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Rocko1 Posts: 597
11/21/2022
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I went out to AB to cache some water/food for an upcoming trip and thought I would go check out the guzzlers near Bighorn Canyon. That canyon really gets great as you gain elevation-plenty of side canyons and drainages to explore. 45F when I started, 63F at noon. Slight breeze. Perfect day.
Followed set of big cat tracks up to guzzler near Blue Spring.
It was bone dry.
Decided to follow the pipe and see where it lead to. I always thought it was fed by Blue Spring but it's fed by a concrete 'dam' near the top of one of the falls. Looks 2 damns were made and the pipe had been connected to the lower dam at one time.
I then hiked up and over into Nolina canyon before finding a ridge to climb up to the 3,567 peak.
I was easy going until the last section-that had more cholla cactus per square foot than anywhere I have seen. That coupled with very loose rocks made it tough. I got bit multiple times and spiked pretty hard from agave.
Near the top
[url=]https://imgur.com/qgZgf2Z
View from the peak
Took a little bit to find the register. A few of the alumni from here.
I then followed the flattest part of the ridge north to guzzler #2. This was one of the most frustrating terrain to hike. Almost no dirt. Boulder hopping and cactus dodging, very slow going.
Guzzler #2. All tanks here were 80% full. Which is strange as guzzler #1 was bone dry. With the heavy rains we had in October I though there should be some water in the tanks. My theory is the pipe is probably clogged with debris preventing it from filling or guzzler #2 was filled recently from helicopter.
I dropped down a drainage to the north and followed the road back to my car. I was so happy to be walking on flat ground.
10.7 miles
2,618ft gain
Album https://imgur.com/a/UkYGNoL
edited by Rocko1 on 11/21/2022
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Brian Posts: 226
11/21/2022
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It takes real commitment to keep going when faced with that sort of terrain.
I remember reading that not everyone in park management is on the same page about whether the guzzlers should even be maintained. Some prefer a natural selection approach (IE, let the sheep die out if they can't survive without human intervention).
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/environment/story/2022-05-07/anza-borrego-bighorn-sheep
edited by Brian on 11/21/2022
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Rocko1 Posts: 597
11/21/2022
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Brian wrote:
It takes real commitment to keep going when faced with that sort of terrain.
I remember reading that not everyone in park management is on the same page about whether the guzzlers should even be maintained. Some prefer a natural selection approach (IE, let the sheep die out if they can't survive without human intervention).
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/environment/story/2022-05-07/anza-borrego-bighorn-sheep
edited by Brian on 11/21/2022
I read that. Just strange one would be near full while the other is dry. I should have dug down in the sand to see if the pipe opening was clogged. That guzzler near Blue Spring-which was dry and or non-existent-was teaming with tracks and birds last time I was there and it was full.
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Buford Posts: 459
11/21/2022
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That is a fun hike. I remember the cholla garden coming off the peak down to Blue Spring well. I have not been up the Bighorn drainage, it looks worth exploring. I did a double take with the gloved hand and the register, I thought those were my pictures since I wear the same gloves 
The guzzlers used to be monitored and maintained by volunteers and park employees. Volunteers were supposed to check their "adopted" guzzler occasionally. The park has been short staffed for a while. Don't know how much effort the park employees have put into maintaining the guzzlers and how much they care about them per the UT article among other things. The state park, DFW, and other agencies are all separate and may not all be working towards the same goal. Many volunteers are now unwilling to work with the park due to changed rules for volunteers. The park has also been less than responsive when informed of issues.
Guzzlers have parts break from being out in the elements. Things can clog, float switches freeze open, catch matts get blown away, and many other problems. This could cause one tank to be full and another empty even though they are in close proximity. I don't know which guzzlers got helicopter drops this summer.
There was a part time job opening available earlier this year to monitor the guzzlers for DFW. I don't know if they filled it. If anyone is interested I can try and find the link again.
I am pro guzzler. They are replacing water sources and making areas inhabitable to make up for what we have destroyed. What about all the ranches that tapped historic sheep sources dry? What about the golf courses, farms, windmills, and houses moving onto sheep habitat?
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Links to my photos: ABDSP photos, Bighorn sheep photos, ABDSP time lapse video, Wildlife photos (mainly birds)
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Rocko1 Posts: 597
11/21/2022
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Buford wrote:
That is a fun hike. I remember the cholla garden coming off the peak down to Blue Spring well. I have not been up the Bighorn drainage, it looks worth exploring. I did a double take with the gloved hand and the register, I thought those were my pictures since I wear the same gloves
The guzzlers used to be monitored and maintained by volunteers and park employees. Volunteers were supposed to check their "adopted" guzzler occasionally. The park has been short staffed for a while. Don't know how much effort the park employees have put into maintaining the guzzlers and how much they care about them per the UT article among other things. The state park, DFW, and other agencies are all separate and may not all be working towards the same goal. Many volunteers are now unwilling to work with the park due to changed rules for volunteers. The park has also been less than responsive when informed of issues.
Guzzlers have parts break from being out in the elements. Things can clog, float switches freeze open, catch matts get blown away, and many other problems. This could cause one tank to be full and another empty even though they are in close proximity. I don't know which guzzlers got helicopter drops this summer.
