Ghost Fort Churchill

In 1860 a series of events at a place called Williams Station in Nevada sparked off a battle near Pyramid Lake between Paiute Indians and whites from the area in and around Virginia City. The first battle resulted in the deaths of 76 whites. (see the explanation right) Until Custer's defeat at Little Bighorn sixteen years later this was the largest casualty of whites at the hands of Native Americans. A second retaliatory battle resulted in the deaths of about 160 Paiutes. As a result of these troubles and also to protect the Pony Express, a fort was established on the Carson River along the Emigrant Trail. It was called Fort Churchill after Brigadier General Sylvester Churchill, the Inspector General of the US Army at that time.

During the years my books are set, the presence of soldiers at Fort Churchill was an important aspect of Virginia City life. The fort was abandoned in 1870, only ten years after it was established, and is now a ghost town. Or perhaps we should call it a "Ghost Fort". I wanted to see it because I like to stand in the places my books are set to get a feel for the terrain and atmosphere.

So on Thursday 5 May 2011, my sister "Hawkeye" and my husband "Goes the Wrong Way" and I set off from Virginia City just after 9.00am. Our silver Jeep takes us down Six Mile Canyon. Instead of turning north on highway 50 we carry straight on over, as our innkeepers have advised us, staying on Fort Churchill Road. At first it's paved but soon turns to gravelly dirt. As our innkeepers promised, the road is deserted and beautiful, following the course of the Carson River. Large cottonwoods line the banks and grouse run among the sage brush. We can see the snowy peaks of the Sierra Nevada mountains away to the west. 

At one point we stop and get out to look around. The sun is warm, the breeze is soft, the world is silent. We see grouse and squirrels, ducks and geese. There aren't many bugs up in Virginia City but there are plenty down here by the river. I have to shake them out of my hair before I get back in our Jeep. 

Fort Churchill National Park is marked by a flagpole and a gem of a visitors' center. The adobe ruins of barracks, storehouses and other fort buildings blend perfectly into the landscape. We are surrounded by mountains on every side and I understand why they offer star gazing evenings here on special occasions. There would be virtually no light pollution. A small but clear exhibit in the museum shows the layout of the camp and even tells us something about the plants of the region. After the fort was decommissioned, a local resident called Buckland bought it for only $750. He used timber, staircases, etc to build Buckland's Station. He and his wife had five children, all of whom died in infancy or childhood. Their gravestones can still be seen at the cemetery at Fort Churchill. 

After a good look around I convince "Hawkeye" to drive us to Pyramid Lake. My iPhone promises the journey will take less than an hour. (My iPhone turns out to be right) The road north through Silver Springs takes us through barren brown hills with virtually no trees. It is hauntingly beautiful. My great, great, great grandparents came from Battle Mountain. I've never been there but the landscape looks similar from pictures I've seen. About 45 minutes later we pass into the Indian reservation and shortly after that crest a rise to see a turquoise lake with a brown pyramid shaped island in the center. This is Pyramid Lake, bigger than Tahoe, almost more barren than Mono. A thousand pelicans flock at its southern end. It reminds me of scenes from sci-fi films of alien planets. 

A strange building that looks like steps rises up from the sagebrush horizon. This is a new visitors' center for the lake, designed to look like the pyramid at the center. Unfortunately it's closed, but a sign outside gives us lots of information. We drive up to a village called Sutcliffe but "Hawkeye" and "Goes" are not as enchanted with the lake as I am, so soon we are on the road back to Reno. 

Pictures below of Fort Churchill etc. 

plan of Fort Churchill

view of the ruins with sign identifying what's what

Visitor's center at Fort Churchill

portrait of Gen. Sylvester Churchill

Captain Stewart's quarters. See the spittoon?

Pyramid Lake visitor center sign

Mountains on the road from Pyramid Lake to Reno

Back to Virginia City

[The Case of the Deadly Desperados is an exciting adventure mystery set in and around Virginia City in the year 1862. This Western Mystery for kids aged 9 - 90 is available in hardback, Kindle and audio download. It will be published by G.P. Putnam's Sons in the USA in February.]

