WEBVTT 00:00:11.044 --> 00:00:12.644 ELL HOWSER, 00:00:12.712 --> 00:00:16.215 AND THIS IS SOME OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL SCENERY 00:00:16.282 --> 00:00:19.451 YOU'RE GONNA FIND ANYWHERE IN CALIFORNIA. 00:00:19.519 --> 00:00:22.654 WELCOME TO JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL MONUMENT, 00:00:22.722 --> 00:00:27.126 SOME 870 SQUARE MILES OF SOME OF THE MOST SPECTACULAR VISTAS 00:00:27.193 --> 00:00:30.229 THAT YOU'LL FIND ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. 00:00:30.296 --> 00:00:32.965 NOW, WE'RE HERE TO TAKE A CLOSE-UP LOOK 00:00:33.033 --> 00:00:35.868 AT SOMETHING THAT GROWS IN ABUNDANCE HERE. 00:00:35.935 --> 00:00:38.237 SOME PEOPLE THINK IT'S BEAUTIFUL. 00:00:38.304 --> 00:00:40.639 OTHERS THINK IT'S DOWNRIGHT UGLY. 00:00:40.707 --> 00:00:44.443 AND IF YOU DECIDE TO COME ALONG WITH US ON THIS ADVENTURE, 00:00:44.511 --> 00:00:46.211 YOU CAN JUDGE FOR YOURSELF, 00:00:46.279 --> 00:00:50.015 AS WE CONTINUE OUR SEARCH TOGETHER FOR CALIFORNIA'S GOLD. 00:00:53.820 --> 00:00:57.189 [ "CALIFORNIA HERE I COME" PLAYS ] 00:01:22.248 --> 00:01:25.951 IT'S ONE OF THE MOST PRISTINE AND UNIQUE PLACES 00:01:26.019 --> 00:01:27.853 IN ALL OF CALIFORNIA -- 00:01:27.921 --> 00:01:31.290 OVER HALF A MILLION ACRES OF DESERT LANDS 00:01:31.358 --> 00:01:35.127 LOCATED IN RIVERSIDE AND SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES 00:01:35.195 --> 00:01:38.497 ABOUT 40 MILES NORTHEAST OF PALM SPRINGS. 00:01:38.565 --> 00:01:40.132 CREATED IN 1936 00:01:40.200 --> 00:01:43.302 TO PROTECT THE AREA'S FRAGILE DESERT ENVIRONMENT 00:01:43.370 --> 00:01:46.105 FROM DEVELOPERS AND CACTUS POACHERS, 00:01:46.172 --> 00:01:48.273 IT CONTINUES TO BE A SANCTUARY. 00:01:48.341 --> 00:01:51.477 AND PEOPLE COME HERE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD 00:01:51.544 --> 00:01:55.414 TO ENJOY THE DESERT SCENERY, TO CLIMB ON THE HUGE ROCKS, 00:01:55.482 --> 00:01:58.417 AND TO LOOK AT THE BEAUTIFUL WILDFLOWERS. 00:01:58.485 --> 00:02:00.619 NOW, WE WERE THERE TO LOOK AT TREES, 00:02:00.687 --> 00:02:03.188 AND WE DIDN'T HAVE TO LOOK VERY HARD, EITHER. 00:02:03.256 --> 00:02:04.823 THEY WERE EVERYWHERE. 00:02:04.891 --> 00:02:08.060 THEIR SCIENTIFIC NAME IS YUCCA BREVIFOLIA, 00:02:08.128 --> 00:02:11.530 BUT WE KNOW THEM AS THE GOOD OLD JOSHUA TREES. 00:02:11.598 --> 00:02:15.200 SINCE THIS WAS THE JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL MONUMENT, 00:02:15.268 --> 00:02:17.269 THIS WAS OBVIOUSLY THE PLACE 00:02:17.337 --> 00:02:20.305 TO GET A CLOSE-UP LOOK AT SOME DANDIES. 00:02:20.373 --> 00:02:21.573 SO, THIS IS IT. 00:02:21.641 --> 00:02:23.909 YES, HUELL, AS FAR AS WE KNOW, 00:02:23.977 --> 00:02:27.112 THIS IS THE TALLEST JOSHUA TREE IN THE WORLD. 00:02:27.180 --> 00:02:30.883 NOW, HOW TALL IS THE TALLEST JOSHUA TREE IN THE WORLD? 00:02:30.950 --> 00:02:33.686 I'M NOT SURE OF THE EXACT HEIGHTH OF THIS 00:02:33.753 --> 00:02:35.754 BECAUSE IT'S NOT IN PRINT YET. 00:02:35.822 --> 00:02:38.557 THE TEAM THAT CAME OUT AND MEASURED IT 00:02:38.625 --> 00:02:40.559 JUST DID THIS LAST YEAR. 00:02:40.627 --> 00:02:45.030 THE TALLEST RECORDED JOSHUA TREE IN THE BOOKS RIGHT NOW 00:02:45.098 --> 00:02:49.068 OF THE GIANT TREES OF THE WORLD IS ABOUT 32 FEET. 00:02:49.135 --> 00:02:51.070 AND IF I REMEMBER RIGHT, 00:02:51.137 --> 00:02:54.373 THIS ONE IS AT LEAST 2 FEET TALLER THAN THE ONE 00:02:54.441 --> 00:02:57.543 THAT'S BEEN APPEARING IN THE BOOKS FOR YEARS. 00:02:57.610 --> 00:03:00.913 HOW LONG WOULD IT TAKE A TREE TO GROW THAT TALL? 00:03:00.980 --> 00:03:02.247 HOW OLD IS THAT TREE? 00:03:02.315 --> 00:03:03.749 THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. 00:03:03.817 --> 00:03:07.219 NO ONE KNOWS FOR SURE BECAUSE THERE'S NO WAY OF AGING THESE, 00:03:07.287 --> 00:03:10.622 BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT A TRUE HARDWOOD TREE AS WE KNOW THEM. 00:03:10.690 --> 00:03:12.224 THEY HAVE NO GROWTH RINGS. 00:03:12.292 --> 00:03:14.893 THEREFORE, WE CAN'T CORE THEM AND AGE THEM. 00:03:14.961 --> 00:03:18.497 BUT IF YOU THINK ABOUT THE AVERAGE GROWTH RATE 00:03:18.565 --> 00:03:21.500 THROUGHOUT THE RANGE OF JOSHUA TREES, 00:03:21.568 --> 00:03:25.504 THEY CAN SHOW AS LITTLE AS 2 INCHES OF GROWTH A YEAR, 00:03:25.572 --> 00:03:26.739 UP TO ABOUT 6. 00:03:26.806 --> 00:03:29.441 UP HERE, WE THINK THAT THEY GROW 00:03:29.509 --> 00:03:32.511 SOMEWHERE AROUND 2 TO 4 INCHES A YEAR. 00:03:32.579 --> 00:03:34.313 SO THIS TREE IS... 00:03:34.381 --> 00:03:37.716 HUNDREDS AND HUNDREDS OF YEARS OLD. 00:03:37.784 --> 00:03:39.852 HUNDREDS AND HUNDREDS. 00:03:39.919 --> 00:03:43.422 IT MAY BE AS OLD AS 700 TO 900 YEARS. 00:03:43.490 --> 00:03:45.090 OTHER PEOPLE HAVE SPECULATED 00:03:45.158 --> 00:03:47.760 THAT IT'S POSSIBLE THAT IT'S ONLY 300 YEARS. 