Date:         Mon, 6 Feb 1995 22:22:02 -0800 (PST)
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         David Schwarze <schwarze@io.nosc.mil>
Subject:      Red Rock info (yes, more!)

Here is a note I sent to Martha regarding Red Rock, which we agreed would
be of enough general interest that I should go ahead and post it:

>       I just got off of the phone with the Parks and Rec dept.  They
> said that there are NO reservations - first come, first served.  They
> said that there is a possibility that the campground will fill up on
> the weekends in March.  Said that there wouldn't be a problem getting
> a site for those arriving early Friday, though.  There are 50 sites, and
> the fee is $7/site for up to 8 people per site, but extra vehicles are
> $5/night.  The good news is that there is overflow camping across the
> highway.  I have seen it, and even camped there once, and it is not
> bad (although far from the restrooms).  If the campground fills up, we
> can surely find room in the overflow area.  She gave me the name and
> address of the ranger that deals with that area:
>
> Mark Faull
> Red Rock Canyon State Park
> Box 26
> Cantil, Ca. 93519
>
> She suggested I write him with our plans and see what he recommends.
> She said he would also know if we could build fires in the overflow
> area (really, I don't think it will come to this).  The visitors center
> should be open on that weekend, and she said there were probably nature
> walks and fireside chats and things that we could attend.

> Also, I remembered that there is this really kewl place nearby called
> Burro Schmidt's mine.  It is run by a really old lady who lives there
> alone - I'll have to give you details on that sometime, but it would
> make a good trip, perhaps...

> p.s. the phone # for the Parks and Rec dept. is (805) 942-0662.  They
> know a lot about red Rock, so if you have any questions, you can call
> them.

I suggest that several of us get there early and get some sites together,
then the latecomers can just double up with the earlybirds.

I just dug out my California State Parks guide, and I thought I would
share what it says about Red Rock:

	"Red Rock Canyon State Recreation area, with its scenic desert cliffs
and natural preserve area, is located abou;t 125 miles north of Los Angeles
and 25 miles North of Mojave on State Highway 14.  The canyon has been an
established  route of travel from time immemorial - from long before the
arrival of European immigrants - because it is located just at the point
where the Western edge of the El Paso Range joins the Southernmost tip of
the Sierra Nevada.  The canyon, and the surrounding desert mountains, are of
special interest both for their geologic and archeological history, and for
their unusual scenic qualities, flora, and fauna.
	The most popular activities in the park include camping, picknicking,
hiking, desert exploration, photography, and ather desert nature studies.
	The spectacular rock formations in Red Rock Canyon and in the nearby
El Paso range have been used as settings in coutless motion picture and
television productions.  Each tributary canyon is unique, with colors
ranging dramatically from stark white to vivid reds and dark chocolate
browns.  Most of the relatively soft, deeply eroded cliff formations are
made up of sedimentary materials that accumulated in a very deep lake bed
during the Pliocene times (about 10 million years ago).  Relatively hard
basalt, sandstone, and tuff materials form a protective caprock over much of
these deposits and the most scenic cliffs, buttes, and other landforms occur
where this caprock has been cut away by erosiono expose the multi-layered
and often very colorful sedimentary materials.
	The Pliocene sediments of Red Rock Canyon have provided paleontol-
ogists with a great deal of information about the evolution of life in this
part of the world.  Fossilized remains have indicated, for instance, that a
few million years ago Red Rock and Last Chance Canyons were portions of the
shoreline of a large freshwater lake.  Living on grassy plains and chaparral
or forest-covered mountains near this lake in the gentle, moist climate of
that time were many plants and animals including pines and cedars, locust,
oak and even some fig trees.  Numerous small animals such as mice and lizards,
as well as some larger ones including horses, camels, antelopes, sabretoothed
cats, wolves, mastodons, and two kinds of rhinocerouses, lived here.

HISTORY
	Indian use of Red Rock Canyon is indicated by a few rock mortars that
were used to grind seeds and other plant parts.  Just prior to the arrival
of European man this area was occupied by the Kawaiisu branch of the
Chemehuevi, generally refered to as the Mojave indians - a nomadic people
whose Shoshonean-speaking relatives occupied the Great Basin and southwestern
deserts as well as the south coastal Channel Islands and Los Angeles area.
	Before the arrival of the Kawaiisu, however, the area was apparently
inhabited for as much as 15-20,000 years by a population known today only as
the "Old People."  Little is known about them, though it is thought that
some of the petroglyphs in the El Paso range may represent their work.
	Mining in this area began in the 1870's, but it was not until the
1890s - when news of the gold strikes in Garlock and Randsburg encouraged
prospecting in all the canyons and gulches of the El Paso range - that gold
mining became an important activity.  It is reported that several million
dollars in gold, including a 14 ouce nugget, were removed from this area.
Scattered mining activities resumed during the depression years did not
prove profitable.
	One of the leading figures in the Red Rock Canyon gold rush was
Rudolph Hagen, who later acquired much of the land in this vicinity.  He
named the little town of Ricardo in memory of his son Richard, who died at
an early age.  After the excitement of the gold rush was over, Ricardo 
continued to serve as an important stage stop on the main route of travel
between Los Angeles and the Owens valley.  The Ricardo ranger station (park
headquarters) is located on the site of this once bustling community.

CAMPING
	Spring is the most popular season at Red Rock Canyon, but the State
Recreation area remains open the year around.  Summer can be very hot,
although at night temparatures are almost always moderate enough for 
comfortable sleeping.  Winter is quite cool with nighttime temperatures
often dipping well below the freezing point.
	A primitive campground with fifty individual sites with tables and
stoves, piped drinking water, and pit toilets is located near park head-
quarters.  Picnic areas have not been formally developed, but visitors may
picnic in unoccupied campsites or explore the area, particularly the natural
preserves where vehicles are not allowed because scenic and other natural
landscape features are particularly spectacular and fragile.
	Off-highway vehicles are permitted in the campground at Red Rock
Canyon and may also use the primitive roads designated by the State Park
Commission, some of which provide access to popular areas such as Dove Springs
and Jawbone Canyon outside the State Recreation Area." (NOTE: New legislation
has passed since this was written - offroad vehicles may no longer be
permitted - DS)

-David

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David Schwarze                  '73 VW Safare Custom Camper (Da Boat)
SAIC Comsystems                 '73 Capri GT 2800 (Da Beast)
San Diego, California           '87 Mustang Lx 5.0 (Da Bruiser?  Soon...)
schwarze@nosc.mil                http://papaya.nosc.mil/~schwarze
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