Xasáuan Today

4 Responses to Memorial Day at Mt. Carmel & Pat Spring

1. Tony R says:

   June 8, 2008 at 10:25 pm

   I was interested in the flowers but your picture was even prettier.

2. Paul Ingram says:

   July 18, 2008 at 5:22 pm

   Look at a map of the Monterey Bay that includes the Ventana Wilderness. Find Mt. Carmel. Then look at a map of Israel and find Haiffa and Mt. Carmel on the north coast. You can see what the Spaniards were thinking of as they sailed up the California coast.

   Actually, the Spaniards did not name Mt. Carmel (AKA Boulder Mountain – for reasons that should be obvious from the above photo). On January 3, 1603, Vizcaino named the river El Rio de Carmelo “because the friars of this order discovered it.” (See Donald Thomas Clark’s Monterey County Place Names). Everything else in the area that carries the name Carmel (the city, the valley, the point, the mountain, etc.) has gained the name due to its proximity to the river. The mountain apparently gained the name Carmel on maps published in 1856. The bits of wood, metal and glass scattered around the summit are the remains of a WWII AWS station that burned in the 1954 Devil’s Peak Fire. – XT

3. Bruce Claypool says:

   March 14, 2009 at 9:38 pm

   Back in 1968 I was a Tenderfoot Scout (BSA) on my first hike and wouldnt you know it old “devils peak” I thought I would die climbing up it. This was infamouse troop 97 of Monterey Ca. I was in the Shark Patrol, formerly the RAT FINK Patrol (RF). We made it to Pat Springs with out incident. Sunday morning we hit the trail about 10a set out for Los Padres Dam (Carmel Valley). The Shark Patrol was in the lead. The trail seemed to disapear around 3p and we forged our way through the forest down to Carmel River, following our noses, It got dark and we couldnt even see our own hands. There were 10 of us and only 3 flashlights. After hiking 10 hours in the dark. We had to lace a rope through all our belts linking us together in case one of us slipped and fell and followed the Carmel River to Los Padres Dam. We must have waded across that river 30 times in the dark linked together like that. We got down to the dam and broke into a ranger station to call home. By now it was 3a monday morning. 28 Boyscouts were airlifted by 3 army helicopters around noon monday. Two search parties were dispatched at around 8p sunday night. One from Bouchers Gap to Pat Springs eastbound, and the other from China Camp to Pat Springs westbound. They never found us becuase we sniffed out the Carmel River and followed it. The trails are not marked well and you should not venture out there unless you know what you are doing. Nobody was lost or injured on this hike out. Another hike to Camp Pico Blanco we were invaded by over 100 WILD BOARS! They just came into our camp while we were sleeping! A boar layed down across the foot of my tent and her razor-back bristles were poking through and imbeded in my right calf like the spikes of a porkupine! I lay there motionless and terrified, then I went into a deep sleep. All the boars up and left at first light and everybody climbed out of there tents to make breakfast. There is a dump in Camp Pico Blanco that the boars tend to haunt. Again nobody was gord or eatin. We all just remained still in our tents. Your truely Bruce Claypool

4. Bruce Claypool says:

   March 14, 2009 at 9:50 pm

   whew…..no bs boyscouts

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