00:03:47.827 --> 00:03:49.928 THE DIFFICULTY WITH ARGUING OVER THIS 00:03:49.996 --> 00:03:51.230 IS NO ONE KNOWS 00:03:51.297 --> 00:03:53.332 WHAT THE RAINFALL WAS 200 YEARS AGO. 00:03:53.400 --> 00:03:55.467 AND THE ONE THING THAT WE DO KNOW 00:03:55.535 --> 00:03:58.337 IS THAT THEY'RE CAPABLE OF QUITE A BIT OF GROWTH 00:03:58.405 --> 00:03:59.838 IF THE WATER'S AVAILABLE. 00:03:59.906 --> 00:04:03.742 THIS TREE WAS FIRST DESCRIBED BY FR�MONT IN 1840. 00:04:03.810 --> 00:04:06.478 IN HIS WRITINGS, HE DESCRIBED IT 00:04:06.546 --> 00:04:10.582 AS "THE MOST GROTESQUE MEMBER OF THE VEGETABLE FAMILY 00:04:10.650 --> 00:04:12.117 I HAVE EVER SEEN." 00:04:12.185 --> 00:04:15.921 THAT'S A PRETTY BAD WAY TO START OFF, ISN'T IT? 00:04:15.989 --> 00:04:17.256 SURE, SURE. 00:04:17.323 --> 00:04:20.893 BEING DESCRIBED OFFICIALLY AS THE MOST GROTESQUE. 00:04:20.960 --> 00:04:23.529 BUT I HAD HEARD THAT IT WAS NAMED JOSHUA TREE 00:04:23.596 --> 00:04:26.565 BECAUSE SOME MORMONS OR SOMEONE HAD SEEN THESE TREES, 00:04:26.633 --> 00:04:29.268 AND THEY WERE LIKE -- WHEN THEY WERE YOUNG, 00:04:29.336 --> 00:04:32.371 THEY LOOKED LIKE THEIR ARMS WERE OUTSTRETCHED LIKE JOSHUA. 00:04:32.439 --> 00:04:34.273 YES, ESPECIALLY IN THE EVENING 00:04:34.341 --> 00:04:35.541 WITH LOW LIGHT, 00:04:35.608 --> 00:04:38.410 AND THEY TAKE ON THE DARK SILHOUETTES. 00:04:38.478 --> 00:04:41.413 MANY OF THESE TREES HAVE HUMANLIKE FORMS 00:04:41.481 --> 00:04:42.881 IN TERMS OF ARMS. 00:04:42.949 --> 00:04:46.118 SO THAT'S HOW THEY GOT THE NAME JOSHUA? 00:04:46.186 --> 00:04:47.319 THAT'S RIGHT. 00:04:47.387 --> 00:04:49.955 THE MORMONS FELT THAT THE TREE 00:04:50.023 --> 00:04:53.325 RESEMBLED SOMEONE WITH ARMS OUTSTRETCHED, 00:04:53.393 --> 00:04:55.260 LIKE THE PROPHET JOSHUA. 00:04:55.328 --> 00:04:57.229 NOW, THIS IS THE -- 00:04:57.297 --> 00:05:02.201 THIS IS A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF THE OUTSTRETCHED LIMBS, 00:05:02.268 --> 00:05:04.570 THE JOSHUA-LOOKING TREE. 00:05:04.637 --> 00:05:06.872 THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ARMS. 00:05:06.940 --> 00:05:09.842 THE BRANCHING THAT YOU SEE ON THIS 00:05:09.909 --> 00:05:12.044 IS THE RESULT OF THE FLOWER 00:05:12.112 --> 00:05:16.281 HAVING KILLED THE GROWING TERMINAL PART OF THE STEM. 00:05:16.349 --> 00:05:20.219 TWO BUDS FORM, AND YOU THEN HAVE RADIATING ARMS. 00:05:20.286 --> 00:05:24.456 IN THIS ONE, YOU CAN STILL SEE THE DRIED FLOWER TOPS 00:05:24.524 --> 00:05:26.392 ON THE TOPS OF THESE TWO. 00:05:26.459 --> 00:05:30.162 IN ANOTHER FIVE OR SIX YEARS, YOU'LL BEGIN TO SEE TWO ARMS, 00:05:30.230 --> 00:05:33.632 EACH DEVELOPING ON THE TWO ARMS THAT ARE UP THERE NOW. 00:05:33.700 --> 00:05:35.601 SO EVERY TIME THERE'S A BLOOM, 00:05:35.669 --> 00:05:37.870 THAT MEANS IT'S GONNA BRANCH OFF 00:05:37.937 --> 00:05:40.572 AND GO IN TWO MORE DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS. 00:05:40.640 --> 00:05:42.675 YES, TWO, SOMETIMES THREE. 00:05:42.742 --> 00:05:45.477 AND OFTEN, ONE OF THE BUDS WILL FAIL, 00:05:45.545 --> 00:05:49.214 SO SOMETIMES YOU'LL END UP WITH JUST ONE SIDE BRANCH. 00:05:49.282 --> 00:05:51.617 WOW, THAT IS -- THAT'S SO NICE. 00:05:51.685 --> 00:05:53.085 IT'S SO INTERESTING, 00:05:53.153 --> 00:05:56.355 BECAUSE USUALLY WHEN YOU'RE JUST DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY 00:05:56.423 --> 00:05:58.524 AND YOU LOOK OUT AT THESE THINGS, 00:05:58.591 --> 00:06:01.093 YOU DON'T THINK MUCH ABOUT THEM, DO YOU? 00:06:01.161 --> 00:06:03.362 THE AVERAGE PERSON JUST WOULDN'T -- 00:06:03.430 --> 00:06:06.799 I DON'T THINK I'VE EVER BEEN THIS CLOSE TO A JOSHUA TREE. 00:06:06.866 --> 00:06:08.467 WELL, I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE, 00:06:08.535 --> 00:06:10.436 ESPECIALLY BECAUSE OF THE DESERT, 00:06:10.503 --> 00:06:12.071 WOULD THINK OF A TREE 00:06:12.138 --> 00:06:14.273 AS SOMETHING YOU CAN GO STAND IN THE SHADE OF. 00:06:14.341 --> 00:06:15.474 NOT MUCH SHADE HERE. 00:06:15.542 --> 00:06:17.176 A COYOTE COULD FIND SOME SHADE, 00:06:17.243 --> 00:06:20.212 BUT YOU AND I WOULD BE HARD-PRESSED TO FIND SHADE. 00:06:20.280 --> 00:06:22.881 HUELL, IT WAS KIND OF A COINCIDENCE, 00:06:22.949 --> 00:06:26.685 BUT WE JUST HAPPENED TO STOP TO LOOK AT THIS OTHER TREE. 00:06:26.753 --> 00:06:27.986 AND WALKING BACK, 00:06:28.054 --> 00:06:30.589 THIS TREE THAT WE'RE PARKED NEXT TO 00:06:30.657 --> 00:06:32.358 IS CALLED "ELMER'S TREE." 00:06:32.425 --> 00:06:34.093 IT UNDOUBTEDLY HAS TO BE 00:06:34.160 --> 00:06:37.329 THE MOST PHOTOGENIC JOSHUA TREE IN THE WORLD. 