Hello all,
Lately I have been trying to connect some of the dots in my theory. One of them was the story of a young guide who was with De Anza and found the " pearl " ship. Most of know the story but for those who don't. Basically he ent to the " right " of the path De Anza was taking. If this is true there should be a passage in De Anza's diary. There is. But also he talks of finding " sea " fish in small pools. He was quick to say that they were not lake or stream fish. To me this says that the lake would have just recently dried up. here's the passage I found:
Saturday, March 5.–Starting shortly before daybreak, we went west-northwest for about six leagues, having on our left a medium-sized range, [Footnote 96] toward which we traveled three more leagues to the northwest. Then we went between some medium-sized hills which make a good pass, after which one turns to the west to go around some sand dunes near them. In this direction one travels a little less than two leagues, during which the sand dune is doubled. After this one turns again to the north-northwest for about a league and a half, coming to some wells of fair surface water, and some pasturage. We reached the edge of the wells about vespers, and I named them San Eusebio. [Footnote 97] The journey made to this place in the manner described did not turn out so favorable to us as we had flattered ourselves it would, because of the prevarication of the guide.
On doubling the sand dune mentioned one comes out to an estuary of the sea. At least we inferred that it must be an estuary, because we found stranded an nfinite number of fish of kind and size appropriate to the sea and not to lakes and rivers, however large they may be. Whether or not this lake is of live water I am not able to say with certainty, but I do know that it is water depending upon the Gulf, from which it must be distant about thirty leagues, if not more. This estuary is the one which appeared to Father Garcés two years ago to be the Rio Amarillo which he mentions or cites in his diaries, because it did not occur to him to test what it really was, for he did not taste the water.
Within a few hours during the night such good water as flowed from the wells was completely exhausted, the new which came in being so salty that not even the animals could drink it, although more than half of them, which had not yet been watered, were greatly in need of it. All this trouble and care was added to the hard journey which we had made today.–From Tubac to San Eusebio, 188 leagues.
And this is the one about the guide leaving:
Sunday March 6.–To add to our ills, in the morning we learned that our guide had fled, leaving us his poor weapons as signs at the place where he had slept. For this reason, and for the lack of water which we were suffering, I sent six men with a corporal to look for the watering place which our runaway guide had said was nearby. The corporal bore appropriate instructions in case he should find heathen there or in any other place and to report to me whether or not he had found the water.
According to the story the guide was riding to the right looking for any alternate path. Plus he was traveling at night due to the heat. This ties in the connection with Imperial county. He found the ship half buried in a sand dune and took " as many pearls as I could carry ". Then headed straight for San Luis Rey Mission. Sometime later tried to find the ship again but never could. Think about it, you are trying to find a " sandhill " in the middle of a wasteland. The old needle in the haystack routine...
By my approxiamation I would put De Anza somewhere W of the Superstition Mts. I am righting this to see if the calculation is correct or would he have been further north. Any ideas
Let me know if you can
Thankx to All
PLL
