Ojo Verde

Dust billowed behind our truck on the road to the green spring. Evening primrose, sagebrush and June grass flourished in the desert, benefiting from a wetter-than-normal spring. We twisted through the valley over a bump-filled road and steep sandy hills.
 
Our journey brought us to a destination seldom visited by anyone. We parked on a slickrock flat and walked down a sandy wash, past cryptobiotic soil, purple flowers and red-blooming cactus.
 
At last we arrived at a shallow canyon nestled between slickrock hills on both sides. A deep and treacherous gully of sand has managed to cut its way through the middle, making passage to the other side nearly impossible. From the banks of the gulley to the base of the slickrock hills grow an abundance of sagebrush and other wild weeds.
 

Looking over Ojo Verde.

This is Ojo Verde, or the green spring as translated from Spanish. It has been a watering hole by many over the years. Just who were the first Europeans to discover it is a mystery that will probably be forever unknown, but the oldest well-documented visit of the site comes from the Macomb Expedition, who camped here in 1859. The Old Spanish Trail, just ten miles away, had been used for years by many people. The historic use of this trail is obscure at best.
 
Referring to the Old Spanish Trail, Macomb stated that it had not been accurately laid down upon any map. He then adds: “This trail is much talked of as have being the route of commerce between California and Mexico in the days of the old Spanish rule.”
 
I came with my dad and a couple of his friends. There are only a select few that even know that Ojo Verde exists, let alone the location. Paul, who's now walking on feeble legs and caring for a wife with Alzheimer's, was our trusty guide. He knows more about the history of San Juan County than almost anyone else.
 
I suppose there is also an element of speculation as to the exact location of Ojo Verde. Knowledge has been lost over the years, and there are no inscriptions that directly link this spot with the Macomb group. But if our location was off, it wasn't off by far. And there is absolutely no doubt that this spot has been used by cowboys for over a hundred years.
 

Inscription at Ojo Verde.

Old photo of inscriptions near Ojo Verde. Dates from 1902 and 1894.

Ojo Verde lies in a draw of slickrock, about 600 feet from one side to the other. Within the draw there is vegetation for livestock and at one time, supposedly, there was a small lake. Just where the lake was located I don't know. It has long since washed away. Along the west side is an alcove where the explorers and cowboys likely cooked meals and set up camp. Now it is littered with antique debris and a few growths of poison ivy. Along the cliff walls are a few inscriptions. The first time I came here I found one written in charcoal dated 1902 with a small sketch of a cowboy. Another more faint was dated July 27, 1894. For some reason I was unable to locate those same inscriptions this time.
 
The remnants of what appear to be the walls of a cabin are still standing. There are also the posts of what may have been a corral. As I mentioned before, a huge gulley has been carved through the middle of the draw, making it nearly impossible to cross to the other side. I believe the site has been greatly disfigured by Mother Nature from how it appeared two centuries ago.
 

John N. Macomb.

The Macomb Expedition, officially known as the San Juan Exploring Expedition, of 1859 came in the wake of the Utah War, a period of intense conflict and suspicion between the Federal Government and Mormons of the Utah Territory. During this period came the tragedy of the Mountain Meadows Massacre and also the march of Johnston's Army into the Salt Lake Valley where they established Camp Williams.
 
John N. Macomb led a group of men from Santa Fé, New Mexico with primarily a two-fold purpose: 1) To find a new supply route to the Salt Lake Valley via a pathway near the confluence of the Green and Colorado (then known as the Grand) Rivers, and 2) To conduct scientific studies and surveys along the way.
 
It is interesting that just two days before arriving at Ojo Verde, Dr. John S. Newberry, a scientist and physician in the group, discovered massive fossilized dinosaur bones high on a cliff-face near East Canyon. The discovery was the first of its kind. On their return trip they excavated the bones and hauled them to Santa Fé on the backs of mules. Today the partial skeleton is in the paleontology collection of the Smithsonian Institution.
 

Casa Colorado on the Old Spanish Trail. Sketch by Charles H. Dimmock.

A few miles down the trail the group came to a large sandstone butte with intricately carved alcoves on the southern side. It is called Casa Colorado, or Colored House, and was a landmark on the Old Spanish Trail. Some of the large stone basins in the expansive slickrock created good watering holes for those passing by. Macomb and his group appreciated the aesthetic appeal of the rock and halted to explore and sketch pictures of it.
 
Up to this point the group had followed the Old Spanish Trail, but it was now time to divert and head west toward the confluence of the Green and Colorado Rivers. A group of men were sent west to scout for a suitable location to set up camp. They found a location ten miles away—Ojo Verde.
 
At Ojo Verde Macomb set up a base camp from which they would set out to explore the region near the confluence. On August 20, 1859, Newberry wrote in his diary the following: “Scouts report good camp 10 miles west. Cross dry barren country to Ojo Verde, a beautiful green bottomed cañon with steep rocky banks—fine spring—good grass.—Encamp in heavy rain.”
 
Charles Dimmock, another member who kept a valuable journal, gives no description in his record. He only states, “Reached camp—El Ojo Verde—in the midst of one of the hardest rains in the region.” Ojo Verde also became known as Camp No. 28.
 