There was a part time job opening available earlier this year to monitor the guzzlers for DFW. I don't know if they filled it. If anyone is interested I can try and find the link again.
I am pro guzzler. They are replacing water sources and making areas inhabitable to make up for what we have destroyed. What about all the ranches that tapped historic sheep sources dry? What about the golf courses, farms, windmills, and houses moving onto sheep habitat?
Thanks for the info. I too am in favor. I didn't know there was so much mis or lack of-communication surrounding maintaining these. Whatever it is I hope the Blue Spring location gets fixed.
Love these gloves. One of the best values I have found. I had multiple thousands of miles on my last pair and they only had a tiny hole in them-that's with using hiking poles on every hike. I only got a new pair because I left mine someplace in the Sierra on accident.
edited by Rocko1 on 11/21/2022
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dsefcik Administrator Posts: 2622
11/22/2022
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pre pandemic gary and i were the monitors for the sunset mtn guzzler but always checked in on the blue spring, nolina, pinyon and harper guzzlers. ditto what buford said, floats go bad, pin holes develop, wind pulls apart plumbing, etc. harper was the only non functioning guzzler i was aware of as of 2021. park officials started requiring covid vaccines, finger printing, background checks, etc for volunteers so gary and i resigned as volunteers.
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http://www.sefcik.com
http://www.darensefcik.com
http://www.carrizogorge.com
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Britain Posts: 604
11/23/2022
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dsefcik wrote:
pre pandemic gary and i were the monitors for the sunset mtn guzzler but always checked in on the blue spring, nolina, pinyon and harper guzzlers. ditto what buford said, floats go bad, pin holes develop, wind pulls apart plumbing, etc. harper was the only non functioning guzzler i was aware of as of 2021. park officials started requiring covid vaccines, finger printing, background checks, etc for volunteers so gary and i resigned as volunteers.
What a shame that the Park ( State of Ca) to impose that on volunteers. But ot does seem to be a standard now days.
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Cant drive 55
Britain
http://icorva.com
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Rocko1 Posts: 597
11/23/2022
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dsefcik wrote:
pre pandemic gary and i were the monitors for the sunset mtn guzzler but always checked in on the blue spring, nolina, pinyon and harper guzzlers. ditto what buford said, floats go bad, pin holes develop, wind pulls apart plumbing, etc. harper was the only non functioning guzzler i was aware of as of 2021. park officials started requiring covid vaccines, finger printing, background checks, etc for volunteers so gary and i resigned as volunteers.
Yeah, ludicrous. Worth emailing anyone about non-op guzzlers or is it a waste of time?
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Buford Posts: 459
11/23/2022
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Rocko1 wrote:
dsefcik wrote:
pre pandemic gary and i were the monitors for the sunset mtn guzzler but always checked in on the blue spring, nolina, pinyon and harper guzzlers. ditto what buford said, floats go bad, pin holes develop, wind pulls apart plumbing, etc. harper was the only non functioning guzzler i was aware of as of 2021. park officials started requiring covid vaccines, finger printing, background checks, etc for volunteers so gary and i resigned as volunteers.
Yeah, ludicrous. Worth emailing anyone about non-op guzzlers or is it a waste of time?
Per the UT article, the park may or may not care but CA DFW will care.
I would let the park know. I don’t know who to contact at the park.
I would contact CA DFW. They have an interest in guzzler condition. CA DFW is responsible for sheep recovery and monitoring. The guzzlers are a big part of that.
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Links to my photos: ABDSP photos, Bighorn sheep photos, ABDSP time lapse video, Wildlife photos (mainly birds)
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tekewin Posts: 371
11/28/2022
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Great trip! I love that area. I remember lots of agave on Bighorn Canyon, must have forgotten about the cholla.
Thanks for tracking those pipes back from Blue Spring. I wondered what was at the other end.
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rockhopper Posts: 668
11/29/2022
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Nice hike Rocko1. You're really getting a great start to desert hiking season. Congrats. Were there any BHS and wildlife tracks to the guzzlers? I read certain animals can "smell" the water from a great distance. Cattle for example, will stampede over you to get to it. If you see a dragon fly, water is very close nearby. Thanks for the trail report.
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Rocko1 Posts: 597
11/29/2022
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rockhopper wrote:
Nice hike Rocko1. You're really getting a great start to desert hiking season. Congrats. Were there any BHS and wildlife tracks to the guzzlers? I read certain animals can "smell" the water from a great distance. Cattle for example, will stampede over you to get to it. If you see a dragon fly, water is very close nearby. Thanks for the trail report.
Tracks to the 'Blue Spring' guzzler were very sparse with the exception of the big cat prints that went up to it. A few rabbit prints here and there and that is it. It's as if they all knew it was dry. There were a considerable amount of birds chirping that got my hopes up though. This was in stark contrast to my 2019 trip when it was covered with tracks and had water. I did see a couple of BHS prints on the ridge going towards the active guzzler as well as droppings.
FWIW I emailed the CA DWF.
edited by Rocko1 on 11/29/2022
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Rocko1 Posts: 597
11/29/2022
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I got a response back from the environmental CA DFW program manager and he said he would forward the info on the guzzlers to the BHS biologists. He also reiterated some info that we all know about the Pinyon Wash tanks and that they were replaced last year.
edited by Rocko1 on 11/29/2022
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