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Grand Canyon Pioneers Society - Monthly Bulletin |
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| Vol 4, No 8 | August 2000 |
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Lauzon Homestead and Bass Camp Outing by Tom Carmony photos by Diane Cassidy The Pioneers met at Moqui Lodge just north of Tusayan to carpool to the Lauzon homestead. Our host was Pat Lauzon, the great-grandson of Grand Canyon Pioneer, W. W. Bass. A caravan of 8 vehicles drove west to Dobbs Tank. Here Pat stopped and explained that a road once existed here that connected the Lauzon homestead to the Bass Stage Line Road that went to Ash Fork. We then turned onto a road leading north from Dobbs Tank and in a few miles came to the Lauzon homestead. This place is private property owned by the Lauzon family. On the homestead there are two houses. The original house was first occupied by Bert Lauzon and is wife Edith (Bass) Lauzon. It is a one bedroom house with a tin roof and an adjoining storage shed. Rain gutters were used extensively to collect and route any rainwater to a cistern for storage. In later years electricity was provided by a gasoline-powered generator located in the shed. In addition, solar cells and storage wet cell batteries furnish 12 volt power to the home. A UHF antenna pointed at Bill Williams Mountain is a vestige of the radiotelephone system used by the Lauzon family to communicate with the outside. To the east of the house is a corral. Nearby is the site of the once used Kolb Airfield. Pat explained that the railroad would stencil the customer's name on material transported to this area. this piece reads "W. W. Bass, Grand Canyon." A short distance away from the original house is a second house built in the early 1960s currently used by the Lauzon family. Indeed many members of the Lauzon family used the GCPS outing as a reason to spend the weekend together at the homestead. Outside the second house we enjoyed a picnic lunch. Pat graciously showed us family memorabilia including the marriage license of W. W. and Ada Bass, which was given to Pat by Lenore Bass of Wickenburg, AZ. After the picnic, we went on to Bass Camp. Pat showed us where the Bass house and tent sites were located. Some members walked to the place where George Wharton James lived when he wrote In and Around the Grand Canyon circa 1900. For this group of Pioneers, it was a unique opportunity to have a descendent of a Grand Canyon pioneer share his family history. And, others may be able to revisit this event some day thanks to Kim Besom of the Grand Canyon Association, who brought along a video camera to record all that was shown or spoken. |
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GCPS Meetings for 2000
| August 19: |
Phantom Ranch history by Keith Green at 1:00 PM at Albright
Training Center, Grand Canyon Village. Meet at:
Time: 12:00 Noon Keith "worked his way to the bottom," laughed Nancy Green, wife of Park Ranger Keith Green. Keith has spent the summer working once again at his favorite spot in the Canyon.Phantom Ranch. Keith worked for many years at Phantom Ranch and knows its history better than anyone. Don't miss his excellent presentation. |
| September 16: |
Condor Release Program presentation by Robert Mesta of the
Fish and Wildlife Service. Meet at Marble Canyon Restaurant at 11:30
A.M. for lunch, and then go a few hundred yards to a meeting room behind the
convenience store to hear the presentation. After driving this far, why
not spend the weekend at the North Rim? To make weekend reservations at the
North Rim Lodge call 1-303-297-2757 or at Marble Canyon call
1-520-355-2225.
Reservations have been made for dinner at the North Rim Lodge Dining
Room.
Make overnight reservations soon if you plan to go, as North Rim accommodations are limited. |
| October 21: |
Annual Board Meeting at:
Time: 12:00 Noon Board will have space reserved for them in separate area for lunch and board meeting. Other members will find tables separate from the Board. A talk by Tom Martin about Day Hikes From The River and a report from the Board at:
Time: 1:30 PM |
| November 18: | Rescues and other mishaps in the Canyon by Ken Phillips, head of Search and Rescue at the South Rim, and Bil Vandergraff, backcountry ranger at the South Rim. Meet at Poco Diablo Resort at 1736 Highway 179 in Sedona at 12:00 Noon for lunch. The presentation will be at 1:00 PM. Don't miss this exciting talk. |
| December: | No meeting |
North Rim Adventure
by Betty Leavengood
Several Grand Canyon Pioneers were packed and ready to spend three days on Powell Plateau in mid- June. There had been no rain in Arizona since January and the woods were tinder dry. A strike of lightning could start a fire in a second. We began to think about being out on the Plateau if lightning would strike. We would have no escape. E-mails flew and we decided that it was foolhardy to take a risk. Then came the controlled burn. The controlled burn started in the area of the Widforss Trail. It jumped the road and headed for Cape Royal and Point Imperial. Two days later the Park Service closed the road to Powell Plateau and all other unpaved roads. We could not have gone had we decided to plunge ahead despite the danger.
Six of us (only one Pioneer - me) decided we would go to the North Rim anyway since we already had a night's reservation at the Jacob Lake Motel. One couple pulled their trailer and actually got a spot at the park service campground -- the one with running water, showers, and a laundry. The rest of us shared their campsite. We set up our tents and were in business for three days of exploring on the North Rim. Except all the roads were closed! What could we do?
For starters we drove out to Cape Royal and Point Imperial to see the fire damage. Devastating is the only word I can think of -- the beautiful groves of aspen are no more. The area looks like a war zone. It will be a hundred years before this area regrows.
