The 100th Post: Finding Desert Survivor

Today marks my 100th post on this blog. Wow, it's been quick! Thanks for reading--your comments have kept me going.

It seems like an appropriate time to examine how people are finding this blog. As I keep blogging, I've found that more and more people are finding this website by doing a Google search. Some of the search terms used to find it are kind of amusing:

How much does a diaper weigh? Wow, I actually have the answer to this: Size 3 saturated diaper weighs 2.5 pounds!--Thanks Desert Boy.

Harvester ant bite on a dog Henry hasn't been bitten by a harvester ant that I know about, and if I did know about it I don't think I'd worry.

Rabbit poop/deer scat/tell the difference of desert scat It's so nice to think that my blog has become a scat reference.

Footwear for hiking across the desert I don't think my blog helped them.

Desert junk Lots more to come on that soon. We have no shortage of desert junk around here.

Desert hammock Not sure what they wanted. But it makes me want to go get on the hammock and gaze into the desert sky.

Penstemon going crazy And some other flowers too.

What if you get lost in a lava tube? Just make sure you're not with brother/uncle Andrew.

So go ahead, give it a try, type in a strange term and see if you can find my blog with it. I dare you to. 

Desert Boy Makes Music

Desert Boy sometimes has to entertain himself. This is the way he did it the other night.

Canning Peaches

Our peach trees weren't impressive this year, but fortunately a lady down the road had an overabundance of peaches and was willing to share. Desert Boy and I went down to gather some (it wasn't easy because Desert Boy kept trying to climb up the ladder after me). Back home I separated peaches into ripe, not ripe, and bruised.

I put the bottles and lids through the dishwasher to prepare.

I turned on every burner on the stove and got out my big pots. Then I dug in and started processing peaches--canning them, making jam, and even making a peach pie. It was long and hot work. 

But seeing the results makes me happy. We'll have plenty of peaches and peach jam all winter long!

Desert Destination: A Ghost Town

The desert often seems to be a vast wasteland, with little pockets of people separated by miles and miles of desert scrub. Sometimes the little pockets of people have disappeared, leaving ghost towns in their wake, making the desert feel even more desolate.

I love visiting ghost towns and imagining what happened there. What did the people do? What were they dreaming when they arrived? How did they feel when they left? 

I also like to try to picture day-to-day life. Many of these ghost towns were the result of mining, and minerals were not always close to water. How did they get their drinking water? Where did they get food? How many bars and other entertainment activities were available? Did the town get big enough to attract families, and if so, did the kids go to school?

Enough questions, let's get to one of these ghost towns, Gold Hill, Utah, located about three hours west of Salt Lake City. Gold Hill has had three big mining booms, giving it a longer history than most ghost towns.

The town of Gold Hill was established in 1892 and a creative miner named it for a gold-bearing hill just east of the town. As it turned out, gold wasn't the only ore mined. Miners also found silver, lead, arsenic, copper, and tungsten. The mining boom only lasted a few years, producing several hundred thousand dollars worth of ore.  Then the miners took down their tents and headed to the next new town to get rich quick.  

The town wasn't done, though. During World War I the need for more minerals arose, especially for tungsten, used as a strengthening agent in steel and in electric filaments, and for arsenic, used to control insects on the fields in the South. Arsenic had previously been imported from Europe, but this wasn't possible during the war. 

Some of the ore was shipped out via the U.S. Post Office in parcel post--in fact tons of tungsten were sent this way. Stagecoaches and wagons were also used, but in 1917, a 50-mile long spur off the Western Pacific Railroad line, called the Deep Creek railroad, allowed Gold Hill to be connected to the rest of the world. 

About 3,000 people lived in Gold Hill during this time, and a town was planned with a school, dance hall, and other public amenities. Stores popped up, like the Goodwin Mercantile Co. Nevertheless, many residents lived in simple shacks or tent shelters. Outhouses were located over old mining shafts to avoid digging, but sometimes these old mining shafts happened to be in the middle of the street.

An interesting book about this time period was written by a doctor, called What Next, Doctor Peck? Eventually the ore faded out, the electric lights dimmed, and the population dropped to next to nothing.

 
Gold Hill wasn't finished; during World War II it rose like a phoenix to help supply tungsten and arsenic for the war effort. Businesses and the school reopened and a bowling alley was built. The boom was short-lived, with the school closing in 1946 and the post office in 1949.

Today there's not much left in Gold Hill. The area that produced about ten million dollars worth of ore has left only a few reminders of its life. The old Goodwin Mercantile Co. building is in pretty good shape.

Building foundations and tailings can be seen all around the shrub-covered hills. Many of the old mines are still open, which is scary because they could collapse at any moment. If you're ever around old mines, remember the saying "Stay Out and Stay Alive."

A few people still live in Gold Hill, and one mine is still in operation. Prospectors explore the area and its interesting array of minerals to add to their collections. It's just a matter of time before Gold Hill booms again.

Desert Boy Climbs the Chopper

Desert Boy doesn't need a playground, not when he has an array of farm equipment close at hand. One of his favorites is the chopper, where he has been developing his gross motor skills. He's 16 months old, but the huge machine doesn't faze him at all.

The first hurdle is just getting off the ground, where the first step is chest high. He looks up at all the other steps he will have to climb and plans his attack.

It doesn't take long to pull himself up. 

Then he prepares himself for the ladder. 

Daddy is close by. This is the first time he's seen Desert Boy climb the chopper ladder and he's not quite believing his eyes. 

Desert Boy has some good rock climbing moves that he's just found naturally. He seems to know that he should always have at least three points of contact.

He knows Mom is taking pictures and can't help but shoot a grin my way. What a ham.

He keeps climbing. And no, this is not a paid advertisement for John Deere. 

He knows he's close, and Dad is just itching to help him. Mom tells him no, the little tyke can do it on his own.

And with one more step,

he's up on the top platform. Success!

Finally Dad can catch up to him and take him inside for a little pretend driving. 

I'm hoping Desert Boy will limit his climbing to farm equipment; he's definitely keeping his parents in shape.