158 A Visit to Lake Maquata. 



A VISIT TO LAKE MAQUATA. 



It was in August, 1884, that I first learned of the existence of 

 Lake Maquata. Leaving the forest of the pifione pine (Pinus Pan- 

 yana), on the table lands of northern Lower California, behind us, 

 my father and I had descended the abrupt eastern slope of the 

 mountains, into the great Cantilles cafion, among thousands of lovely 

 Blue palms and stately Washington palms that line the bottom of 

 this famous canon, which justly rivals the Yosemite in the beauty 

 and grandeur of its scenery. 



Near the mouth of the cafion, our Indian guide, Captain Jose, told 

 us of the big lake beyond us where thousands of large fish might be 

 had for the catching. He described the fish as fully two feet in 

 length, and very good eating, but told us in Spanish it was a ' long 

 ways ' — I think he said five leagues. We could not prevail upon this 

 unusually intelligent Indian to accompany us to the shores of the 

 lake, and rather reluctantly we retraced our steps from the land of 

 the palms to the region of the pines. 



It was in July, 1884, that the Colorado river floods inundated 

 extensive portions of the New river district, and other sections of 

 the great Colorado basin, or desert, as it is commonly called. Where 

 the Colorado river mingles its water with the Gulf of California are 

 many millions of acres of fertile, alluvial lands but slightly raised 

 above sea level. With a high tide in the Gulf the Colorado river 

 back-waters, and in seasons of unusual summer floods overflows its 

 banks near its mouth for many miles. New river thus had its origin, 

 the overflow forming a channel for itself from the banks of the Colo- 

 rado, in a northerly direction, to the lowest portion of the great 

 depressed basin, which at Salton, on the Southern Pacific railway, is 

 two hundred and fifty feet below the level of the sea. 



Laguna Maquata is a smaller depressed basin, within the area 

 of territory known as the Colorado desert, its northern end lying 

 perhaps ten miles south of the United States boundary, in the Mexi- 

 can territory of Lower or Baja California, between the Peninsula 

 and Cocopah ranges of mountains. Its surface is doubtless below sea 

 level, but the sediment deposited by the muddy waters of the Colorado 

 has created a permanent barrier between it and the Gulf of California, 

 whose waters in the pliocene age unquestionably rolled over the 

 whole region for fully two huudred miles north of its present shores. 



In January and February, 1890, in explorations on horseback on 

 the Colorado desert, I came several times into full view of a portion 

 of Laguna Maquata, which on maps of Baja California is usually 

 designated as muy salada — very salt. At that time it was entirely 

 dry, at least as far as my members of the party I was with could 

 observe in closer inspection which they gave it. Probably in no place 

 does the lake exceed a few — say five — miles in width, but in length, 

 this then dry lagoon apparently extended to the southward for 



