Terrific read. Well done and thank you!
On Dec 15, 2012, at 12:35 AM, Edwin Thompson wrote: > > > > The summer of 2012 started early for someone from rainy Oregon with a fun > trip for father and son to chase after a new fall in Coloma, CA. The first > trip to the new strewn field was ten days long and only a few days after the > fall. Having the bordello room upstairs at the Sierra House hotel turned out > to be a valuable advantage. With a bar and restaurant downstairs and being > the only road house in the small, historic gold discovery town, meteorite > hunters turned up there every night to compare notes. On the weekends the > crew from SETI and NASA Ames would meet there for large group dinners always > dog tired from another day of covering ground. The Coloma/Lotus area is on a > beautiful section of the American river. It was easy to get to know local > residents there. Since the primary activity during the summer is rafting the > river everyone in the area is used to the summer growth in population. The > town seems to have more than its share of young and attractive girls who > often talk about what they know is coming each summer. They have a common > saying in Coloma; you don’t lose a boyfriend, you just lose a turn. > Except for the poison oak, the ticks, the dreaded star thistle and the heat, > this strewn field was a delightful paradise. The smell of bay trees roasting > in the hot, dry, mountain air was an olfactory delight. The sounds of > splish-splashers laughing and whooping and hollering their way down the > roaring rapids of deliciously cool, clear American river water made one feel > like this was a vacation. And the gentle breezes that cut through the dry, > hot Sierra foothill air were a welcome relief. After ten days it was really > hard to return home to rainy, old Oregon. So much so that it was just that > easy to rush home, pack up the trailer, reserve an extended stay at the > Campground in Coloma and head right back down for the summer. It made sense, > the summer was already planned for a lengthy, determined search in eastern > Oregon for the fall there some five years ago and this witnessed fall in > Coloma was a bird in the hand since pieces were being found. > Since the summer rush had not yet arrived it was easy to get a camp site just > feet from the river’s edge. A number of the camper’s live there year round so > it was much like home after the first week, getting to know the neighbors and > getting settled in. The only difference was that large bright ball of solar > heat supply overhead that comes much earlier in the season for the folks of > the Golden State. With the predictable sunshine comes other elements such as > blistering afternoon temperatures and the legendary rattlesnakes not one of > which was seen by this meteorite hunter in over three months of days out in > the bush. This was truly disappointing. The dollars spent on snake gaiters > and a go-pro camera seemed a waste. And being a serious admirer of reptiles > it was hard to hear all of the stories of sightings and not to get to see one > up close and in person. The days were filled with other sightings; king > snakes, colorful skinks of all sizes, coyotes, foxes, turkeys galore, loads > of deer and one bobcat. > The hills and mountains were surprisingly steep. Mount Murphy, Mount Clark > and Discovery Mountain were all tough going but the most difficult aspect of > covering steep terrain were the small oval dried oak leaves that covered the > hillsides in several layers and more than once proved to be more slippery > than skates on ice. Over time it became difficult to tell which was more > painful; blistered feet or a bruised backside. > Not wanting to join the foray of hunters asking permission to hunt the > private land that peppered the main body of the strewn field the decision was > made to focus efforts on what might be the area where the bigger masses might > have landed. After spending a week in Dave Moore Park and two weeks in > Magnolia and on the river trails it was time to focus on Cronin ranch and > then on to Rattlesnake Bar. > Cronin Ranch was work, to say the least. Seventeen hundred acres of hillside, > star thistle and poison oak (the enemy). As summer progressed, days flying by > like time travel, it got hotter earlier. To beat the heat meant getting up at > four a.m. and getting out to hunt at daylight. It was easy to stop by three > p.m. as that was when the water in the hydration pack ran out almost with > religious perfection. Shower at four, dinner at five, bed by eight and up > again long before the eyes were willing to crack open. It seemed like a good > waste of summer sunshine and cool sleep time but determination to find a > hidden treasure or the hope of doing so can be a massive motivator. > The days sped by like never before. The occasional hunter or ‘zombie’ could > infrequently be spotted off in the distance. After the second month in Cronin > Ranch it was not uncommon to encounter one or more of the regular walker, > runner or biker and before long get to know many of them by first name. One > fellow named Bruce would speed walk through the ornate network of trails with > his dog. The dog wore a bell which sounded there pending passing. Then one > scorching afternoon while taking a noon break under the oak trees near the > movie house a stranger appeared on a distant hillside. It was easy to see > that this person was doing the search thing by the erratic side to side > movement. There was a strange white thing flailing to one side which later > turned out to be just a plastic bag tied to his belt. A short time later the > stranger appeared nearby coming into the grove of oak trees and a familiar > smile revealed that it was Dr. Peter Utas a meteorite hunter from Los > Angeles. It was great