So – we moved over the summer, my computer is still packed away as we’re getting settled in, and there’s been NO time for exploring! Ha.
BUT! We did have some time today to go rambling. We found plenty of exercise and fresh air as well as a couple of things from the past.
As we explored up a draw, we came across a single petroglyph. Later, we crested a ridge and had an expansive view of the area below, including a nice volcanic ridge in the distance. We slogged on over, stepping carefully over the desert pavement and through dried, prickly vegetation, but nothing much panned out until we reached the end of the ridge. There, sitting on the open flat below the ridge, was a small portable grinding stone, topped by a mano. That was a nice find!
Here’s a couple of pictures I took. I hope to be back soon with more trip reports. We have some plans in the works.
Out in the open on the sandy flat, I happen across this grinding slick with a mano still perched on it. I should have taken a better picture to show it off, because it was a nice little find.
Well, that was a short little report on a nice little walk. We capped it off with a nice lunch at the local brewery. About a year ago, we sat in that same brewery with visiting family, thawing out over a late lunch after a cold trip up into the mountains. This trip was altogether more mellow.
Pink tuft? I take it you are in the northern Owens Valley area , or even further north?
Its the cradle for many of the Great Basin tribes, from whence they radiated out towards Nevada and Utah before turning south.
Is this area your new home?
The pink tuft is rather distinctive, isn’t it!
Yep, we’re a bit further north, up on the skirts of the Eastern Sierra. The Volcanic Tablelands makes for wonderful exploring – this area has some fantastic history to it. I’ve been out on its sunbaked flats and ridges in summer and you can find refuges in between the broken blocks of tuft that are cool and refreshing even in the heat of the day. In fall, deer stream across the flats, and the scraggly brush is criss-crossed with rabbit trails. I can see why it, with the Fish Slough and Owens River giving it life, was a cradle if nourishment for many.
I look forward to ranging up and down the Owens Valley this winter. This area is amazing. There’s a lot of ground I want to cover in Toiyabe National Forest, too.