The Ventura Gem & Mineral Society, Inc. (VGMS)

Field Trips 1996 Archive.

August.

Field Trips Are Fatal
     or they can be as I discovered on the June 29th field trip to San Luis Obispo in search of aragonite crystals. Half way up the Cuesta grade there's a dirt pot holed road that extends for miles into a wilderness area. The road ends at a T.V. relay station. The view from here is spectacular. Far below are a string of volcanic cinder cones laid out in a straight line that ends at Moro Rock and the sea.
     A few years ago a forest fire raged through this area destroying nearly every tree. A few half burned eucalyptus trees and their newly sprouted seedlings afford the only real shady place on the mountain.
     Four of us carpooled from the American Legion parking lot. K.J. Werner and his friend Magda drove in K.J.'s car and Steve Demay, me and my 12 week old puppy, Willy, drove up in Steve's truck. We parked in the eucalyptus grove.
     Descending down a rocky unstable gully, I slipped and fell twice. Willy wasn't able to get down easily so Steve hoisted him to his shoulders while I held on to Steve's backpack for stability. After my third fall Magda offered a helping hand and we finally arrived on the dirt cattle road at the bottom. Due to a neurological problem at birth, I don't feel the bottoms of my feet. This descent was risky for me under the best of circumstances but foolish with a heavy backpack and a 25 pound puppy.
     I soon discovered the heat away from the grove was much more intense. The road at this point was easy but after 1/4 of a mile my face turned red, my head began to throb and my body started to shake. Willy began to frantically dive for every small bush or rock desperately digging at the soil to reach the constant cool temperature a few inches below the surface.
     I told K.J., Magda, and Steve to go on without us. They were reluctant but I insisted. I don't know why we humans are so embarassed by physical limitations, and so motivated to not bother others. So when they asked if I knew the way back I assured them I did. Steve cautioned me to go slowly and I promised I would. Then they were gone. It was about 11:30 A.M. I felt awful. For awhile Willy and I just sat, then slowly we made our way back.
     There were many rock gullies along the base of the mountain and they all seemed steeper and more frightening than the one we came down. I spent all my time on the descent looking at the rocks I was about to step on and no attention at all to larger landmarks. K.J. had said the dirt cattle road was another way back but cautioned not to take it because "Many roads converge and I could easily get lost".
     Willy was hot and panting. I searched for shade. The terrain is chapperal; mostly grasses, cacti, poison oak bushes and burnt Manzanita trees. Willy tried to get under rocks for shade but the largest cast a shadow of no more than 8" by 8". Until about 1 o'clock we would rest a few minutes and move again traversing the base and midsection of the hill trying to find our way up. We started down the cattle road and almost immediately I developed a slamming headache. I realized I was dangerously close to heat stroke. Willy became hysterical, crying, falling, desperately diving under anything. His flea collar was snapped from his neck as I tried to haul him back to me.
     At one of our rest places I lost a small bottle of water and my safety glasses. I had one and a half small bottles of water left and a small gatorade in my backpack.
     I looked at the mountain above me and realized I didn't have the strength to make it up there. If I slipped and fell I could break my leg as I have before. If anything happened at that point there was absolutely no shade at all. I was beginning to feel nauseated and panic set in. I cried and yelled "HELP" as loud as I could but the only answer was my echo.
     I was now having to drag Willy and my backpack from one place to another. The shadiest place I could find was under a Manzanita skeleton but I couldn't see the road below and the others could pass by without knowing we were there. Just a few feet in the wilderness can change the scenery completely. We found a tiny eucalyptus tree about 4 feet tall 20 feet away that offered some shade and a view of the road below.
     From 1 to 2 P.M. I had to stop the panic and tears. I concentrated on doling out the fluids I had. Dogs take water by lapping and the small water bottles were inadequate. We lost as much fluid as Willy took in. I was glad I had my watch because I was able to calculate how often and how much we could drink before the others were likely to return.
     My nose had been running since I arrived. I packed no tissues. Now I had to blow my nose using my shirt. Eventually I stripped my shirt off and pulled my "all weather" pants as high up as I could because they are dark and were attracting the sun like a magnet. Now my body was a hunting ground for every bug for miles around. Normally I hate bugs but the cooling effect of no clothes far outweighed the bug discomfort. At one point my head started to bake and I began to get faint before I realized my hat had come off. I'd left my hat home that day and Steve lent me his 99 cent K-Mart special. It was too big and several hot gusts had caused me to loose more energy retrieving it.
