Yesterday we had lunch at Marshall South's adobe homestead. We watched a short movie on him (complete with some of his family home movies) at the Anza Borrego Desert Visitor Center when we first arrived in Borrego Springs. Pam and John were kind enough to lead us on the steep and winding trail up Ghost Mountain to see the remains of his family's home.
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| can you see our tiny black jeep below? |
The trail wound back and forth as it climbed the mountain and I was glad to have my hiking sticks for help with some of the rockier sections.
Lots of cactus and yucca were growing on the slope. Buckhorn cholla, teddy bear cholla, tiny fish hook cactus and many yucca dotted the landscape.
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| Dave and John wait on the trail for me to catch up |
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we wondered why this yucca grew
in such an odd way |
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| dried seed pods 20 feet in the air |
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| tiny fish hook cactus |
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| cactus skeleton |
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| cool rock! |
As we zig zagged up and up we couldn't help but wonder what would possess someone to decide to make a home at the top. Every single thing they needed to build their little complex and then survive there had to be brought up this very trail. Concrete, wood, beds, mattresses, water, food, all had to come up on their backs. If you'd like to know more about this unusual man, read about him here...
http://www.desertusa.com/desert-people/marshal-south.html
The view from the top of Ghost Mountain was fantastic.
We walked around all that remains of the adobe cabin, cistern and meditation areas. Soon the desert will completely reclaim them.
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| recycling center perhaps? |
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| meditation room, hmmmm |
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| this primitive sundial told us it was time for lunch |
We "pulled up a chair" and enjoyed our repast with the ghosts of the South family.
Even though we have been here several times, I never tire of of visiting. There is some strange draw to the place. Maybe that is what Marshal and Tanya felt:)
ReplyDeleteWhen I first saw that shot of Dave holding the yucca it looked like a snake! How neat to see you out enjoying the trail! Sounds like your knees are doing great!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you made the journey up Ghost Mountain! Love reading of your experience there. It's one of our favorite places in the area, too -- as Pam said, we never tire of visiting. We had a unique experience there last January that you might enjoy reading about for some more background on the South family -- Eric realized that the filmmaker was a high school track buddy and we reconnected with him for a day on the mountain. http://ravenandchickadee.com/2015/04/the-spell-of-ghost-mountain/
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