Puerto el Parral

Quote: Originally posted by PaulW

Does not show on caltopo and I am to lazy to see it it appears on older INEGI maps. Huh - the pass to the vines or grapes??? Quite a stretch to place that label at the entrance to the Cinnamon or Canelo valley. So I suppose coming from the east to get to the Parrals then a label is needed.

It indeed does show on the topo map. Zoom in, the label is not over the pass... Just more sloppy D.F. cartography.





[Edited on 5-20-2022 by David K]

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Quote: Originally posted by PaulW   Does not show on caltopo and I am to lazy to see it it appears on older INEGI maps. Huh - the pass to the vines or grapes??? Quite a stretch to place that label at the entrance to the Cinnamon or Canelo valley. So I suppose coming from the east to get to the Parrals then a label is needed. It indeed does show on the topo map. Zoom in, the label is not over the pass... Just more sloppy D.F. cartography.

Quote: Originally posted by PaulW

Does not show on caltopo and I am to lazy to see it it appears on older INEGI maps. Huh - the pass to the vines or grapes??? Quite a stretch to place that label at the entrance to the Cinnamon or Canelo valley. So I suppose coming from the east to get to the Parrals then a label is needed.

CalTopo:

Quote: Originally posted by PaulW

Sure enough I was looking closer to Matomi Goat maybe. On the same image see the label for Picacho el Canelo where the label is upper left. It does not cover up the summit topo lines. Looks like the cartographer just placed Puerto el Parral in a clear flat place where there are no topo lines. Thus it is not evident where the Puerto is really located. Probably not a meaningful place for the label unless it refers to the valley of Canelo?

The original question from Paul was asking about the meaning or history of that name on the Benchmark and Almanac maps...

I tried to provide an answer that also included a reason why El Parral was applied to the "Puerto" there, so far from the original El Parral (ranch, canyon, arroyo), north of Matomí ranch/ canyon.

Just not a lot of originality with these INEGI folks... The name Parral was also used for the pass between the sulfur mine area and Valle Chico! That again was a simple lack of new names to pick from...
Nobody lives around there to provide there own name, either.

Cañon el Parral is applied to both the original (true) canyon in the San Pedro Mártir and to the pass going from Valle Chico across to the old Puertecitos road.

SCORE called it Azufre Wash and Bruce Barber called it Crazy Horse Canyon. I first called it Santa Rosa Canyon in 1978 when I found it and drove through. Maps I had then had called the low range mountain Sierra Santa Rosa.

So, Parral is the name that comes from the canyon with wild grape vines (north of Rancho Matomí) and got applied to all sorts of places for many miles around!

The 1969 Auto Club Map (Sierra Santa Rosa) showing the Canelo and Matomí arroyo junction (no name) that is near the Puerto El Parral label on INEGI maps:

Puerto el Parral may have been an important waypoint during times of bad maps and bad trails
we have to see this in context
in the old days a map was some scribble on a napkin
they were always accompanied by verbal directions
"turn right at the red cliff" etc

El Parral was one of the major points to cross the sierra
to travel between Ensenada (a place of supplies and communication) and the mines on the east shore
El Parral was important because it is one of the few points with reliable water
San Fermin was one of the major map points when traveling east
there are about 50 Puertos and Puertas indicating a gateway on a major trail
a point that should not be missed or lose the trail direction

I believe Puerto El Parral was one of those important points
right at the confluence of Arroyo San Fermin and Arroyo Matomi
one needed to follow Arroyo Matomi

since copying the exact location from old maps into new maps is very difficult without local knowledge, Puerto El Parral is likely a bit off
I think it should be at: 30.494469°, -114.830899°
right at the mouth of the Matomi narrows

one mountain peak in the area also played an important rule
remember - important points were the ones visible for someone on foot
helping to keep one's bearings
the important peak in the area was called Rugged Peak in old maps
later Cerro San Fermin - replaced today by Cerro Los Heme
it is visible throughout most your travel from the mountains above El Parral to Punta San Fermin

Picacho Canelo was added in later maps as an additional reference

the above image is from the 1925 Goldbaum map

below another map showing (kinda) the route to San Fermin
it includes Rugged Peak (Cerro San Fermin)

the first halfway accurate maps were in 1923 by the US military and followed by Gulick and McMahan in the 1950's
unfortunately Gulick did not add the El Parral trail details to his maps
well, that was not the focus of his work

1923-1928--Baja-California--Mexico--US-Army-Maps-Merged--fromUWM.jpeg

notice the pattern of roads and trails between San Quintin and Punta San Fermin
almost a straight line

I have been working on the trails crossing into Matomi and El Parral for some time
definitely a high traffic area in the old days

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Goat, when have you been there? Me, well many times since 1978.

knock yourself out
structure at Puerto El Parral

Quote: Originally posted by David K

Ancient Obsidian from Puerto el Parral (mentioned in this paper by Lee Panich): https://www.academia.edu/19652471/Exploring_Patterns_of_Obsi...

Quote: Originally posted by 4x4abc

Valle de Azufre 27.567168°, -112.580416° El Regino 30.266337°, -114.684866° Puerto El Parral 30.465647°, -114.840669°