A ranger at the Kaibab Visitor Center told us that the Cliff Springs Trail near Cape Royal was open. This short trail was not damaged by the fire. We decided to do it even though there was yellow police tape across the trail and a closed sign. We reasoned that the Park Service had not had time to remove the sign and off we went. This beautiful little trail goes past an Indian granary and along a cliff with water dripping through the overhanging rocks. As we hiked back out, a storm threatened and by the time we reached our vehicle, it was raining.
The drive back to our tents was frightening. Rain pounded our windshield and the remaining trees bent over in the strong wind. The ashes from the burned mountainsides washed down on the road bringing with them broken limbs and debris. The rain turned to hail and then snow. We later learned that this was the hardest monsoon storm to ever hit the North Rim.
When we reached the campground we faced wet gear. We had left our tents open to let the breeze flow through. This was a mistake and we spent several hours in the camp laundromat getting our sleeping bags and clothing dried out. This was only day one. What would be next?
Morning dawned bright and sunny with not a cloud in the sky. We had learned that a segment of the Arizona Trail near Jacob Lake was open. It required a 30-mile drive to reach the trailhead. We set up a car swap and started hiking towards each other across the Kaibab Plateau under white-barked aspen and tall ponderosa pines. The ground was covered with spring flowers. We found a patch of white columbine. We met our fellow hikers at the midway point and had lunch. We saw several trees that had been blown over by yesterday's storm. The entire hike was nine miles. Day two turned out to be an excellent hiking day followed by an outstanding dinner at the North Rim Lodge.
On our final day at the Canyon, since no other rim trails were open, we decided to hike down the North Kaibab Trail to Roaring Springs and soak our feet in the water. This is 4.7 miles one way with over 3000' of elevation loss and gain. By now I was acclimated and had no problems except extreme slowness. We started at 10:00 AM hoping to have shade on the trail on the way out. This is a dramatic hike along Roaring Springs Canyon. The springs come out of canyon wall in a roar and runs constantly year round, enough to supply water for the North and South Rim.
As soon as I got home, I applied for permits to backpack Powell Plateau in mid-September. We all have our fingers crossed.
Condors face lead-poisoning problem
According to the July 12-18 Grand Canyon News, the "California condor program in northern Arizona is fighting a crisis this summer with a series of lead-poisoning incidents. Five condors have been found dead in the last couple of months. Lead poisoning has been confirmed as the cause of three of those deaths and was the likely cause of death for a fourth. Officials are unsure about why the fifth bird died."
We'll learn more about this and other information about the condors at the September outing.
New Members
Bill and Vicki Crowther - Desert Hills, AZ
Letter of Thanks
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Dear Pioneers,
Thank you for the beautiful flowers and cards. Thank you for the award you presented to John just a week before his death. We are so happy he was there to receive it himself. We love him and miss him very much. Sincerely, Sylvia Bradley & Family |
August Birthdays
Elizabeth Reilly
Teri Cleland
Jon Ohlman
John Oesdean
Mae Rodgers
Dove Menkes
Bob Kerry
Edwin Druding
Mike Ford
Bernice Meadows
Carl Bowmen
John Davis Harry Phillips
Johnnie Forquer
Mary Ellen Hamilton
Sibyl Suran
Charles Hoffman
Dorothy Sloane
Ron Werhan
Charles Hoffman
Julie Reid
Robert Euler
Mary Simpson
Members Update
News On Our World Traveler:
A short while back we wrote a note about John Stapsey and his around the world motorbike trip. We heard recently that he is now in Russia. The group of cyclists have gone though China, Mongolia, and now eastern Russia. He has e-mailed dozens of photos showing the people he has come in contact with and views of the country. It must be an exciting and interesting trip.
"Georgie Rapid" Officially Recognized in Arizona
Rosalyn Jirge, who submitted the proposal to rename 24-Mile Rapid as Georgie Rapid, shares with us the following letter she received from the Arizona State Board on Geographic and Historic Names:
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July 24, 2000
Dear Ms. Jirge: The purpose of this letter is to inform you of a name decision passed by the Arizona State Board on Geographic and Historic Names at its meeting on July 12, 2000. Decision: The Arizona Board approved the name Georgie Rapid by a vote of: 8 in favor, 0 against, 0 abstentions The name, supported by the Grand Canyon National Park, honors Georgie Clark White who pioneered the use of motorized rubber rafts for river trips through the Grand Canyon. The feature is located in Coconino County, in the Colorado River, in the Marble Canyon portion of the Grand Canyon National Park and 24 miles below Lees Ferry. Coordinates: latitude - 36°35'8" N. longitude - 111°46'55" W. The name Georgie Rapid is now official in the State of Arizona and may be used on all state maps, records, documents and other publications. To make the name official for use on all federal maps, records, documents and other publications, we have forwarded a copy of your proposal, our decision, and the current information we have on file for it to the United States Board on Geographic Names (U.S. Board). Although the U.S. Board meets monthly, the approval process for a proposal often takes one year or longer. The U.S. Board maintains a large backlog of pending name issues since it receives proposals from all of the state names authorities, and their staff conducts independent research on each proposal before it is presented to the Board. As soon as the U.S. Board renders it decision on your proposal, you will be notified in writing of the outcome. In the event you have questions or require assistance from the Arizona Board, please contact me.
Sincerely, |
Outings Contacts Information
Outings Coordinator:
Betty Leavengood
6045 Edison St.
Tucson AZ 85712
520-885-3570
HikerBetty@aol.com
The Bulletin welcomes comments, stories, or Reflections and Remembrances.
Please send them to
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Diane Cassidy
8540 North Central Avenue #27 Phoenix, AZ 85020 |
or e-mail them to Diane@grandcanyonbooks.com
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