Picacho and the Cargo Muchachos
Subtitle: gold, guns, and geology of eastern Imperial County, California / edited by Todd A. Wirths
Contributors: San Diego Association of Geologists
Edition: Second edition.
Publisher: Sunbelt Publications
Published: 2014
Place of publication: San Diego, California
Language: eng
Number of pages: 234
ISBN-13: 9781941384077
Subjects: Geology; Gold mines and mining; History; Description and travel; Local History; Social life and customs
Description: "Picacho and the Cargo Muchachos : gold, guns, and geology of eastern Imperial County, California... The subtitle says it all about the harsh, raw beauty of a little-known but intriguing corner of the vast California desert. Its beckoning red and purple landscapes are bounded on the east by 'Old Red,' the Colorado River, and on the west by the Algodones sand dunes, one of the largest sand dune complexes in North America. A drive of less than three easy hours on I-8 from San Diego brings the explorer to the ancient portals of the southeastern Chocolate Mountains and the Cargo Muchacho Mountains, guarded by the Quechan People for thousands of years and now accessible via graded dirt roads, 4WD trails, and just enough asphalt to appeal to less adventurous souls. Several self-guiding road logs enrich the traveler's experience with natural science spiced with the lore and lure of the region. Picacho Road departs I-8 northward to the famous Picacho Gold Mine and the Picacho State Recreation Area on the Colorado River via a moonscape of craggy volcanic outcrops and sweeping vistas far into Arizona. The paved Ogilby Road strikes northwest between the Algodones dunes and the Cargo Muchacho Mountains, past ghost towns and storied gold mines such as Tumco, Padre y Madre, and the American Girl Mine. Authors and contributors comprise some of the most knowledgeable specialists in this region including geologists, historians, alternate energy advocates, mineralogists, and even a 'paleomagician' to monitor the millennia unveiled in this lonely land. And at the end of the day, as noted by editor Todd Wirths, it all comes back to 'the raison d'être for these roads and trails: gold, pure and simple'"--
Notes: Includes bibliographical references.
Table of contents: title: Preface to the second edition; title: Dedication to Gary H. Girty; title: Memorials to Dr. Michael Walawender and Lyne Perry; title: San Diego Association of Geologists beginnings; title: Sponsors; title: Officers; title: SDAG publications; title: Section 1. Road logs and road lore; title: Picacho Road / Todd A. Wirths and Gary H. Girty; title: Stop 1: Quechan volcanics and Winterhaven formation; title: Stop 2: Sortan detachment; title: Stop 3: Fault contact between Quechan volcanics and Jurassic orthogneiss unit; title: Stop 4: Contact between Quechan volcanics and Winterhaven formation; title: Stop 5: Arrastra wash; title: Stop 6: Copper basin fault; title: Stop 7: Sortan fault; title: Stop 8: Crocopia schist; title: Stop 9: Ignimbrite that forms the lower part of the white wash unit; title: Stop 10: Rojo Grande unit; title: Stop 11: Well-developed fiamme; title: Barney Oldfield Road / Todd A. Wirths; title: Barney Oldfield Road... you know me, Barney Oldfield!?; title: Ogilby Road / Todd A. Wirths; title: Side trip 1: Cargo Muchacho Mine; title: Side trip 2: Kyanite Mines and American Girl Mine; title: Side trip 3: Gold Rock Ranch and Tumco Turnoff; title: Side trip 4: Hyduke Mine Road; title: Side trip 5: Indian Pass Road; title: Side trip 6: GFOC Mine Road, the entrance to New gold, Inc.'s Mesquite Mine; title: Desert watering holes in the southern Colorado desert region of southern California : then and now / William J. Elliott; title: A place of enchantment on the lower Colorado / John V. Young; title: Section 2. The Picacho region of the southeastern Chocolate Mountains; title: Toward a unified model for the geologic and tectonic history of the region between Indian Pass and Picacho State Recreation Area, southeastern California / Gary H. Girty, Krista K. Muela, Holly Olson, Lauren Sutton, Melanie Biggs, Jon Sainsbury, Jason W. Ricketts, Rachel Errthum, Thomas A. Colby, Taylor Carrasco, Erik Gordon, and Tim Pelbath; title: Constraining the source of the Orocopia schist, SE California : a comparative study of the major and trace element chemistry of Cretaceous sandstones deposited in forearc settings / Douglas B. Stephenson and Gary H. Girty; title: Dry diggings : a history of the Potholes Mining District / Stephan Van Wormer; title: Geologic and geochemical study of the Picacho Gold Mine, California : gold in a low-angle normal fault environment / Steven Losh, Dan Purvance, Ross Sherlock, and E. Craig Jowett; title: Saga of old Picacho / J. Wilson McKenney; title: Gold, guns and fiestas in old Picacho / Mike A. Mendivil; title: Blame the gold or the climate : we can't get away from Picacho / Ed Rochester; title: Section 3. The Cargo Muchacho Mountains and environs; title: Cargo Muchacho Mines : a photo essay / William J. Elliott; title: Paleomagnetic studies using Miocene volcanic rocks in southeastern California and southwestern Arizona / Monte Marshall, Steven Costello, Joseph Butterworth, and Michael Veseth; title: Araz outcrop / William J. Elliott; title: In search of Colorado "B" gravels / William J. Elliott and Monte Marshall; title: The history of Hedges and the Cargo Muchacho Mining District, part I : a case study of the lives of Mexican miners in a company town of the Southern California desert / Stephen R. Van Wormer and James D. Newland; title: The history of Hedges and the Cargo Muchacho Mining District, part II : a case study of the lives of Mexican miners in a company town of the Southern California desert / Stephen R. Van Wormer and James D. Newland; title: Mysterious Cargo Muchachos / Jack Pepper; title: Geothermal power in Imperial County / Fred Cagle; title: Geologic time scale; title: Geologic map of Picacho area, California, foldout.