Previously I wrote a summary of the enigma of the origins of the La Rumorosa Pictograph style that appears throughout much of Southern California and Northern Baja California. The photos below are from a site an Arizona. Publications have compared this particular site and Indian Hill of Anza Borrego State Park. It is easy to see that many elements are similar between the two sites.
First, I need to reveal that this art comes from deep inside a tilted and narrow crevice high above the canyon floor. Even with a 10-24mm lens, I needed to use a flash and a flashlight just to see what I was shooting at. Second, our party was made up of a SDRAA mountain climbing guide and his agile climber wife who, wisely it seemed, refused the climb - this should have told the rest of us something.
No one mentioned beforehand that surviving the fall from the pertinent rock shelter was unlikely or that a rope might have been a useful life saving tool. Just climbing to site involved scaling a massive granite bedrock slab, worn slick by millennia of water, which provided complete and uncompromised exposure . The area has a well known reputation for many deaths due to falling accidents over the years.
While trying to get decent photos I often slipped a few undesired inches downward towards the edge. The crack was so narrow only one person at a time could squeeze into the rock art area. So I was on my own, balancing expensive technology and the potential to slide right off into infinity. At times like this, I often recite to myself portions of Edward Abbey's "Dead Man at Grandview Point" from Desert Solitaire. This way I can feel more at ease in case something goes south.
The anxiety and the gymnastics required to stay wedged in place coupled with the 2 foot focal plane and needing flash, about half of my photos were blurred and disappointing. However the ones that did come out were fantastic.
For those tempted to go there, taking pictures of these pictographs are right up there with the Sirens of Homer's Odyssey. Like many rock art aficionados, as with the Sirens, it is not bravery that draws us. It is the irrational obsession to see rock art that sublimates any concern for personal safety. Many outsiders would equate this with stupidity and foolishness. Most of these people know what they are talking about - but few of us listen.
Unless you a capable mountain climber (as evaluated by someone other than yourself) do not go here alone. Even with company this is a very dangerous place to get to and see. Its reputation as a place of death far exceeds its standing as a rock art destination. I was merely lucky - a fool's luck. A rope and a couple of people on the other end of it would have made it a safer, but not safe, outing.
All that said, have you ever seen a Sunburst like this one in Southern California??? I know I haven't. This La Rumorosa style panel is more on a level that you see in Baja California. Here is one image before and after D Stretch treatment [which all of us can see thanks to Jon Harmon].
Click on to enlarge - copyright Don Liponi 2014.
Thanks for posting this. What an amazing site.
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