.S. military career. He did manage to apply and receive military disability benefits some years later. Sources say that he was not proud of having to do so, but he fell on hard times. Simon served in the British Army during World War I, to do so he swore to being a British citizen. He became a sniper for the British Army, but immediately after the war was over he denounced that he was a British citizen, but was rather an American citizen. He was discharged, and returned to the United States. Upon his return to the U.S., Simon returned to his transient lifestyle. Sometime after World War II, he made his way out west. Simon’s time out west is far from well documented, but it is believed he lived for some time in cave alongside the Colorado River in the Nevada desert. This part of Simon’s life was uncovered by famed backpacker and author Colin Fletcher, who came upon a trunk of belongings near a cave that appeared well lived in, while backpacking the Colorado River route. Fletcher became infatuated with the mystery behind the man who lived in the cave, and his trunk. He spent some time researching the case before coming across Grace Mazeris, who was a female friend of Simon, and who lived with him in his cabin for a few years in the 1930s. She was able to help trace Simon back to the cave in the Nevada desert. Fletcher went on to write the book The Man From the Cave, about Simon’s life, in 1981. There is a lot of unaccounted for time in Simon’s life, but it is known that in the 1930s he lived in an old stone cabin in a canyon a few miles from Desert Hot Springs. He made a living placing mining claims and selling them to greenhorn miners. He was known to salt the claims (place small traces of gold at the claim from other sites) to make them more attractive to potential buyers. Simon is rumored to have received his nickname “Chuckawalla Bill,” from a priest that had visited him. Simon made him a dinner of chuckwalla, and tried passing it off as fish. The priest didn’t buy it, and gave Simon the nickname. Apparently, Simon liked the nickname and used it, even inscribing it above his fireplace mantel while renovating the cabin in 1934. Simon, aka Chuckawalla Bill died in 1950, at the age of 81. He had no family, no money, his occupation on his death certificate is listed as “unknown”, and he had no Social Security number. His last known address is simply “General Delivery.” Even by today’s standards, Chuckawalla Bill’s cabin is remote. I can 4
only imagine how remote this location would have been considered in the 1930s when Bill lived here. Sure, Desert Hot Springs had been founded 15 years prior to Bill’s arrival, but it was a much, smaller place than what it is today. The cabin is in the Little San Bernardino Mountains, roughly six miles from the nearest sign of civilization in either Desert Hot Springs below or Yucca Valley above, and is located in the protected wilderness of Joshua Tree National Park. The cabin has seen better days. Flooding has caused some of the stone walls to crumble, and the wood boards of the roof clutter the canyon floor for a quarter of a mile. The prized piece is the fireplace and mantel, above the fireplace where the inscription “Chuckawalla Bill 1934,” can still faintly be seen. The spring which once fed the cabin its water supply, lies about 100 feet behind the cabin. It has gone dry in recent years except after a good rain. There is still plenty of evidence that bighorn sheep inhabit the area. Bones and horns can easily be found in the wash, as well as sheep and other animal tracks. If you decide to venture out and try to find Bill’s secluded cabin, please be aware that it is not an easy walk in the park. I hiked in from Yucca Valley, the first six miles was easy going because it’s all downhill. The return trip is the challenge, with an elevation gain of over 1,800 feet, with 800 feet of that being in the last mile. Jim has spent nearly a decade documenting the hidden treasures of the American Deserts, with a focus on Death Valley National Park, Joshua Tree National Park, and the Mojave National Preserve. He is most widely known for his two book series, “Secret Places in the Mojave Desert” and “Hidden Joshua Tree.” His specialties include Native American history, archaeological, historic site documentation, and natural wonders. He is well versed in, and active in the environmental preservation of the desert, including having been a consultant to the BLM for the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP), and a spokesperson for Campaign for the California Desert. In the backcountry Jim is a minimalist, hiker/backpacker, and an avid supporter of Leave No Trace ethics. For more odd, interesting, historic and prehistoric places in Joshua Tree and the surrounding area visit the author, Death Valley Jim online at www.deathvalleyjim.com, and pick up his book series “Hidden Joshua Tree” and “Secrets Places in the Mojave Desert.” Editor’s Note: It’s official—we are responsible for the closure of Carey’s Castle in Joshua Tree National Park. Jim’s story about it led to such a large number of inquiries about the site the park closed it. Sorry! 5