     Between 2 and 3 I had several more bouts of panic as I watched Willy fading. He no longer lifted his head for water. I had to drop it in the side of his mouth and there was no response. His body was still and no more panting. Tears came to me frequently. I love this puppy. He's a great little guy, gentle, mostly mellow, smart, and loving. I couldn't stand the price he was paying for my stupidity. About this time I hallucinated two people on the road below. All kinds of worries came into my mind. I've been on many field trips with Steve. He's a mountain man. What if he did his usual mountain thing and found a better more direct path to the parking lot? They wouldn't know where I was. An overwwhelming sleepiness hit me and I fought it knowing if I let that happen I could miss their return.
     By 3 o'clock Steve suddenly rounded the mountain far below me. I stood up and started to scream. When he responded I collapsed and cried. I cried harder when he reached us and he responded in his droll way by chuckling and saying he sure wished he had his video camera for the VGMS archives. I am grateful he didn't. I could see that even Steve was suffering the effects of heat and the burden of a pack full of aragonite crystals. Still he gallantly hoisted Willy once again onto his shoulders and headed straight up the cliff.
     I tried to follow but I just kept slipping. I heard Steve collapse at the top under the weight of his burden but he somehow managed the energy to direct me to the proper trail to link up with K.J. and Magda who were taking the "easy" route back along the cattle road. They were also loaded down with aragonite.
     K.J. quickly left us behind as he marched forward. Magda was clearly suffering from heat exhaustion too. She and I slowly moved down the road. Within a short distance all my symptoms returned. Twice I stopped. No breeze blew and the road had taken a suffocating turn away from any ocean influence. It felt like 130 degrees. We found a tree in a steep ravine and I collapsed under it. We could see the many switchbacks that fed into the cattle trail in the distance. After this tree there was no more shade at all. I knew I couldn't go on. Magda was kind and encouraging assuring me that we could just wait til night for cooler temperatures if necessary. She had just the right calm and certainty about her. K.J. continued up the mountain. We could see him select the right switchback and in about ten minutes he was high above and even with us heading for the top. Thirty minutes later Steve appeared where we last saw K.J. Holding my two gallon water container that I'd left in his truck, he wasted no time on the road, just moved as the crow flies straight to us. He poured the water over our heads and shoulders. Suddenly I felt freezing cold. I was instantly able to tackle the climb and at 5 o'clock dragged into the grove near the truck. Willy, somewhat revived, proceeded to eat his food and immediately began to choke. Steve once again, a hero, reached into his throat and pulled the obstruction out. I imagine Willy will never forget Steve as long as he lives. K.J. offered us fruit to eat. Magda, who collected the best specimens, warmly gave Steve and I two beautiful pieces.
     Time to go. Steve and I stopped briefly below the relay station for me to show him a place where I had once collected some aragonite crystals. Willy, totally revived, went into some bushes and dug out a rock with great enthusiasm. It was a poor sample of aragonite, as Steve confirmed. but Willy felt it was a treasure. I call it Willy's rock and he has it in his yard. He's a real rock hound now -- a self collector.
     We headed for cool weather stopping at Shell Beach for me to buy Steve dinner for saving our lives. We chose a fancy "foo foo" place. The hostess actually asked us if we had reservations. We were covered in dirt and burrs. Our hair was plastered and dried to our heads. We looked terrible. I wanted to tell the hostess that "Yes we had made reservations a week ago and had such a hard time choosing the right outfits for the occasion". They made us wait longer than anyone and a few patrons cast disgusted looks our way, but we had more reason to celebrate than anyone there, I think. During dinner Steve shared a lot of wilderness knowledge. Willy and I were lucky we didn't sit on a rattle snake because they seek shade during the same hours that we did. All the way home Willy slept with his head in Steve's lap. He gazed up at him once and gave him face kisses and Steve said that this was a better thank you than anything.
     I owe Art Holloway an apology for taking his wonderful "Field Trips Are Fun" slogan and altering its meaning briefly for this account. Field trips are amazingly fun. I've enjoyed each and every one I've gone on but only when I went prepared.
          Inez Shakman.

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