Pilgrims in the Desert

Review Continued

Through examination of the pictures he finds more details of the move and makes some interesting observations.  Again Hayes had some of Fairbanks' relatives help with details of the photo's.  I particularly like the detail provided by Vance Gilliam, who remembers playing in the small building that used to house oil cans for the gas station.

The only fault I can find in the book is that Hayes has not written more of his travels in the desert.  I know for a fact that he has some good stories to tell.  I hope this must means that he is planning a more personal memoir next.  In one of the personal stories, I actually played a part.  The story of Andre Sublette, who got bogged down in 1848 in an area near Fort Irwin, north of Baker.  In an interesting parallel to the story, near that same spot Hayes and a number of other explorers, including myself had our own personal mishap.  We were traveling through the area when one of our vehicles caught fire.  Hayes doesn't go into the incident too much, perhaps because we were very close to a restricted area.  It is worth noting that when sodas are left in a burning vehicle they make impressive rockets.  However, they are not nearly as impressive as exploding fuel cans!

In all, "Pilgrims in the Desert" is more than just the story of the east mojave desert, it is a great resource for anyone interested in our history.  It is also a collection of some detailed research and interviews that may have been lost if not for Hayes.

Top left:  Photo of "Burro Bill" and his wife Edna along with their companions.  The door to their dugout home is between them.  Look closely, there are actually two burro's.The spotted one is "Balboa".

 

Top Right:  The beginning of the 1938 flood that washed away their dugout home.  Photo looking west from about the middle of town.

 

Left:  Photo taken, looking east, from about where the car is in the top photo.  Baker in the background.