fun to visit there in the field and compare thoughts. > By the time conversation subsided the day was hot and shot. > As the days grew hotter the prospects of going back up north to hunt in > Oregon for pieces of the Elgin fireball became more attractive. The weather > predictions were showing weeks of one hundred and five degree days ahead. > After three months in Coloma and not one find to show for the time and effort > it was getting tougher to go out each day. Just as rare as finding a Sutter’s > Mill meteorite was the chance of buying one from a local finder. In all of > the time identifying stones for locals and networking in the area just one > 26.5 gram stone presented the opportunity for purchase. This gorgeous > individual made its way into a well-known university collection. It is > amazing that after over forty years of hunting for meteorites it still boils > down to such a simple equation; one day at a time, cover lots of ground, keep > the eyes open and maintain high hopes. > So after May June and July in Coloma, California it was time to pack up and > head for the Blue Mountains of Northeastern Oregon. Having hunted there for > many years it was like going home. But things were a bit different, never > having been in the Blues during the huckleberry season added a new twist to > old stomping grounds. Now the worry was not snakes although they are there as > well but black bears and judging from all the piles of bear duty filled with > huckleberries it was time to carry a handgun and the heck with the snake > gaiters! So with .45 caliber strapped to the chest it was off to hike the > Blues. Turned out it was just as hot in northeastern Oregon as it was in > Coloma but once in the deep forest canopy every morning it was downright > chilly. A 100 degree day in the farm fields of the valley below was only 65 > degrees in the woods. This was a gift from nature. This late in the summer > the snow is gone and the creek beds are dry. The underbrush is fairly rough > going and the hillsides of these 5000 foot mountains are a test for any > hiker. Old logging roads weren’t much use because they are grown over with > dense brush and alder trees that grow like weeds wherever the land is > cleared. Game trails that skirt the hillsides are the way to go but it can be > so tough to go where the four legged critters can go. Well five weeks of > early mornings and long days of sunlight produced no meteorites here either. > This trip was planned to last until the end of September or whenever the > first snow fell but one morning, four hours into the woods a torn tendon cut > the trip short and it was time in early September to make the drive home and > have the foot looked at. All the ice packs and wrapping with ace bandages did > little good and so it was time to let the doctors have their say. Lesson > learned; it costs $200.00 to have a foot doctor tell you that there is > nothing he can do and you simply have to stay off your feet. It’s called > RICE; rest, ice, compression, elevation, exactly what Patrick told me to do > in a phone call while still in the field. > So when the news came about the new fall event in Novato, California guess > who was practicing RICE. > Within days of the event it was off to California to hunt for the newest > fall. The Battle Mountain fall was not possible because it fell right smack > in the middle of the RICE experience. But this new fall was beyond resisting. > The foot was getting better slowly as it still is. But that warm California > sunshine was pulling me away from home where the fall rains had already > begun. There were a few rainy days but right up and through the last week of > November the sun shined and the temperature was around 72 degrees almost > every afternoon. It was so different in the area around San Rafael, Fairfax > and all the way over to Sonoma. Lots of car traffic to deal with. There were > the same steep hills and lots of underbrush in some areas but so much beauty > to appreciate. There were groves of redwoods on the sides of mount Baldy, > huge oak trees on the hills around the Petaluma River, great hiking areas > with networks of trails and no shortage of runners, hikers and bikers. Once > again there was abundant wildlife and the same small grey lizards seen in all > three locations maybe blue bellied skinks. Mt. Baldly was quite the challenge > that blistered the feet and tested the legs and lungs. Sonoma and the > surrounding areas were tough simply because it was hard to find open areas of > public access. There were a number of large areas of land that are set aside > as land trust but not yet open to hikers and so the search was naturally > narrowed down. Eventually after weeks of fruitless focus and effort the > winter rains came in with a vengeance and the area went from summer sun to > rivers at flood stage in just a few days. It was time to head home and even > though empty handed this time the sun will come out again and it will be time > to go back to these areas and give it another try. The real value of this > time in the woods is knowing where not to search the next time. That and > maybe this old man will live a little longer from all that fresh air and good > exercise! Many friends were made and some new places now feel like home. It > will be great fun to go back again and hopefully next time take home a Space > rock or two. > ______________________________________________ > > Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com > Meteorite-list mailing list > [email protected] > http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list ______________________________________________ Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com Meteorite-list mailing list [email protected] http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
