Monday, June 30, 2014

Desert Redoubt: Fort Piute...

Lonely outpost; the crumbling ruins of Fort Piute.  Photograph by Scott Schwartz.
All Rights Reserved. 

The old redoubt is kept in a state of arrested decay.
Photograph by Scott Schwartz.  All rights reserved.
Whether establishing a “presence” there, in order to protect travelers from hostile Indians, or using its thousands of square miles for the training of its personnel, the U.S. military has been connected with the California desert for nearly two centuries.  Even today, traces of these installations remain. 

One such place is Fort Piute.  Located on the Mojave Rd., roughly 40 miles north east of Needles, CA, Fort Piute dates back to the year 1859.  Well, sort of. 

According to military historian Col. Herbert M. Hart, USMC (retired), the outpost at Piute Spring has its origins in a skirmish between soldiers and Indians. 

The year was 1859.  During that year, a Colonel William Hoffman and the 60 soldiers under his command stopped for water at Piute Spring.  Apparently deciding to make a stand against some hostile Indians, Hoffman had about half his men shoot at the Indians, killing roughly 20 of them.  The rest ran off.

Several months went by before Major James H. Carleton and his 1st Dragoons came through this area and established an actual post, which he named Fort Beale.  The name was in honor of a Navy officer who had previously led an experimental camel caravan through the area. 

Although called a “fort”, the Piute Springs outpost was really just one of several desert “redoubts” – ie, temporary fortifications that were established in order to protect travelers along the Mojave Road against the hostile Indians who frequently stole livestock from and murdered them. 

Not surprisingly, the troops stationed at Fort Beale were transferred east at the start of the Civil War.   Clearly, and perhaps rightly, the Army’s priorities lay elsewhere.  While the war raged on in the east, Fort Beale and the other installations were manned by soldiers of the California Volunteers. These were state militia men who had not been “Federalized”, and who stayed in  California to protect the roads.  Despite the presence of the California Volunteers, thefts of settler’s livestock continued. 

When the Civil War ended, however, the desert redoubts were abandoned.  Complaints from local settlers, and the fact that the Mojave Road was a U.S. Mail route prompted the U.S. Army to re-occupy the posts in 1866.  At this point, Fort Beale was renamed Fort Piute.

Life here was tough for the soldiers.  Aside from the dangers of combat, the men lived in tents full-time (the fort itself was intended to provide cover and a place to retreat to during combat) and ate all of their meals outside.  Desertions were not unheard of. 

Fort Piute was abandoned yet again during the 1868. 

The remains of the stone blockhouse that was once Fort Piute are still standing today.  Plus, the fort is positioned right near a relatively easy four wheel drive trail. 





Thursday, June 26, 2014

Desert Ruins..Remnants of broken dreams...

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On one hand, it would be nice to see the magnificent desert as it was before man began building, mining, blasting, and drilling.  At the same time, coming across ruins (such as these, in the Coso Mountain Range) in such remote locations fills me with a haunting fascination.  Who were the individuals who toiled, ate, slept, laughed and dreamed here?

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Off Road Diary- more from the Coso Mountains...

Photograph by Scott Schwartz.  All rights reserved.
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1/250th/sec. at f.13.

Nikon D70, using Aperture Priority mode.

Off-road excursion- into the heart of the Coso Mountains....

My Cherokee and my friend's Toyota Tacoma, in the heart of the Coso Mountains.
Photograph by Scott Schwartz.

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Mojave Desert Photography....Snow in the Coso Mountains....

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During one of my winter trips into the Coso Mountains, there were patches of snow on the ground, as the reader can see in the image to the right.

Driving off-road is fun.  However, one has to leave one's vehicle at times, in order to really explore and in order to see sights that are hidden from sight.

Believe me, folks, I find it very hard to leave the relative comfort of my little SUV, and I fight this battle with myself every time I go on these excursions.  My companions and I found this little patch of white after we scrambled around the rocks for a little while.

I apologize if the following comes across as though I'm bragging, but notice the sharpness and the richness of the colors in this photograph.  Using a very small aperture and a slow shutter speed- in this case 1/30th of a second at f.22.  The slow shutter speed allows the medium (film or digital receptors) more time to gather light, resulting in greater color saturation.  The smaller aperture allows for greater depth of field (see my earlier posts on this topic).