The next day was spent in camp waiting for the advance scouts who were sent ahead “to see the practicability of the trail to the junction of Grand [Colorado] & Green Rivers . . .” They returned on the 21st and declared “the trail as utterly impracticable for our packs.” They did not reach the confluence.
 

Remnants of what may have been an old cabin.

It was determined that a small group, which included Macomb, Dimmock, Newberry, two Mexican cooks and a few others would make the trek toward the confluence the following day. They made their preparations and retired to bed early “in view of the fatigues ahead.”
 
To summarize, the group spent the next two days riding into the area now known as Canyonlands National Park. They “passed between walls varying in height from 800 to 1200 ft. eroded into all imaginable curves, shapes & fancies.” They plodded along modern Indian Creek, crossing it 270 times. “The banks of the stream vary from ten to fifteen feet in height & are so perpendicular that when our mules slide down we cling by the cantle of the saddle to avoid going over their heads.”
 
When they could go no further they decided to climb a mesa to gain a better view. “Starting with our usual clothing the intolerable heat & difficulties of ascent soon forced us to shed by degrees article after article, until at last the summit was reached & exultingly stood upon, by three men stripped to shirts, draws & boots.”
 
Of the view from the top, Charles Dimmock recorded: “All our labor found its reward, when on looking around there met our eyes such a view as is not to be seen anywhere else on earth. But few, if any other whites, were ever the beholders of so magical a variety of towering sierra-like mesas, deep cut canyons, penetrating in all directions, into whose depths the rays of the sun at midday can only fall. In the distance—to the south—the mesas, broken into isolated pinnacles & clustered, castled, summits gave the effect of a grander city than dream land contains. The colors varying from the darkest brown of the old red sandstone pass through the changes of richest tone to chocolate light.”
 
In spite of the grand view, the trip to the top of the hill only confirmed that any possible route to the confluence would be impossible. The group assumed they were just two miles from the confluence, but modern historians now conclude they were just over eight. The worn-out group now retraced their steps back to Camp No. 28.
 

Alcove littered with antique debris.

They arrived again at Ojo Verde on August 24, “glad as possible to get safely back, having happily met with no Indians. All at camp greeted with cheerful smiles & congratulations whose influences tended very materially to aid digestion at supper.”
 
The San Juan Exploring Expedition spent the next two days camped at Ojo Verde. The first of the two days they were met with a group of Sheberetch Utes, also known as Elk Mountain Utes. This band of Indians lived in the area of the La Sal Mountains, near present-day Moab. There is a mystery that surrounds them because around the year 1872 they seemed to disappear. No one knows for sure what happened to them, but some speculate that a scourge killed many and the remainder migrated to the Uintah Reservation where they integrated with the Northern Utes.
 
On August 25, 1859, Charles Dimmock recorded the encounter in his diary: “At bed time, last night, the sentinel stopped, at the mouth of the cañon, a party of 18 Utes, headed by the father of the Indian who had acted as guide to the Grand River. It was thought advisable to make the Indians camp at the mouth of the cañon & allow them to come in the morning. . . Presents made the Utes which they think to be hardly their due.” Adding to the commentary, Newberry wrote the following on the same day: “Their insolence & importunity dissatisfaction with the presents given them.—The heaps of tobacco given them by other Americans.”
 

Macomb's group may have taken shelter from rain under this overhang.

Thursday, August 26 brought heavy rainfall at Ojo Verde. The crew likely took shelter in the overhang of the canyon. They had hoped to pack up and move to their next camp, but rain persisted until 1 pm, making it too late to leave.
 
Of the weather Dimmock wrote: “Rain nearly all night—ceasing before breakfast. We had our tables placed out doors, when just as our seats were taken the big drops began to rattle a roll-call on our tin plates & cups. Thanks, however, to India rubber coats we got quite comfortable through, though an infusion of rain water does not improve tea nor wetting add to the credibility of biscuit.”
 
By evening the sky cleared and they engaged in horse-racing, presumably with the Indians as it is a popular sport among the Northern Utes. I am curious to know where and how far they raced. There doesn't seem to be sufficient room within the walls of Ojo Verde and most of the terrain nearby is not flat.
 

Sketch of a sheep horn by Charles Dimmock.

Also on this day Charles Dimmock made a sketch of a “Horn of the Rocky Mountain Sheep” at “El Ojo Verde, Utah Territory.” He remarked that the horn's outer curve measured 30 inches.  

We spent a couple hours at Ojo Verde just poking around and seeing what we could find. There are remnants of a cabin, as well as an old corral. We found a lot of bullet casings, including a .44 Winchester, which was introduced in 1873. My dad found two horseshoes and Lloyd discovered the handle to a frying pan.—We also came across a rusty shovel and old square-cut nails.

Sometime—probably decades after the Macomb group camped there—Ojo Verde and it's vicinity became the site of the Hatch Ranch. I will admit that I know nothing of this history and have accepted the challenge to figure it out.
 

It was now time for us to go. Paul had to get back to his wife in Monticello, and Lloyd was about to run out of gas, so we had to follow him—just-in-case.
 
Now in sweltering heat we walked over dirt and slickrock out of the draw and up-hill toward the vehicles. Desert Primrose blossomed above the sand. In the distance, snow lingered on remote mountain peaks. ♠ 

 



Source for historical information, photo and sketches of Macomb Expedition:

Madsen, Steven K. Exploring Desert Stone. Utah State University, 2010.