00:06:37.397 --> 00:06:39.531 ELMER WAS AN EARLY EMPLOYEE HERE 00:06:39.599 --> 00:06:42.868 WHO ALWAYS DIRECTED PEOPLE TO COME TO THIS TREE 00:06:42.936 --> 00:06:44.603 TO TAKE A PICTURE OF IT. 00:06:44.671 --> 00:06:47.172 YEARS AND YEARS AFTER HE WAS GONE, 00:06:47.240 --> 00:06:50.042 THE PARK SERVICE ADOPTED, UNOFFICIALLY, 00:06:50.110 --> 00:06:51.910 THIS NAME OF ELMER'S TREE. 00:06:51.978 --> 00:06:54.213 THERE'S BEEN MORE BUSLOADS OF TOURISTS 00:06:54.280 --> 00:06:55.581 FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD 00:06:55.648 --> 00:06:57.583 THAT HAVE BEEN EMPTIED OUT HERE. 00:06:57.650 --> 00:07:00.686 YOU'LL SEE 40 AND 50 TOURISTS STANDING IN THE ROADWAY, 00:07:00.754 --> 00:07:02.054 ALL TAKING TURNS 00:07:02.122 --> 00:07:04.656 GETTING THEIR PICTURES TAKEN IN FRONT OF THIS TREE. 00:07:04.724 --> 00:07:07.026 SO THERE ARE SNAPSHOTS OF ELMER'S TREE 00:07:07.093 --> 00:07:09.161 IN PHOTO ALBUMS ALL OVER THE WORLD. 00:07:09.229 --> 00:07:11.730 IN THE ENTIRE WORLD, THIS PROBABLY HAS TO BE 00:07:11.798 --> 00:07:14.299 THE MOST PHOTOGENIC JOSHUA TREE THAT I KNOW OF. 00:07:14.367 --> 00:07:15.801 IT IS A BEAUTIFUL TREE. 00:07:15.869 --> 00:07:18.871 I DON'T KNOW WHETHER I WOULD'VE STOPPED 00:07:18.938 --> 00:07:20.606 UNLESS YOU TOLD ME TO, 00:07:20.674 --> 00:07:22.608 BUT IT'S A BEAUTIFUL TREE. 00:07:22.676 --> 00:07:24.243 ELMER'S TREE. 00:07:24.310 --> 00:07:28.881 NOW WE'RE STANDING NEXT TO WHAT HAS TO BE DESCRIBED AS... 00:07:28.948 --> 00:07:30.916 A BIOLOGICAL CURIOSITY. 00:07:30.984 --> 00:07:33.385 AND THAT'S THE UNDERSTATEMENT, 00:07:33.453 --> 00:07:35.721 BECAUSE THIS HOLDS A RECORD OF SORTS, DOESN'T IT? 00:07:35.789 --> 00:07:37.089 WELL, IT DOES. 00:07:37.157 --> 00:07:38.957 AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S A VERY TALL TREE, 00:07:39.025 --> 00:07:41.460 ALMOST AS TALL AS THE TALLEST TREE IN THE WORLD. 00:07:41.528 --> 00:07:43.462 THE TALLEST JOSHUA TREE IN THE WORLD. 00:07:43.530 --> 00:07:45.497 THE TALLEST JOSHUA TREE IN THE WORLD. 00:07:45.565 --> 00:07:49.101 THE ONE THING THAT'S UNIQUE IS IT HASN'T BRANCHED, 00:07:49.169 --> 00:07:52.771 WHICH AS WE SAID EARLIER, MEANS THAT IT HASN'T FLOWERED. 00:07:52.839 --> 00:07:55.307 SO FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS, POSSIBLY, 00:07:55.375 --> 00:07:57.976 THIS TREE HAS NOT SEEN FIT TO FLOWER, 00:07:58.044 --> 00:08:00.446 AND THEREFORE, IT HASN'T BRANCHED. 00:08:00.513 --> 00:08:02.681 NOW, YOU'VE GIVEN THIS TREE A NICKNAME. 00:08:02.749 --> 00:08:04.216 IT'S CALLED THE BARBER POLE. 00:08:04.284 --> 00:08:05.751 IT LOOKS LIKE A BARBER POLE. 00:08:05.819 --> 00:08:07.186 IS IT EVER GONNA SPLIT OFF, 00:08:07.253 --> 00:08:09.588 OR IS IT JUST GONNA KEEP GOING STRAIGHT UP? 00:08:09.656 --> 00:08:10.989 WELL, WE DON'T KNOW. 00:08:11.057 --> 00:08:12.825 WHAT'S WRONG WITH THIS TREE? 00:08:12.892 --> 00:08:16.161 WELL, ACTUALLY, I GUESS WHAT'S RIGHT WITH THIS TREE 00:08:16.229 --> 00:08:18.764 IS THAT, GENETICALLY, FOR SOME REASON, 00:08:18.832 --> 00:08:21.767 THIS TREE HASN'T FELT COMPELLED TO BRANCH YET, 00:08:21.835 --> 00:08:25.004 IN COMPARISON TO THE OTHERS THAT ARE AROUND HERE. 00:08:25.071 --> 00:08:26.005 SO WHO KNOWS? 00:08:26.072 --> 00:08:27.840 IN THE FUTURE, THIS MIGHT BE 00:08:27.907 --> 00:08:30.943 A VERY VALUABLE GENETIC CHARACTERISTIC TO HAVE. 00:08:31.011 --> 00:08:33.979 WOW. THIS IS SOMETHING. 00:08:34.047 --> 00:08:36.648 STRAIGHT UP. 00:08:36.716 --> 00:08:40.252 NOW, HERE'S ONE THAT'S COMPLETELY DOWN. 00:08:40.320 --> 00:08:42.721 WELL, IN TERMS OF MORTALITY, 00:08:42.789 --> 00:08:46.392 WHAT USUALLY CAUSES THEIR DEMISE FINALLY 00:08:46.459 --> 00:08:48.193 IN AN OLD, OLD TREE 00:08:48.261 --> 00:08:51.530 IS PROBABLY GETTING SO OLD AND HEAVY 00:08:51.598 --> 00:08:54.166 THAT THEY SUCCUMB TO THE WIND. 00:08:54.234 --> 00:08:56.635 A TREE LIKE THIS CAN JUST TOPPLE OVER, 00:08:56.703 --> 00:08:58.070 OR THE VERY BIG TREES 00:08:58.138 --> 00:09:00.806 WILL START LOSING THEIR LIMBS INDIVIDUALLY. 00:09:00.874 --> 00:09:03.142 BUT JUST BECAUSE THIS TREE IS DOWN 00:09:03.209 --> 00:09:06.311 DOESN'T MEAN THAT IT'S OUT OF THE ECOLOGICAL PICTURE. 00:09:06.379 --> 00:09:08.914 BECAUSE OF THE LOW MOISTURE IN THE DESERT, 00:09:08.982 --> 00:09:11.684 THIS TREE WILL TAKE HUNDREDS OF YEARS TO ROT. 00:09:11.751 --> 00:09:14.119 IN THE MEANTIME, TERMITES ARE USING IT. 00:09:14.187 --> 00:09:16.588 WE HAVE INSECTS OTHER THAN THE TERMITE. 00:09:16.656 --> 00:09:19.491 WE HAVE LIZARDS EATING THE TERMITES AND INSECTS. 00:09:19.559 --> 00:09:21.126 WE HAVE SNAKES EATING THEM. 00:09:21.194 --> 00:09:23.429 WE HAVE BIRDS EATING EVERYBODY ELSE. 00:09:23.496 --> 00:09:24.963 SO EVEN THOUGH IT'S DOWN, 00:09:25.031 --> 00:09:27.166 THIS JOSHUA TREE WILL PLAY A VALUABLE ROLE 00:09:27.233 --> 00:09:28.600 FOR A HUNDRED YEARS OR SO. 00:09:28.668 --> 00:09:31.437 ARE THERE THINGS LIVING IN HERE NOW BESIDE TERMITES? 00:09:31.504 --> 00:09:32.705 YES. IN FACT -- 00:09:32.772 --> 00:09:34.707 THERE'S SOME LITTLE HOLES DOWN HERE. 00:09:34.774 --> 00:09:36.709 THE HOMES OF THE KANGAROO RATS 00:09:36.776 --> 00:09:38.977 ARE PROVIDED EXTRA SHADE BY BEING IN HERE 00:09:39.045 --> 00:09:41.246 AND MAYBE SOME EXTRA PROTECTION FROM COYOTES. 00:09:41.314 --> 00:09:42.414 NO SNAKES? 00:09:42.482 --> 00:09:43.949 WELL, YES, VERY LIKELY 00:09:44.017 --> 00:09:46.819 THAT THERE'S A SNAKE OR TWO IN HERE, TOO. 00:09:50.090 --> 00:09:53.559 OHH! BOY, I JUST CUT MYSELF. 