1/30th of a second is the slowest shutter speed that I use without mounting the camera on a tripod.

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Mojave Desert Photography: Rainbow Basin....








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Rainbow Basin is in the Calico Mountains, and it is not far from Fort Irwin Rd.

One can find beauty even in the most desolate environment.  Creating a beautiful image is not hard if one resists the temptation to shoot from inside one's vehicle, and if one understands the basics of photography.
This photograph demonstrates that understanding depth of field is an absolute necessity in order to take decent photographs.
Photographic data:  1/30th sec. at f /20.   Photograph by Scott Schwartz, all rights reserved.



Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Desert Ruins and Photography....

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Looking into the past.....

Bonanza Gulch, El Paso Mountains.

I don't know what this building was used for, but Bonanza Gulch was once the site of a small town, complete with its own post office.  Only crumbling ruins remain today.

Hobbyists still probe the surrounding hills with metal detectors.

Photographic information:

Shutter speed:  1/250th of a second.

Aperture:  f. 14

Notice that the creosote and the hills in the background are slightly blurred, while the doorway in the foreground is in sharp focus.  Had I used a smaller aperture setting (say f. 22), the subjects in the background would have been in focus, as well.  But, I wanted the photograph to show that many people are forgetting that this area was once untamed wilderness - this fact is fading out of memory.


Saturday, June 14, 2014

Mojave Desert: Drone on the trail...

Deep in the heart of the El Paso Mountains, one of the trails descends steeply into a stream bed.  The bed is dry, unless there has been recent rain or melting snow.

I used my drone to capture my friend Joe descending along this rocky trail.

Parrot AR Drone tracks a Jeep..: http://youtu.be/OWIe2tTuh4Y

Friday, June 13, 2014

Drone over the Mojave Desert..A Word Or Two About The Parrot AR Drone And My Experiences Flying It Over The Desert...


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If the wind is blowing at more than two or three miles per hour, forget about flying the Parrot AR Drone outdoors.  The little aircraft just does not have the power to hold its position during, or penetrate air moving at a speed greater than that of a slight breeze.  I've learned this the hard way, after nearly losing my drone on two occasions.

The wind will simply carry it away.

However, when the weather is calm, the craft can provide spectacular footage; for a sample, follow the link below.

Parrot AR Drone Over The Mojave Desert..: http://youtu.be/4xq38faOeVs

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Mojave Desert drone footage..


Below, is a link to a video that I filmed while flying the Parrot drone over Mormon Flats.

Mormon Flats is located in the El Paso Mountains. 

Enjoy!

Parrot AR Drone Over The Mojave Desert..: http://youtu.be/4xq38faOeVs

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Jeep Under The Stars.....

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Just a fun photograph folks.  My old Cherokee in the El Paso Mountains.

I set my digital camera's ISO to 1500 and made a thirty second exposure at f 3.5.

Film's "ISO" rating refers to its sensitivity to light.  The higher the number, the more sensitive the film.

 Film with higher ISO numbers have more light-reactive silver molecules than film with lower numbers.  Therefore, photographers can use film with higher ISO ratings to capture images in low-light conditions.  The trade-off is that film with high ISO numbers produces grainier images, because the "grain" is actually made up of the larger numbers of silver molecules required to produce an image.

Digital cameras mimic this idea in that the photographer can alter the camera's ISO setting, and therefore adjust the camera's sensitivity to light.

It was 10 PM when I shot the photograph shown here; if I'd set my camera's ISO at, let us say, "200", I would have had to leave the shutter open for an hour, and the image would still have been too dark.

Monday, June 9, 2014

Mojave Desert Exploration: Bonanza Gulch...

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This past weekend (June 7-8, 2014), I and a friend with another vehicle ventured back into the El Paso', and we decided to take one of the trails that lead into the north west section of Bonanza Gulch.  Here, we found these crumbling ruins.

Mining began here during the late 1800's and continued through the early 1930's. I believe that this building dates to the latter period, as modern concrete seems to be holding the stone walls together.

1/125th sec. @ f.14.


Thursday, June 5, 2014

Randsburg, CA- Mojave Desert Photography...

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According to local lore, this is one of the buildings used by Randsburg's "professional" ladies during the late nineteenth century.

Monday, June 2, 2014