Farming Carrizo Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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Mason jar with log and pen.
Located just down from the
Goodwin Education Center, the sign reads.
Dryland grain farming joined ranching as a major human use of
the Carrizo Plain in 1885 when the first homesteaders began to
settle here. It was not until 1912 and the advent of machanized
agriculture that large scale-farming became possible. In the years
between the two world wars, vast acres of grasland were cultivated
even though the Carrizo's limited and unpredictable rainfall,
averaging 8-10 inches per year, made such ventures risky. The
plow-lines visible today along the foothills bordering the plain
serve as reminders of those former days.
Harvesters (like the ones here) were cumbersome and difficult to
operate, requiring a crew of up to ten men. The earliest harvesters
needed a team of twentysix horses or mules. The machines operated
through the 1940s, eventually being replaced by more efficient
threshers.
If you keep heading south on this road you can travel out to
Painted Rock. Just remember that Painted Rock is closed from
March 1 through July 15 and that includes foot traffic as well.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Wbua Qrrer