00:09:53.626 --> 00:09:58.197 WELL, THE EDGES OF THIS REMAIN SHARP, 00:09:58.264 --> 00:10:01.033 AND THEY'RE LACED WITH, UM -- 00:10:01.101 --> 00:10:04.403 THEY'RE LACED WITH, UM, MICA -- 00:10:04.471 --> 00:10:07.506 GRIT THAT IS INCORPORATED INTO THE FIBER. 00:10:07.574 --> 00:10:09.975 I'LL BE MORE CAREFUL THIS TIME. 00:10:10.043 --> 00:10:11.710 ...MAKES IT VERY, UM... 00:10:11.778 --> 00:10:12.745 SHARP. 00:10:12.812 --> 00:10:15.314 SHARP. 00:10:15.382 --> 00:10:16.548 WOW. 00:10:16.616 --> 00:10:20.285 KANGAROO RAT HOME OVER THERE. 00:10:20.353 --> 00:10:21.453 RIGHT. 00:10:21.521 --> 00:10:25.090 THESE ARE STRANGE TREES, AREN'T THEY? 00:10:25.158 --> 00:10:28.093 THEY'RE INCREDIBLY WELL-ADAPTED FOR THE MOJAVE DESERT. 00:10:28.161 --> 00:10:29.661 THIS IS THEIR HOME. 00:10:29.729 --> 00:10:31.764 THIS IS WHERE THEY SURVIVE. 00:10:31.831 --> 00:10:35.200 DOES ANYTHING HURT THEM -- DISEASE, PESTILENCE? 00:10:35.268 --> 00:10:38.270 WE DON'T KNOW OF A SINGLE PEST OR DISEASE 00:10:38.338 --> 00:10:40.406 THAT'S CAPABLE OF KILLING ONE. 00:10:40.473 --> 00:10:43.542 THEY ARE INFESTED BY CERTAIN INSECTS, 00:10:43.610 --> 00:10:45.544 BUT WE DON'T KNOW OF A DISEASE OR INSECT 00:10:45.612 --> 00:10:46.979 THAT'S CAPABLE OF KILLING ONE. 00:10:47.047 --> 00:10:49.481 I NEED ONE OF THESE IN MY FRONT YARD. 00:10:49.549 --> 00:10:51.316 YOU DON'T HAVE TO SPRAY THEM. 00:10:51.384 --> 00:10:53.752 YOU DON'T HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF THEM. 00:10:53.820 --> 00:10:56.655 YOU DON'T HAVE TO WATER THEM. THEY JUST GROW. 00:10:56.723 --> 00:10:59.892 YOU JUST HAVE TO PLANT ONE THAT'S ALREADY FULL SIZE, 00:10:59.959 --> 00:11:02.327 OR IT'LL BE YOUR GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN 00:11:02.395 --> 00:11:04.663 THAT WILL ENJOY THE SHADE FROM IT. 00:11:04.731 --> 00:11:06.999 NOW, HERE'S A GROUP OF PEOPLE OVER HERE 00:11:07.067 --> 00:11:09.234 LOOKING AT THE BEAUTIFUL JOSHUA TREE. 00:11:09.302 --> 00:11:11.870 WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT OUR JOSHUA TREE HERE? 00:11:11.938 --> 00:11:13.539 THEY'RE VERY INTERESTING. 00:11:13.606 --> 00:11:15.941 NEVER SEEN ANY ONE ANYPLACE ELSE IN THE WORLD. 00:11:16.009 --> 00:11:17.609 REALLY? WHERE YOU ALL FROM? 00:11:17.677 --> 00:11:19.044 WE'RE FROM VIRGINIA. 00:11:19.112 --> 00:11:20.579 THEY DON'T HAVE JOSHUA TREES... 00:11:20.647 --> 00:11:23.182 NO, NO, BUT WE HAVE BEEN IN THE FOREIGN SERVICE, 00:11:23.249 --> 00:11:25.718 AND WE'VE BEEN AROUND A LOT OF DIFFERENT PLACES 00:11:25.785 --> 00:11:27.953 AND NEVER SAW ANYTHING LIKE THIS AT ALL. 00:11:28.021 --> 00:11:29.088 THIS IS UNIQUE. 00:11:29.155 --> 00:11:30.456 THIS IS CALIFORNIA. 00:11:30.523 --> 00:11:33.926 A LOT OF PEOPLE KIND OF MAKE FUN OF THE JOSHUA TREE, 00:11:33.993 --> 00:11:35.828 SAY IT ISN'T VERY BEAUTIFUL. 00:11:35.895 --> 00:11:37.863 WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT IT? 00:11:37.931 --> 00:11:39.965 IT'S NOT VERY BEAUTIFUL, 00:11:40.033 --> 00:11:43.168 BUT IT'S DIFFERENT AND IT'S UNIQUE. 00:11:43.236 --> 00:11:45.371 THE OLDER ONES ARE JUST MAGNIFICENT. 00:11:45.438 --> 00:11:48.007 THEY GIVE THE IMPRESSION ALMOST LIKE AN OAK, 00:11:48.074 --> 00:11:50.309 WHEN YOU SEE THE REALLY OLD, BIG ONES. 00:11:50.377 --> 00:11:52.044 THEY HAVE THE BIG, THICK BARK. 00:11:52.112 --> 00:11:55.948 YOU SOUND LIKE YOU KNOW A LOT ABOUT JOSHUA TREES. 00:11:56.016 --> 00:11:58.951 I COME HERE OFTEN. I LOVE JOSHUA. 00:11:59.019 --> 00:12:00.419 DO YOU COME HERE A LOT? 00:12:00.487 --> 00:12:01.954 NOW THAT I'VE KNOWN HER, 00:12:02.022 --> 00:12:03.989 SHE INTRODUCED ME TO THE AREA. 00:12:04.057 --> 00:12:07.126 I'VE SEEN SOME JOSHUA TREES IN THE SOUTHERN SIERRAS 00:12:07.193 --> 00:12:09.094 OFF OF 395, UP IN THAT AREA, 00:12:09.162 --> 00:12:10.496 BUT NOTHING LIKE THIS. 00:12:10.563 --> 00:12:12.664 EARLIER, WE SAW SOME -- LIKE SHE SAID, 00:12:12.732 --> 00:12:14.133 THEY LOOKED LIKE OAK TREES. 00:12:14.200 --> 00:12:15.534 THEY WERE SO HUGE. 00:12:15.602 --> 00:12:17.736 I SAID, "MY GOD, I'VE NEVER SEEN THEM SO BIG." 00:12:17.804 --> 00:12:20.606 I DON'T KNOW HOW LONG THEY TAKE TO DEVELOP THAT SIZE, 00:12:20.674 --> 00:12:22.174 BUT THAT WAS JUST TREMENDOUS. 00:12:22.242 --> 00:12:23.475 WE STOPPED UNDERNEATH ONE. 00:12:23.543 --> 00:12:25.444 I SAID, "IT'S LIKE BEING UNDER AN OAK TREE." 00:12:25.512 --> 00:12:27.479 SO I CAN IMAGINE THAT WHEN IT'S BLOOMING. 00:12:27.547 --> 00:12:28.881 I'VE NEVER SEEN THEM BLOOMING, 00:12:28.948 --> 00:12:30.849 BUT SHE PROMISES TO TAKE ME BACK AGAIN. 00:12:30.917 --> 00:12:33.252 HUELL, RIGHT NOW, WE'RE AT AN OVERLOOK. 