Outdoor Adventure USA

Some more information on the burning here.

A photo one of my friends took of Barker Ranch a little more than a week before the fire, photo here.

It's very sad to hear that everyone has lost a great piece history. The loss of these old desert ranches and other sites, even those without the infamous history of the Barker ranch, leaves fewer places where the magic of connecting with the pioneers who settled these seemingly inhospitable places can be experienced. Four wheeling allows us to visit the remaining out of the way places and see the sites much as the last inhabitants left them without them being a "do not touch" museum setting. Unfortunately, this requires that everyone visiting these places show responsibility in preserving them for the next visitors. One senseless act providing a moment of "fun" or bravado for an individual can destroy a site forever and lead to the closure of many other sites for the majority to protect them from a few irresponsible individuals.

I've had the pleasure of visiting the Barker ranch several times. It made for a surprisingly comfortable place to stop for lunch or a break while traveling through the area. On my last visit it was good to see that someone had cleaned up the inside of the ranch house and even brought in some better furniture for those wanting to make use of it. Stopping there made it easy to imagine how it was for the original settlers living in such as remote location.

The destruction of the Barker ranch was a sad day indeed.

I'm sad I never got to see it personally. I have heard and read much about it.

OLLIE wrote:I'm sad I never got to see it personally. I have heard and read much about it.

I've never been either, although I've been meaning to go for years...we'll have to set up a trip to see what's left...

cruiserlarry wrote:

OLLIE wrote:I'm sad I never got to see it personally. I have heard and read much about it.

I've never been either, although I've been meaning to go for years...we'll have to set up a trip to see what's left...

Let's go!

Speaking of burned, DaveK, are you OK!?

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/fire ... -lanes-chp

raYGunn wrote:Speaking of burned, DaveK, are you OK!?

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/fire ... -lanes-chp

...Oh, DaveK's OK - his Hummer has "super powers" !!!

The H2 is fine, thanks. Must have been a big fire to make the news like it did.

DaveK wrote:The H2 is fine, thanks. Must have been a big fire to make the news like it did.

Nah - It was a small fire, just a BIG traffic jam....