b'Siphon continued from page 8Just south of my position was another landmark that was on my list. It was a short, rectangular spire that stood about 5 feet tall and 4 feet wide. The top was flat and angled back toward the draw like a podium. It was easy to see why it had been dubbed "Jacob\'s Pulpit" by some observer who had stumbled upon it in the distant past. Standing behind the spire I could see how one would describe it as a pulpityou could see down to Apache Junction and Mesa and all the way to the San Francisco Peaks on a clear day. It was a beautiful sight. The reds and oranges of the approaching sunset created a beautiful backdrop for my view. All of a sudden I was jerked back to reality reminding myself that I had other things to check out. Daylight was waning fast and I was lollygagging.By now the walk had turned into more of an upwardJacob Waltz, on the other hand, didn\'t arrive in Americaopening behind it. Once there I saw that opening was climb. That brought to mind an old adage that said ifuntil 1839. He traveled around the country from thequite a bit larger than when I first saw it from below. you ever bought a property where when you walked itCarolinas to the California digs until he finally settledObviously, someone had been living there before I your nose hit the ground the same time your feet did,in Phoenix where he later died in 1891. Father Kino\'sarrived. There was evidence of a fire pit full of charred you needed to think about getting your money back. Iflat rock with corner lamp holder, Jesuit gold hype alongwood and bits of trash lying about. There in plain sight was beginning to feel just that way. The boulders andwith links to Jacob Waltz and his lost Dutchman goldabove the opening was an etching roughly 3 feet long rocks were not making my life any easier. Even so, I hadmake for great storytelling fodder, but I fear not veryand a foot tallthere was no mistaking what it wasit to get to the rear of the draw on that northeast end butmuch else. was a dagger, fashioned just like the one on the Peralta before I reached that destination I came upon a large flatStone maps!rock. It had all the earmarks of being a great place to sitSuddenly, breaking into the quiet of the evening,for a minute or two and rest. there was something rooting around in the brush As intriguing as all this was to me, the beautiful colors of and mesquite bushes. There wasn\'t a breath of airthe sunset were fading, which meant evening would be While perched on that flat rock I could see way downmovingI carefully looked around to see what washere quicker than I might like. This trail had been rough through the draw to the valley below, much like whatcausing the ruckus. It was another critter, one that I hadcoming up when there was daylightI shuddered at the I had seen from the pulpit. It was just a higher point ofnever seen in the wild before during any of my venturesthought of going back down in the dark.view. I also noticed that one of the corners of this flatinto the mountain. It was a Ring-tailed cat. These nifty rock had a corner missing. The missing portion createdlittle guys are mammals belonging to the raccoonI retraced my steps back to Kinos flat rock. I knew once a perfectly square pocket that was roughly 6 to 8 inchesfamily and native to the arid climate here in Arizona.there the going would get much easier. It also dawned on square and 2 inches deep. This I believed was part ofThey aren\'t actually cats, but somebody, sometime,me that we were supposed to be in the full moon phases another legend that stated that Father Kino had usedsomewhere tagged them with the name and it stuck.the next few days. I smiled to myself and breathed a little this area for study and contemplation. Supposedly, thisCute though they are, if you come across one, bearsigh. The bright silver light of the moon would afford all was where he sat and the square opening was wherein mind that they do have teeth! I watched him for athe light I needed to see my way home. Unbeknownst he could set his lantern so it did not fall over. This isminute or two and then focused back on my tasks to me at that instant, the moon was about to breach a wonderful little Father Kino story, but I must say itat hand. between the peaks on each side of Siphon Draw. I was in always makes me chuckle. for a major surprise.I still had a few more landmarks to locate. A bit to Folks talk about Waltz\'s gold and Father Kino\'s Jesuitthe north of my flat rock repose was another gullyIt was almost completely dark when I arrived back at gold all in the same breath, as though they wereor offshoot of the main wash, a ravine I suppose youFather Kino\'s rock. I sat down for only a minute, two at compadres or something. Unfortunately, with onlycould call it filled with large boulders. Upon closerthe most, when the moon\'s light stabbed through the a minimal bit of research, several facts jump out atexamination, one of those boulders appeared to bedarkness. Shadows on the walls were a kaleidoscope of you that make clear any questions you might havea huge heart-shaped affair. It was slightly tilted tomoving, dancing shadows. They moved every which-a-concerning these two famous characters from ourone side with the top away from me. Upon closerway. It was mind-boggling trying to keep up with them western history books. examination, I determined that it was a heart-shapedall. But then off to my right, a particular shadow caught rockno doubt about it. It occurred to me that notmy eye. It was moving hurriedly down the ravine. As Father Kino, a Jesuit missionary, was an explorermany people talk about this particular heart rock. MyI watched, it took on the shape of a stooped-over man for sure. He was also a geographer, astronomer andguess would be because they expect the heart stones toin a large sombrero leading a pack animal. This was cartographer.Add to those facts that his tenure on thisbe more like the Peralta Stone map size, nothing nearnot imagination like you experience when you stare earth was from 1645 to 1711. On top of all that, thethis large. I suspect many a hiker has walked by thisat clouds and see shapes. This really was a man and a lost Jesuit/Spanish gold we hear so much about fromrock and never realized it was thereeven to this day. burroplain as could be. They looked to be heading for storytellers around campfires and such is relegated to thethat dark spot or an opening in the wall. I thought about time period much later in the 18th and 19th centuries.I must interject here that when searching for somethe Peralta/Ruth map for a second and how it showed By that time, Father Kino was long gone! of the landmarks (or clues if you will) it is easy to bethat spot as a cabinI wondered.fooled in this Superstition Mountain. If somebody tells you "look for theIn the time it took to blink that thought away, theWindow" or "Eye of the Needle" rockman and his burrow had already traveled down the formations, you can find yourselfwall and disappeared into that dark spot, or cabin, or bumfuzzled real fastand theres mywhatever it was.As quickly as it had begun the show favorite, "watch for Elephant Rock."was over. The moon was now directly overhead moving There are more of these buggers insilently through the starlit night sky. The shadows the wilderness than you can possiblywere all in their assigned places. What was left was the imagine. And when it comes tobrightly moon-lit Siphon Draw trail leading back to the shadows of Indians and panthers,valley below.lions, bears and such, make no mistake, the light during the day, asThe journey back to my truck seemed to take no time well as the moonlight at night, canat all. Once there, I climbed in and just sat for a timeI fool you every time! remember thinking there were still a few things in that draw I had yet to see. There was still Jacob Waltz\' rabbit, Finally, I made my way further up thethe Great Bear guardian, the huge castle abutments, and draw into what appeared to be a boxthe Palmer mine digs. Oh wellthey would have to wait canyon. I could see an outcroppingfor another time. I started the ole truck and headed for that looked like an awning over thethe barn. ArizonaRealCountry.com February 2020 11'