00:12:33.319 --> 00:12:35.621 WE'RE LOOKING BACK OVER A LARGE VALLEY 00:12:35.689 --> 00:12:37.322 CALLED THE LOST HORSE VALLEY, 00:12:37.390 --> 00:12:39.992 WHICH DOES HAVE A LOT OF JOSHUA TREES IN IT. 00:12:40.060 --> 00:12:43.362 BUT FROM HERE, YOU CAN ALSO SEE SOME OF THE OTHER RESOURCES 00:12:43.430 --> 00:12:46.398 THAT REALLY SET THIS AREA ASIDE AS A SPECIAL PLACE -- 00:12:46.466 --> 00:12:47.900 THE WONDERLAND OF ROCKS, 00:12:47.967 --> 00:12:51.203 OR THE LIGHT-COLORED GRANITES THAT YOU SEE IN THE DISTANCE. 00:12:51.271 --> 00:12:55.174 THEY HAVE INCREDIBLE COLLECTIONS OF BIGHORN SHEEP, 00:12:55.241 --> 00:12:57.943 POOLS OF WATER, FLOWING STREAMS. 00:12:58.011 --> 00:13:00.012 JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL MONUMENT 00:13:00.080 --> 00:13:03.048 WAS SET ASIDE TO PROTECT THE JOSHUA TREE, 00:13:03.116 --> 00:13:05.517 BUT THERE'S A LOT MORE OUT HERE. 00:13:05.585 --> 00:13:09.355 EVEN THE CULTURAL RESOURCES -- THE HUMAN INHABITATION, 00:13:09.422 --> 00:13:11.824 OLD RANCHES, ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES -- 00:13:11.891 --> 00:13:13.826 REALLY, JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL MONUMENT 00:13:13.893 --> 00:13:16.528 IS SET ASIDE TO NOT ONLY TELL THE STORY OF THE MOJAVE, 00:13:16.596 --> 00:13:18.430 BUT THE PEOPLE THAT WERE HERE ALSO. 00:13:18.498 --> 00:13:21.934 Howser: WELL, THE ROAD WAS DUSTY AND BUMPY, 00:13:22.002 --> 00:13:25.604 AND I WASN'T SURE EXACTLY WHERE WE WERE GOING, 00:13:25.672 --> 00:13:29.441 BUT RANGER MOON HAD ASKED US TO FOLLOW HIS TRUCK 00:13:29.509 --> 00:13:32.845 AS HE TOOK US NEXT TO A VERY SPECIAL PLACE 00:13:32.912 --> 00:13:35.948 INSIDE JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL MONUMENT. 00:13:36.016 --> 00:13:40.319 IT SEEMS THAT BACK IN 1909, BILL AND FRANCES KEYS 00:13:40.387 --> 00:13:43.555 HOMESTEADED IN THIS ISOLATED AREA, 00:13:43.623 --> 00:13:45.124 RAISED A FAMILY, 00:13:45.191 --> 00:13:47.893 AND OPERATED A SUCCESSFUL RANCH HERE. 00:13:47.961 --> 00:13:51.663 IN 1969, AFTER MR. KEYS' DEATH, THE LAND AND THE RANCH 00:13:51.731 --> 00:13:54.700 WERE ACQUIRED BY THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE 00:13:54.768 --> 00:13:56.635 AND PRESERVED AS AN EXAMPLE 00:13:56.703 --> 00:13:59.505 OF WHAT AN EARLY DESERT RANCH WAS LIKE. 00:13:59.572 --> 00:14:02.408 THESE DAYS, YOU CAN VISIT THE OLD RANCH 00:14:02.475 --> 00:14:05.644 ON SCHEDULED TOURS, CONDUCTED BY THE RANGERS. 00:14:05.712 --> 00:14:07.312 ON THIS PARTICULAR DAY, 00:14:07.380 --> 00:14:09.915 OUR ENTOURAGE ARRIVED AT THE RANCH 00:14:09.983 --> 00:14:13.786 ACCOMPANIED BY WILLIS KEYS, ONE OF THE KEYS' CHILDREN, 00:14:13.853 --> 00:14:16.522 WHO SPENT THE FIRST 15 YEARS OF HIS LIFE 00:14:16.589 --> 00:14:18.223 GROWING UP ON THIS RANCH. 00:14:18.291 --> 00:14:22.394 HE HAD LOTS OF WONDERFUL MEMORIES TO SHARE. 00:14:22.462 --> 00:14:24.663 NOW, THIS IS THE HOUSE. 00:14:24.731 --> 00:14:29.234 RIGHT UP HERE IN FRONT, THOUGH, IS THE OLD WELL. 00:14:29.302 --> 00:14:30.569 OH, LOOK. 00:14:30.637 --> 00:14:33.372 THIS ORIGINALLY HAD A HAND PUMP LIKE THIS. 00:14:33.440 --> 00:14:34.573 UH-HUH. 00:14:34.641 --> 00:14:36.375 COME ON OVER HERE. LET'S TALK ABOUT IT. 00:14:36.443 --> 00:14:40.713 THERE WASN'T ANY WATER PIPED INTO THE HOUSE. 00:14:40.780 --> 00:14:42.715 YOU HAD A BUCKET ON THE SINK 00:14:42.782 --> 00:14:45.117 AND CAME OUT HERE TO THIS HAND PUMP 00:14:45.185 --> 00:14:47.653 AND PUMPED YOUR BUCKET FULL AND TOOK IT IN. 00:14:47.721 --> 00:14:49.788 WHEN I GOT OLD ENOUGH, THAT WAS MY CHORE. 00:14:49.856 --> 00:14:52.124 "BE SURE AND KEEP THE BUCKET FULL ON THE SINK." 00:14:52.192 --> 00:14:54.293 IF IT GOT EMPTY, YOU WERE IN TROUBLE. 00:14:54.361 --> 00:14:55.461 THAT'S THE WAY IT WAS. 00:14:55.528 --> 00:14:56.862 WAS IT PRETTY GOOD WATER? 00:14:56.930 --> 00:14:58.964 IT WAS VERY GOOD WATER. YES, IT WAS. 00:14:59.032 --> 00:15:01.567 YOU NEVER HAD TO WORRY ABOUT HOW CLEAN IT WAS? 00:15:01.634 --> 00:15:04.103 NO, JUST PUMP IT OUT OF THERE, KEEP IT TIGHT. 00:15:04.170 --> 00:15:06.705 DO YOU THINK THERE'S STILL WATER DOWN IN THERE? 00:15:06.773 --> 00:15:08.640 WHAT IF WE PICKED THIS THING UP? 00:15:08.708 --> 00:15:12.177 WELL, I DON'T KNOW WHETHER WE CAN GET THAT UP OR NOT. 00:15:12.245 --> 00:15:13.579 PROBABLY COULD. 00:15:13.646 --> 00:15:15.714 I DON'T SEE ANY WATER DOWN THERE. 00:15:15.782 --> 00:15:18.384 BUT IT'S STILL THE OLD WELL, ISN'T IT? 00:15:18.451 --> 00:15:20.452 YEAH. 00:15:20.520 --> 00:15:22.855 WHERE IS THE BUCKET? 00:15:22.922 --> 00:15:26.025 WELL, I DON'T SEE THE BUCKET. 00:15:26.092 --> 00:15:28.827 Howser: NOW WE'RE GONNA GO INTO THE HOUSE. 00:15:28.895 --> 00:15:31.930 AND I THINK EVERYTHING... 00:15:31.998 --> 00:15:36.869 LOOKS... EXACTLY LIKE IT DID? 00:15:36.936 --> 00:15:39.438 WELL, IT'S NOT AS CLEAN AS IT USED TO BE, 00:15:39.506 --> 00:15:40.806 BUT IT'S HERE. 00:15:40.874 --> 00:15:43.475 MOST EVERYTHING IS HERE -- THE ESSENTIALS, YOU KNOW. 00:15:43.543 --> 00:15:45.944 NOW, EXPLAIN TO US WHAT WE SEE IN HERE. 00:15:46.012 --> 00:15:47.312 THIS IS AN OLD TABLE. 00:15:47.380 --> 00:15:49.982 I THINK IT WAS MY GRANDMOTHER'S, ORIGINALLY. 