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Sonoran Falling
Last night I dreamed coyotes were calling me. They hung up when I answered.
This visit to the Deming Luna Mimbres Museum,“The Biggest Little Museum in the Southwest,” included the stunning mineral collection. It’s a veritable hoard of gems and geods and dreamy-deep geology lessons and details. The book selection in the gift shop and the gifts in the gift shop make this a required stop.
I wanted to camp in Apache land. Mostly I saw a lot of overgrazed land and cows.
The Apache shaped history but those who fought the hardest and longest don’t live in the Chiricahua Mountains or environs now. They went to Mexico or Mescalero or San Carlos or Fort Sill after Geronimo’s surrender. In their homeland they remain only in place names. Their history and what we know of this entire region has been filtered and modified by the the actions of multiple players over centuries.
Take old movies for example. I like an old Vincent Price movie. He stars in The Baron of Arizona, 1950. It’s based on the true story of a man who claimed much of present day Arizona and New Mexico for himself. James Addison Reavis (1843-1914) collected millions through sale of quit claim deeds and investments before his ultimate failure.
Like several other infamous Civil War veterans from Missouri, Reavis exploited the U.S. land grant claims system. But a significant block in his efforts were Apache conflicts. Entire portions of southern Arizona and its pioneer populace were subject to waves of upheaval and abandonment during this period. Reavis left for the safety of California and in 1895 his claim was finally found to be “wholly fictitious and fraudulent.” He died, broke, in Los Angeles in 1914.
It’s shocking to see the number of cattle on public land in the Sonoran desert. In most places there’s not a speck of grass visible anywhere from the ground or from the satellite photos. Look at the range and the vegetation within fenced-off parcels where cows aren’t, if you can find them. There was a new but torn vinyl billboard on I-10 near Bowie that says something like Ranchers feed America, not Wolves. It’s my understanding that range cattle make up less than 2% of the beef supply in this country. Maybe it should be: Farmers and the Mexicans they hire feed America.
Rock Hound State Park searching for “pretties” in the perfect weather of early November. A lot of people bring a pick and know what they’re looking for. Alas, I found one rock with a tiny little crack and a tiny little layer of tiny little crystals. Mostly I saw pretty stars.
I’m getting into geology now that flora and fauna are shot. Cows don’t eat rocks.
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Exploration
Pima County Community College recently demolished three historic motels in Tucson; the Tucson Inn, the Frontier Motel, and the Copper Cactus All three were within Tucson’s Miracle Mile corridor, a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places.
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Pecos Conference
The 2025 Pecos Conference – Bears Ears National Monument and the Lands Between, Utah.
Nibbled on a bear’s ear. Now I must go back to Cedar Mesa for another taste.
See how it looks? That bear has been in some fights. That bear has seen some things.
Dogs and archeologists of every variety and age. Friendly and social every single one. It felt that way. Hot hike from parking. Every variety of camp: RV. Pop-up, little trailer, big trailer, simple tents, high tech tents, and hammocks. I chose a motel in Blanding. There’s a distant view of the ears from one of Blanding’s wide wide empty streets.
Vastly simplified, the Pecos Conference is three days of archaeologists reading papers in the woods. The ten minute talks are enough to intrigue but not enough to bore. There are no slides or computers or cell service. There are posters and interesting people. And did I mention the dogs?
I could have used a burro ride to get from distant day parking.
The Bears Ears Partnership BearsEarsPartnership.org hosted the conference this year with many sponsorships and broad participation. The setting was a forested 130 acres in the Manti-La Sal National Forest and Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, north of Blanding.
Action to reduce the size of the monument has united and strengthened proponents, including archeologists, Tribes, and agencies – a broad range of scholars, professionals, and interested individuals. Many of them were there and I learned so much.
Like about the berm and swale landscapes and the extent of land cultivation by Ancient Pueblo people and how the regional population grew and fell and how Bears Ears was home to “millions of people for thousands of years.” Like how 24 Tribes claim cultural affiliation with the area. Like just how much archeology there is and how much has been lost to looting and vandalism.
In 2009 Blanding was ground zero for a federal sting that resulted in dozens of arrests and a couple of suicides. The Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum includes a collection of recovered artifacts and is also located adjacent to a partially excavated Ancient Pueblo village. With so many sites within easy reach and strong markets for antiquities, pot hunting became a tradition in the last 19th century and continues today, in spite of the busts. This came up in most presentations. It is a primary fact of the profession.
Lowry Pueblo layout may illustrate summer and winter people.
Iwas privileged to listen to the foremost land stewards and archaeologists in the Southwest present their work, memorialize fallen colleagues, and discuss issues and challenges. My interest was refreshed and my head was stuffed with new ideas and questions about the Bears Ears National Monument and threats to public land. The energy at the Pecos Conference was infectious and inspirational.
The Albuquerque Conservation Association 