Hi-Desert Happenings Theatres Theatre 29 73637 Sullivan Road, Twentynine Palms The Little Mermaid, through April 9. Tickets and information are available at www.theatre29.org, or call (760)361-4151. Groves Cabin Theatre 8758 Desert Willow Trail, Morongo Valley The Sea Horse, by Edward J. Moore, directed by Abe Daniels. Through March 20. Information is available at www.grovescabintheatre.org, or call (760)365-4523 for tickets. Hi-Desert Cultural Center 61231 29 Palms Hwy., Joshua Tree Joshua Tree Philharmonic in concert, March 11-13; Auto Parts, written & directed by Steve Stajich, March 18-19; First Fridays! April Fools Mystery Surprise, directed by Howard, April 1. Dog Logic! by Tom Strelich, directed by Howard Shangraw, April 15-23. Tickets and information are available at www.hidesertculturalcenter.org or (760)366-3777. Art & Special Exhibits 29 Palms Art Gallery 74055 Cottonwood Drive, Twentynine Palms (760)367-7819, www.29palmsartgallery.com Annual Judged Guild Members Show, through March 27, Monica Lynne Mahoney judge. Shamrocks in the Desert Art Auction, March 19. Paint Out Mondays, every Monday, 9 a.m.-noon. 29 Palms Inn 73950 Inn Avenue, Twentynine Palms (760)367-3505, www.29palmsinn.com Showing the works of Sharon Davis and Mike Fagan. 29 Palms Visitor Center& Art Gallery 73484 29 Palms Hwy., Twentynine Palms A Walk in the Park: Celebrating 80 Years of Joshua Tree National Monument/Park and 100 Years of the National Park Service, through March 25. Oasis Visitor Center, Joshua Tree National Park 74485 National Park Drive, Twentynine Palms, www.joshuatree.org 24th Annual Joshua Tree National Park Art Festival, April 1-3. Gallery 62 61607 29 Palms Hwy., Joshua Tree, www.hwy62arttours.org/gallery62.php Abstract Now, through March 27. Taylor Junction 61732 29 Palms Hwy., Joshua Tree. (760)974-9165. Third Saturday Art Party featuring Dan Van Clapp, Sally Egan, Amy Bystedt, March 19. JTAG (Joshua Tree Art Gallery) 61607 29 Palms Hwy., Joshua Tree. (760)366-3636, www.joshuatreeartgallery.com March Spring Forward, through April 2. Hi-Desert Nature Museum Yucca Valley Community Center, 57116 29 Palms Hwy., Yucca Valley (760)369-7212, www.hidesertnaturemuseum.org Reduce, Reuse, Recycle exhibit through April 30. Talking Trash lecture, March 17. Earth Day Celebration, April 16. Art Colony of Morongo Valley Covington Park, 11165 Vale Drive, Morongo Valley. (760)792-1238, www.artcolonyofmorongovalley.com March featured artist: Morgan Hansen. Children’s Art Show, March 19. Music 29 Palms Inn 73950 Inn Avenue, Twentynine Palms (760)367-3505, www.29palmsinn.com Live music nightly (see schedule this page). Pappy & Harriets Pioneertown Palace 53688 Pioneertown Road, Pioneertown (760)365-5956, www.pappyandharriets.com Live music Thursdays-Mondays. Regularly scheduled: Ted Quinn’s open mic on Mondays, The Shadow Mountain Band opening for other acts most Saturdays, The Hot Fudge Sunday Band, most Sundays. For complete calendar: www.pappyandharriets.com. Joshua Tree Saloon 61835 29 Palms Hwy., Joshua Tree, (760)366-2250, www.thejoshuatreesaloon.com Regularly scheduled: RAGS&BONES lunch set, Mondays noon-1:30 p.m., Open Jam Tuesdays with Ted Quinn, karaoke Wednesday and Friday nights, live music Saturday nights, Punk Rock Thursday, second Thursdays. Soul Priestess, Gojiro Island, April 2. Beatnik Lounge 61597 29 Palms Hwy., Joshua Tree. (760)475-4860 Songwriters-in-the-Round, 2nd Sundays. Online music: www.RadioFreeJoshuaTree.org The Palms 83131 Amboy Road, Wonder Valley. (760)361-2810 Wonder Valley Yacht Club Presents..., March 26. Wonder Valley Experimental 8, April 9 (see listing this page). Landers Brew Co. 1388 Golden Slipper Lane, Landers. (760)623-6300 All Nights End, True Humble Calling, March 12. Health & Healing, Desert Living Beatnik Lounge 61597 29 Palms Hwy., Joshua Tree. (760)475-4860 Tibetan Meditation with Sunny, Wednesdays, 6:30 p.m. Joshua Tree Retreat Center/Institute of Mentalphysics 59700 29 Palms Hwy., Joshua Tree, (760)365-8371 Intro to Tibetan Spiritual Breath. Tuesdays, 6:30-8 p.m., Lotus Meditation Building. Donation: $5. Improves subtle energies of the body by understanding breath and the natural relationship to healing.