00:15:50.050 --> 00:15:51.984 THAT'S WHAT WE ATE AT. 00:15:52.052 --> 00:15:53.385 MM-HMM. 00:15:53.453 --> 00:15:56.622 THEN RIGHT BEHIND IT HERE, YOU SEE A DOOR. 00:15:56.690 --> 00:16:00.092 THAT'S WHAT WE CALLED A DESERT COOLER. 00:16:00.160 --> 00:16:01.627 A DESERT COOLER. 00:16:01.695 --> 00:16:06.598 I CAN'T GET IT OPEN, BUT IT WAS A SCREENED-IN BOX OUT THERE 00:16:06.666 --> 00:16:09.034 WITH BURLAP OVER THE OUTSIDE 00:16:09.102 --> 00:16:12.671 AND A PAN UP ON TOP TO PULL THE WATER IN. 00:16:12.739 --> 00:16:15.908 THE BURLAP WENT IN AND SIPHONED OUT 00:16:15.975 --> 00:16:19.278 AND KEPT THE BURLAP WET ALL THE TIME. 00:16:19.346 --> 00:16:22.381 AND THE BREEZE BLOWING THROUGH IT KEPT THINGS COOL. 00:16:22.449 --> 00:16:24.917 SO IT WAS KIND OF LIKE OLD-TIMEY AIR CONDITIONING. 00:16:24.984 --> 00:16:26.418 THAT'S IT. 00:16:26.486 --> 00:16:28.520 FOR MANY YEARS, THAT'S ALL WE HAD FOR COOLING. 00:16:28.588 --> 00:16:31.056 KEEP THE BUTTER IN THERE AND THE MILK AND WHATEVER. 00:16:31.124 --> 00:16:34.093 SO THAT WAS BEFORE YOU HAD REFRIGERATORS. 00:16:34.160 --> 00:16:36.195 THAT WAS BEFORE THAT, RIGHT. 00:16:36.262 --> 00:16:38.897 HAD THE OLD WOOD STOVE OVER HERE. 00:16:38.965 --> 00:16:41.667 SO YOU ACTUALLY USED A WOOD STOVE. 00:16:41.735 --> 00:16:45.004 ALWAYS. A FIREPLACE IN THE OTHER ROOM, 00:16:45.071 --> 00:16:47.006 AND A WOOD STOVE OUT HERE. 00:16:47.073 --> 00:16:50.009 THAT WAS THE ONLY HEATING FACILITIES WE HAD. 00:16:50.076 --> 00:16:52.778 AND, OF COURSE, THAT MEANT CUTTING WOOD. 00:16:52.846 --> 00:16:56.048 WHEN I GOT OLD ENOUGH, THAT WAS A CHORE THAT I -- 00:16:56.116 --> 00:16:57.850 I'D KEEP THE WOODBOX FULL. 00:16:57.917 --> 00:17:01.020 WE USED TO HAVE A WOODBOX SET RIGHT THERE. 00:17:01.087 --> 00:17:02.955 BOY, YOU HAD A LOT OF CHORES. 00:17:03.023 --> 00:17:05.157 QUITE A FEW. IT KEPT YOU BUSY. 00:17:05.225 --> 00:17:07.493 NOW WE'RE BACK OUTSIDE. 00:17:07.560 --> 00:17:11.597 AND THIS -- I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT TO -- 00:17:11.664 --> 00:17:14.166 WHAT IS ALL OF THIS STUFF? 00:17:14.234 --> 00:17:19.304 WELL, IT'S A COLLECTION OF MANY YEARS OF LIVING HERE. 00:17:19.372 --> 00:17:23.742 MY DAD COLLECTED ANYTHING THAT WAS AVAILABLE, 00:17:23.810 --> 00:17:25.144 YOU KNOW. 00:17:25.211 --> 00:17:28.981 THERE USED TO BE A LOT OF OLD MINES OUT HERE. 00:17:29.049 --> 00:17:30.749 HE LOCATED -- 00:17:30.817 --> 00:17:35.454 HE NEVER TOOK ANYTHING WITHOUT FIRST HAVING OWNERSHIP TO IT. 00:17:35.522 --> 00:17:39.692 SO IF HE SAW A PLACE AND MAYBE THE MINE WASN'T WORTH MUCH, 00:17:39.759 --> 00:17:41.326 BUT IT HAD A LITTLE MACHINERY 00:17:41.394 --> 00:17:43.529 OR A BUILDING ON IT THAT HE LIKED, 00:17:43.596 --> 00:17:46.031 HE'D LOCATE THE MINE, DO THE ASSESSMENT FOR A YEAR, 00:17:46.099 --> 00:17:47.566 AND THEN MOVE THE STUFF HERE. 00:17:47.634 --> 00:17:50.436 WHAT WAS HE GONNA DO WITH ALL THIS STUFF? 00:17:50.503 --> 00:17:52.771 WELL, USE IT SOMETIME, YOU KNOW. 00:17:52.839 --> 00:17:56.508 WE DID USE A LOT OF IT, BECAUSE WE LIVED OUT HERE 00:17:56.576 --> 00:17:58.877 WHERE YOU COULDN'T RUN TO THE STORE 00:17:58.945 --> 00:18:00.379 FOR EVERY LITTLE THING. 00:18:00.447 --> 00:18:03.816 YOU GOT THREE OR FOUR WAGONS JUST LINED UP IN A ROW. 00:18:03.883 --> 00:18:06.118 WELL, THAT WAS THE WAY OUT HERE. 00:18:06.186 --> 00:18:07.619 UP UNTIL ABOUT 1920, 00:18:07.687 --> 00:18:10.589 YOU SEE A LOT OF THESE ON THE ROAD OUT THERE. 00:18:10.657 --> 00:18:12.358 LET'S WALK ON DOWN HERE. 00:18:12.425 --> 00:18:15.394 AND EVEN LATER, MY DAD USED TO USE THESE. 00:18:15.462 --> 00:18:17.996 WE USED TO BREAK HORSES AND MULES. 00:18:18.064 --> 00:18:20.165 THESE WERE A GOOD THING TO BREAK THEM IN ON. 00:18:20.233 --> 00:18:21.633 HOOK THEM UP TO A WAGON, 00:18:21.701 --> 00:18:23.435 TAKE THEM OUT THROUGH THE DESERT OUT HERE, 00:18:23.503 --> 00:18:27.606 AND THAT GETS THEM A LITTLE EXPERIENCE. 00:18:27.674 --> 00:18:30.476 WELL, THIS IS A REAL -- THIS IS A BUCKBOARD. 00:18:30.543 --> 00:18:32.211 THAT IS A STUDEBAKER WAGON. 00:18:32.278 --> 00:18:33.645 A STUDEBAKER WAGON. 00:18:33.713 --> 00:18:36.081 THAT'S WHERE STUDEBAKER GOT ITS START. 00:18:36.149 --> 00:18:37.182 REALLY? 00:18:37.250 --> 00:18:38.217 RIGHT. 00:18:38.284 --> 00:18:40.619 THIS IS THE ORIGINAL SCHOOLHOUSE. 00:18:40.687 --> 00:18:42.354 THE ORIGINAL SCHOOLHOUSE. 00:18:42.422 --> 00:18:45.391 ACTUALLY, IT WAS A GUEST CABIN BEFORE THAT, 00:18:45.458 --> 00:18:48.527 BUT WE USED IT FOR A SCHOOLHOUSE FOR SOME TIME. 00:18:48.595 --> 00:18:50.829 NOW, WHERE DID THE STUDENTS COME FROM? 00:18:50.897 --> 00:18:52.097 I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST 00:18:52.165 --> 00:18:54.600 YOU AND YOUR BROTHERS AND SISTER OUT HERE. 00:18:54.668 --> 00:18:56.802 THAT'S RIGHT. TO START WITH, IT WAS. 00:18:56.870 --> 00:18:59.338 BUT LATER ON, WE HAD HOMESTEADERS OUT HERE, 00:18:59.406 --> 00:19:00.472 AND THEY HAD KIDS. 00:19:00.540 --> 00:19:02.207 SO THEY HAD TO GO TO SCHOOL. 