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| Mt. Shasta where the Creator Made the World |
At the border between
Oregon and California we had more questions to answer than our border crossings
into and out of Canada. They also
stopped us to inspect for gypsy moth egg masses. We were there for some time before the agent
came and climbed under Proud Mary. No gypsy moths. They questioned where I got
the flowers on the dashboard-when I said Washington, they said ok. They were
worried about citrus as well?? If I had said the flowers came from NY or the
limes I had in the refrigerator I think we would have been arrested. Going into Oregon is not as difficult from
California. There are no inspection
stations on the Northern side. Throughout the states there have been inspection
stations for boats carrying in invasive species, but this is the first we saw
for RVs. By the way there is no way even one lousy gypsy moth egg could have
made it through N. Dakota and those dirt baths on their roads or most would
hatched before we left.
Grasslake is a beautiful haven for bluebirds, elk and at one
time wetlands newts, but there are no more wetlands so the newts? We have only
seen one lonely Elk in this entire trip, but Mountain Bluebirds-so many- and
they were flying in and out of us at the Grasslake. The extended drought has caused the entire
area to become a fire waiting to happen.
Over and over through three National Forests we saw much devastation. Smoke
from the fires in California come into Oregon.
Magic Mt. Shasta, some of the Native American tribes
believed the Creator brought forth the world on this mountain. It is something to behold. Both Pat and I
held our breath and exclaimed, how magnificent, how awe inspiring. Then to the
reservoir, which is down 155 feet and only 29% full. Boats were sitting on the steep side of the
lake like a parking lot of cars on a mountain instead of floating in the
lake. All over our trip fishing has been
a big time past time. All the “resorts”
are suffering and so the tourist
recreational industry of Northern California. We passed farm after farm of
dried fields and in many places it reminded us of the dust bowl. Farmers are
drawing down the underground water and this has caused contamination in drinking
water in certain places and many heated discussions. Different alliances are
forming, brother against brother. Be thankful
for that rain and last year’s snow on Long Island. This is what climate change is about; some
places will have more moisture in the air and some places less.
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| Manzanita Lake and Lassen Volcano |
About Devastation: On
May 14, 1914, a man named B.F. Loomis and his wife camped out for two days
about 20 miles away (and below) Lassen Peak to photographically document the
predicted eruption. The photos are just
outstanding and scary. And were published across the USA and the world in
newspapers at the time. I think if Mr.
Loomis had known what might have happened to them like some who were watching
and documenting Mt. St. Helens eruption they would not have been anywhere near
Lassen. They got lucky. Lassen Peak is
one of the world’s largest plug dome volcanoes which originally developed from a
vent off Brokeoff Volcano (also called Mt. Tehama) which now is only a
“ghost”. For three years Lassen had
several eruptions. The LAST one on May
22, 1915 looked like an atomic bomb and altered the terrain drastically so much
so they call areas to hike and overlook
“Devastated”, “Chaos Crags”-where rock and mud slide nearly 100 miles
per hour created the “Jumbles” of field after field of huge boulders. “Bumpass
Hell”, a place where you will see active hydrothermal lakes, mudpots and
fumeroles like Yellowstone is another classroom without walls. The forces that created all the above also
created Mazanita Lake where we camped; it will eventually become a wet meadow,
that is what succession is about, but while we were there it was a beautiful
walk in the morning and evening. And gave me time to contemplate about Truth
and Meaning. Lassen is part of the
Pacific Ring of Fire and the last part of the Cascade Mountain Range which goes
into British Columbia. The Volcanoes of
the Pacific Ring of Fire here in the Western Hemisphere start again south in Mexico. Mexico City is a caldera.
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| The other force of Nature- Glacier Erratic |
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| The other side of Lassen still not recovered after 100 years |
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| Hydrothermal vents with life within the mighty Archaea Bacteria |
About Classrooms without Walls and why I called this blogg
that…well I started to think about all Pat and I were learning and how much
better of a teacher I could have been if I had experienced the grandeur and
spiritual side of this Good Earth more.
Authors, Poets, Photographers, Artists, Musicians and Naturalists have
always known the importance of experiencing the sacred. The Sacred inspires us to be better People.
Now most of you who know me, myself and I don’t mean “GOD” in the meaning of
the traditional when I speak of the spiritual.
I mean this in who, what, where makes us more aware of our
interdependence, of our how and our place.
I would have loved to talk to Mrs. Loomis after she saw Lassen erupt. I would have loved to talk to the last known
Yahi Indian who inhabited this area during the warmer months, his name was Ishi
and he was an invaluable source of first hand knowledge of this area according
the information in the Loomis Museum. The greatest thing about Lassen is there
is a foundation here that is committed to raising funds for a Volcano Youth
Adventure Camp dedicated to helping youth develop connections to nature. Right now walking down the path are group of 6th graders from Western
California in their second week of school doing what their teachers call “community
building” (anti-bullying) and what I would call making connections with each
other and nature. They spent a day with
a ranger, hiking the trails, they are off to the showers. I talked to some of their teachers. There is hope for what devastates us. Look to
nature that recovers and becomes magic, teach your children well.
(PS all National Parks have Teacher sites http://www.nps.gov/fiis/index.htm- check out the lessons about Fire Island National Seashore)
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