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Rainbow Stew 55509 29 Palms Hwy., Old Town Yucca Valley (760)418-5170, www.rainbowstew4u.com Open Judged Art Show hosted by Chaparral Artists, through April 7. Sky’s the Limit Observatory & Nature Center 9697 Utah Trail, Twentynine Palms. www.skysthelimit29.org Regularly scheduled Saturday evening night sky events, free for the public. Check website for upcoming events. Contribute to replacing their solar power system stolen by thieves at the site: www.gofundme.com/stlpowerfund. Want to be included in our calendar listings? Send your event info to us at: publisher@sunrunnersw.com.
Tortoise Tip: yucca valley’s joshua hookah lounge
Save Our Desert Celebrates new national monument
The grassroots hi-desert organization, Save Our Desert, recently held a gathering to celebrate the inclusion of the Black Lava Butte and Flat Top Mesa area in the new Sand to Snow National Monument. The inclusion means no more threats from wind farms or high voltage power transmission corridors to that area near Pipes Canyon and Pioneertown, helping preserve the natural and cultural treasures of the area. Volunteers like Randy Green, were instrumental in SOD’s efforts. Our thanks to all the volunteers in the hi-desert and beyond!
If you love tasty, well prepared Middle Eastern food at a friendly, family-run local restaurant, then Joshua Hookah Lounge is for you. Try the Oozi, either veggie, beef, or chicken. Or the gyro plate. Or the falafel. Delicious! (Just like everything else on the menu.) (760)820-1644. 57345 29 Palms Hwy., Yucca Valley. Tell ‘em the Tortoise sent you!
Save Our Desert note: We don’t currently recommend visiting the Save Our Desert website at saveourdesert.com. At the moment, it redirects you to a porno website by the name of bongacams.com. We doubt this has much to do with anything to do with the folks at Save Our Desert, but it does appear to be kind of a grass roots effort of some sort. Editor/Publisher/telegraph operator: Steve Brown
Assistant to the editor: Juliet, the cat
Adventures Editor: Death Valley Jim Photos by: Steve Brown, Death Valley Jim, arch mcculloch hi-desert living page coordinator: shaun kruse - 800-680-0952 Submit story ideas, photos for consideration, dining/shopping/lodging/favorite places and event photos to: tortoisetelegraph@gmail.com advertising inquiries: sunrunnerads@gmail.com or 760-820-1222 see the advertising page at www.jttortoisetelegraph.com for pricing and specs. distribution inquiries: tortoisetelegraph@gmail.com join the tortoise telegraph online at: www.jttortoisetelegraph.com, on facebook at: www.facebook.com/jttortoisetelegraph on instagram at: www.instagram.com/jttortoisetelegraph join the sun runner, the journal of the real desert, online at: www.sunrunnersw.com on facebook at: www.facebook.com/TheSunRunner join southwest stories with steve brown online at: www.southweststories.us on facebook at: www.facebook.com/RealDesert
thanks for joining us!
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