00:19:02.275 --> 00:19:03.676 MY DAD SAID, 00:19:03.743 --> 00:19:06.512 "WELL, WE'LL JUST MAKE THE SCHOOLHOUSE A LITTLE LARGER, 00:19:06.579 --> 00:19:08.247 AND THE KIDS CAN COME OVER." 00:19:08.314 --> 00:19:11.617 WAS THIS A PRIVATE SCHOOL, SOMETHING YOUR DAD ARRANGED? 00:19:11.685 --> 00:19:13.018 YES, IT WAS, 00:19:13.086 --> 00:19:15.421 AND HE PAID THE TEACHER THE FIRST YEAR OR TWO. 00:19:15.488 --> 00:19:17.289 THEN THE COUNTY GOT INTERESTED, 00:19:17.357 --> 00:19:19.925 BECAUSE THERE WAS A FEW MORE KIDS COMING. 00:19:19.993 --> 00:19:21.860 AND THEY SAID, "WE'LL PAY THE TEACHER 00:19:21.928 --> 00:19:23.295 "AND FURNISH THE MATERIALS -- 00:19:23.363 --> 00:19:25.397 THE BOOKS AND PAPER AND STUFF LIKE THAT." 00:19:25.465 --> 00:19:27.299 AND THE DESKS, BECAUSE LOOK AT THIS. 00:19:27.367 --> 00:19:28.767 THIS IS SOMETHING IN HERE. 00:19:28.835 --> 00:19:33.272 NOW, THIS IS WHAT YOU CALL A ONE-ROOM SCHOOLHOUSE. 00:19:33.340 --> 00:19:34.440 THAT'S IT. 00:19:34.507 --> 00:19:35.974 AND A LITTLE ROOM AT THAT... 00:19:36.042 --> 00:19:37.343 WITH THE LITTLE DESK. 00:19:37.410 --> 00:19:39.712 OH, BOY, THEY'RE FALLING APART, TOO. 00:19:39.779 --> 00:19:42.414 YES, THEY ARE. THEY'RE GETTING KIND OF OLD. 00:19:42.482 --> 00:19:43.949 SO YOU ONLY HAD, AT BEST, 00:19:44.017 --> 00:19:47.953 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 KIDS IN HERE. 00:19:48.021 --> 00:19:50.422 I THINK THAT WAS MORE THAN WE NEEDED. 00:19:50.490 --> 00:19:52.791 BOY, I BET -- IT'S HOT IN HERE NOW. 00:19:52.859 --> 00:19:56.295 YOU CAN IMAGINE WHAT IT WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF SUMMERTIME. 00:19:56.363 --> 00:19:59.031 BEATING DOWN AND NO AIR CONDITIONING WHATSOEVER, 00:19:59.099 --> 00:20:00.065 NO FAN. 00:20:00.133 --> 00:20:01.633 SO YOU ENDURED, YOU KNOW. 00:20:01.701 --> 00:20:03.035 IF IT GOT TOO BAD, 00:20:03.103 --> 00:20:05.004 MAYBE WE'D LET SCHOOL OUT A LITTLE EARLY. 00:20:05.071 --> 00:20:06.205 I BET. 00:20:06.272 --> 00:20:07.906 AND WHAT WAS IT LIKE IN THE WINTERTIME? 00:20:07.974 --> 00:20:09.174 IT MUST HAVE BEEN FREEZING. 00:20:09.242 --> 00:20:12.378 WELL, WE HAD A POTBELLIED STOVE IN HERE, 00:20:12.445 --> 00:20:15.714 AND WE STOKED THAT UP, AND IT WASN'T BAD. 00:20:15.782 --> 00:20:19.518 THIS IS THE LITTLEST SCHOOLHOUSE I'VE EVER SEEN. 00:20:19.586 --> 00:20:20.986 IS IT? [ LAUGHS ] 00:20:21.054 --> 00:20:24.323 WELL, IT SERVED A PURPOSE, YOU KNOW. 00:20:24.391 --> 00:20:27.860 WELL, YOU'RE AN EDUCATED, LITERATE MAN. 00:20:27.927 --> 00:20:28.994 IT WORKED. 00:20:29.062 --> 00:20:31.130 RIGHT INSIDE THAT HOUSE. 00:20:31.197 --> 00:20:34.233 YEAH, THAT'S WHERE I GOT A START. 00:20:34.300 --> 00:20:37.636 NOW, THIS IS A PROJECT MY DAD STARTED. 00:20:37.704 --> 00:20:39.972 IT WAS PROBABLY ABOUT 1930. 00:20:40.040 --> 00:20:44.276 ORIGINALLY, HE STARTED OUT LAYING ROCK AND CEMENT. 00:20:44.344 --> 00:20:49.081 YOU CAN SEE THAT LOWER PART'S ROCK AND CEMENT, HAND-LAID. 00:20:49.149 --> 00:20:52.051 THEN HE BUILT FORMS FROM THERE ON UP 00:20:52.118 --> 00:20:53.519 AND POURED CONCRETE. 00:20:53.586 --> 00:20:54.553 UH-HUH. 00:20:54.621 --> 00:20:56.488 CONCRETE AND ROCK. 00:20:56.556 --> 00:20:59.358 SO THIS WAS YOUR OWN PRIVATE DAM UP HERE. 00:20:59.426 --> 00:21:00.592 IT REALLY WAS. 00:21:00.660 --> 00:21:03.328 ORIGINALLY, IT WAS A DIRT DAM ACROSS THERE. 00:21:03.396 --> 00:21:06.598 AND IT WASHED OUT WHEN WE HAD A BIG THUNDERSTORM. 00:21:06.666 --> 00:21:10.269 THAT'S WHAT CREATED THIS CANYON GOING DOWN THROUGH HERE. 00:21:10.337 --> 00:21:13.005 SO HE REBUILT IT WITH CONCRETE AND ROCK. 00:21:13.073 --> 00:21:14.907 IS THERE STILL WATER BACK THERE? 00:21:14.974 --> 00:21:17.910 YES, I'M SURE THERE IS. LET'S TAKE A LOOK OVER THE TOP. 00:21:17.977 --> 00:21:19.411 AS THE ADVENTURE CONTINUES, 00:21:19.479 --> 00:21:21.914 LET'S GO LOOK AT THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DAM. 00:21:24.384 --> 00:21:26.085 THERE'S STILL -- LOOK AT THIS. 00:21:26.152 --> 00:21:27.419 IT'S STILL FULL OF WATER. 00:21:27.487 --> 00:21:29.355 WELL, IT ISN'T FULL, BY ANY MEANS, 00:21:29.422 --> 00:21:31.123 BUT THERE'S QUITE A BIT THERE. 00:21:31.191 --> 00:21:33.359 NOW, WHAT WOULD YOU ALL USE THIS WATER FOR? 00:21:33.426 --> 00:21:34.660 WELL, MAINLY IT WAS USED 00:21:34.728 --> 00:21:36.695 FOR IRRIGATING PURPOSES DOWN HERE -- 00:21:36.763 --> 00:21:38.530 OUR ORCHARD AND STUFF LIKE THAT. 00:21:38.598 --> 00:21:41.200 BUT IT WAS ALSO A NICE SWIMMING HOLE, 00:21:41.267 --> 00:21:43.535 AND WE USED TO HAVE FISH IN IT. 00:21:43.603 --> 00:21:45.304 BLACK BASS AND CROPPIE. 00:21:45.372 --> 00:21:48.340 SO, THIS WAS THE OLD SWIMMING HOLE WHEN IT GOT TOO HOT. 00:21:48.408 --> 00:21:49.775 YOU BETCHA. 00:21:49.843 --> 00:21:51.510 BOY, IT WAS NICE, TOO. 00:21:51.578 --> 00:21:52.678 LOOK AT THIS. 00:21:52.746 --> 00:21:54.680 I LEARNED TO SWIM IN THIS. 00:21:54.748 --> 00:21:56.482 THIS IS JUST BEAUTIFUL. 00:21:56.549 --> 00:21:59.752 WHAT DO YOU THINK PEOPLE CAN GAIN 00:21:59.819 --> 00:22:03.422 FROM VISITING YOUR OLD RANCH OUT HERE? 00:22:03.490 --> 00:22:06.458 WELL, IT WOULD GIVE AN INSIGHT 00:22:06.526 --> 00:22:08.494 ON ONE WAY OF LIVING, 00:22:08.561 --> 00:22:13.632 OF HOW PEOPLE GOT BY OUT HERE IN THE DESERT. 00:22:13.700 --> 00:22:17.169 TO ME, IT WAS AN IDEAL WAY TO LIVE, 00:22:17.237 --> 00:22:22.708 BUT I THINK IT WOULD GIVE PEOPLE AN INSIGHT ON EARLIER TIMES 00:22:22.776 --> 00:22:25.210 AND PROBABLY A WAY OF LIFE 00:22:25.278 --> 00:22:28.514 THAT YOU DON'T SEE VERY MUCH OF. 00:22:28.581 --> 00:22:33.886 THIS IS BASICALLY SOMETHING THAT'S GONE FOREVER, ISN'T IT? 00:22:33.953 --> 00:22:36.622 IT REALLY IS. YES, IT IS. 00:22:36.690 --> 00:22:38.824 YEAH. 00:22:38.892 --> 00:22:41.960 Howser: WELL, AFTER WE LEFT KEYS RANCH, 00:22:42.028 --> 00:22:43.896 WE STILL HAD A LOT TO SEE. 00:22:43.963 --> 00:22:47.433 FIRST OFF, RANGER MOON TOOK US UP TO KEYS VIEW, 00:22:47.500 --> 00:22:50.269 WHERE WE HAD A BREATHTAKING PANORAMA 00:22:50.337 --> 00:22:53.872 INTO THE COACHELLA VALLEY AND MOUNT SAN JACINTO. 00:22:53.940 --> 00:22:56.108 THEN WHILE WE WERE WALKING THROUGH 00:22:56.176 --> 00:22:57.810 ANOTHER PART OF THE DESERT, 00:22:57.877 --> 00:23:00.112 WE RAN ACROSS A SIDE-BLOTCH LIZARD, 00:23:00.180 --> 00:23:02.348 AND HE LET ME PUT IT ON MY FINGER. 00:23:02.415 --> 00:23:06.719 AND THEN WE SAW A MAGNIFICENT TURKEY VULTURE IN FLIGHT. 00:23:06.786 --> 00:23:10.622 OF COURSE, THERE WERE LOTS MORE HUGE ROCKS TO SEE 00:23:10.690 --> 00:23:13.058 AND JOSHUA TREES TO LOOK AT, 00:23:13.126 --> 00:23:17.763 BUT WE ENDED OUR VISIT TO JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL MONUMENT 00:23:17.831 --> 00:23:19.665 ON A CARPET OF COLOR. 00:23:19.733 --> 00:23:21.867 I THOUGHT I KNEW THE DESERT, 00:23:21.935 --> 00:23:25.104 BUT WE HAVE JUST PARKED RIGHT OVER HERE, 00:23:25.171 --> 00:23:26.772 WALKED A FEW FEET -- 00:23:26.840 --> 00:23:29.508 WE COULD'VE WALKED ANYWHERE HERE 00:23:29.576 --> 00:23:32.277 AND SEEN THIS SAME BEAUTY, RIGHT? 00:23:32.345 --> 00:23:35.614 I'VE NEVER SEEN SUCH COLOR, SUCH VARIETY, 00:23:35.682 --> 00:23:37.583 AND IT'S EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK. 00:23:37.650 --> 00:23:40.152 WELL, IT'S SPRINGTIME IN THE DESERT. 00:23:40.220 --> 00:23:43.422 AND UNLIKE A LOT OF PEOPLE'S CONCEPTS OF DESERTS 00:23:43.490 --> 00:23:45.324 AS BLEAK, SAND-STREWN AREAS, 00:23:45.392 --> 00:23:47.159 THE DESERT REALLY IS ALIVE. 00:23:47.227 --> 00:23:50.596 LOOK AT THIS. LOOK AT THESE. 00:23:50.663 --> 00:23:52.831 AND THERE'S JUST -- 00:23:52.899 --> 00:23:55.334 WHEN YOU LOOK OUT HERE 00:23:55.402 --> 00:23:59.338 AMONG THE TREES, THE JOSHUA TREES, 00:23:59.406 --> 00:24:02.041 IT'S LIKE A CARPET OF COLOR. 00:24:02.108 --> 00:24:03.609 LOOK AT THESE. 00:24:03.677 --> 00:24:06.311 THAT'S THE BEAVERTAIL CACTUS. 00:24:06.379 --> 00:24:09.948 SO RIGHT HERE, YOU'VE GOT THE CACTUS, 00:24:10.016 --> 00:24:11.383 YOU'VE GOT... 00:24:11.451 --> 00:24:13.185 DESERT DANDELIONS. 00:24:13.253 --> 00:24:14.787 THE DANDELIONS. 00:24:14.854 --> 00:24:16.155 PINCUSHION FLOWER. 00:24:16.222 --> 00:24:18.624 PINCUSHION FLOWERS. WHAT ARE THESE? 00:24:18.692 --> 00:24:20.793 YOU GOT PURPLE ONES OVER HERE. 00:24:20.860 --> 00:24:22.061 THEY'RE A PHACELIA. 00:24:22.128 --> 00:24:23.429 WOW. 00:24:23.496 --> 00:24:27.066 DESERT DANDELIONS AROUND YOUR FEET. 00:24:27.133 --> 00:24:30.369 AND IT JUST GOES ON AND ON AND ON 00:24:30.437 --> 00:24:32.705 AS FAR AS YOU CAN LOOK. 00:24:32.772 --> 00:24:34.907 AND THIS IS THE DESERT. 00:24:34.974 --> 00:24:36.208 THAT'S IT. 00:24:36.276 --> 00:24:39.678 WELL, IT'S REALLY A VERY SPECIAL PLACE. 00:24:39.746 --> 00:24:42.481 DO YOU EVER GET TIRED OF IT? 00:24:42.549 --> 00:24:44.283 NO, NO. I NEVER DO. 00:24:44.351 --> 00:24:48.654 NOT IN 17 YEARS OF WATCHING IT EVERY SPRING. 00:24:51.024 --> 00:24:53.625 WELL, I HOPE YOU'VE ENJOYED OUR VISIT 00:24:53.693 --> 00:24:57.363 TO JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL MONUMENT OUT HERE IN THE DESERT. 00:24:57.430 --> 00:24:59.865 THIS IS TRULY A SPECTACULAR PLACE. 00:24:59.933 --> 00:25:03.369 I ALSO HOPE WE'VE ALL GAINED A GREATER UNDERSTANDING 00:25:03.436 --> 00:25:05.004 OF THE OLD JOSHUA TREE, 00:25:05.071 --> 00:25:07.706 WHICH HAS BEEN AROUND FOR A LONG TIME. 00:25:07.774 --> 00:25:11.143 I'VE HAD A GOOD TIME. I HOPE YOU HAVE, TOO. 00:25:11.211 --> 00:25:13.412 AND, AS ALWAYS, YOU'RE INVITED 00:25:13.480 --> 00:25:16.648 TO COME ON ALONG WITH US AGAIN NEXT TIME 00:25:16.716 --> 00:25:21.020 AS WE CONTINUE OUR SEARCH TOGETHER FOR CALIFORNIA'S GOLD. 00:25:21.087 --> 00:25:23.689 [ TRAIN WHISTLE BLOWS ] 00:25:23.757 --> 00:25:25.924 [ COUNTRY MUSIC PLAYS ] 00:25:46.246 --> 00:25:49.314 [ LIGHTNING CRASHES ] 00:25:49.382 --> 00:25:52.051 [ BLUES MUSIC PLAYS ]