Old Carson City

Caroline at the B St B&B

Carolyn Eichin of the B Street B&B is an extraordinary woman. Not only is she a superb cook, preparing the best breakfasts Richard and I have ever eaten, but she's an expert on Nevada history. She and her charming husband Chris told us about a lecture at the Nevada Textiles Archive in Carson City on the morning of Wednesday 3 May. After our exhausting adventure at Bodie it's nice to drive a couple of miles and hear about women's bonnets and men's top hats. I'm not allowed to post any pictures but I get some good ideas for hats to plonk on my characters' heads.

Nevada State Museum

After the lecture we're shown the archives and delight in other period pieces of clothing. Then it's off to the Nevada State Museum, a modern black glass building next to the Carson City Mint. It's a great exhibition with lots of the types of artefacts I love. Some sarsaparilla bottles, a stereoscopic viewer with an 1860s photo of Devil's Gate (on the road to Virginia City) and lots of buttons. I'm especially excited about the hundreds of buttons because in the second Western Mystery we discover that P.K. Pinkerton, my hero, is obsessed with collecting things. Like bugs, bullets and buttons. There is also a Smith & Wesson 7-shooter, P.K.'s gun. (see bottom of this blog for pix)

Orion Clemens house in Carson City

After the museum we take the walking tour of Old Carson City. Chris mentioned it as something worthwhile and is it ever! Especially on a beautiful spring day like today. They give us a map at the museum, but even if you didn't have the walking map you can follow the handy blue line painted onto the sidewalk. I especially wanted to see the house Orion Clemens lived in. He was Mark Twain's older brother, and secretary to Governor Nye in the early 1860s.

horsehead hitching post 

We also see the house from John Wayne's final film, The Shootist, along with houses belonging to characters who might appear in future Western Mysteries. After the challenge of high-altitude Bodie it is a joy to stroll through the leafy Victorian neighborhood of Old Carson City.

Back to Virginia City in time for tea at the B Street B&B. Carolyn gives me an 1974 dissertation on Police, Water and Fire Departments in early Virginia City so I can get to grips with the structure of the town in the early 1860s. There aren't many places in the world where you can eat homemade tropical fruit macaroons and peruse a scholarly article both provided by the same talented lady. The B Street B&B is simply superb.

P.K. is partial to sarsaparilla

Badges weren't known in Virginia City until 1874

P.K. is obsessed with collecting things... like buttons

Stereoscopic viewer with picture of Devil's Gate

A Smith & Wesson 7-shooter just like P.K.'s

Bodie

Bodie, ghost town of the gold fever era

Ghost town experts will tell you that Bodie is one of the best if not THE best ghost town in the world. Located near Mono Lake on the California Nevada border, it was one of those old mining towns that sparked up like a flame, burnt brightly with gold fever, then flickered and died.

Bodie is off the beaten track. On Tuesday 3 May 2011, it was particularly off the beaten track. Melting snow and mud meant visitors had to walk the last mile and a half of the dirt road just to reach the town. Parts of the road were dry, parts muddy quagmires, parts covered with snow that threatened to slip you up or swallow your foot up to mid shin as it broke through the icy crust. The high altitude makes your heart pump and has you gasping for air. It took us nearly an hour to walk that mile and a half.

Once there we found the town only accessible in parts. Icy streams gushed on either side of the path and parts were marshy with water. Snow drifts huddled up against the northern exposures of crooked houses and buildings. The best footwear would have been Wellington boots as it was slippery, wet, treacherous. Of about a dozen other explorers, only a few wore adequate footwear. A German couple wore waxed hiking boots but I saw one girl in sandals and a young man had decided to go barefoot rather than ruin his shoes.

But it was worth it. This is what Virginia City would have looked like in about 1860, when the tents had given way to wood buildings but brick or stone edifices were still rare. Certain vistas reminded me of Grafton T. Brown's 1861 lithograph of Virginia City, where you can see outhouses and mine equipment behind frame houses on a steep hill. The boardwalk at Bodie was welcome and when we arrived in Virginia City later that day I realized how deadly her steep streets would have been with icy snow and mud on them.

The firehouse at Bodie was especially gratifying because it still had some hose carriages and jumpers inside, plus a row of hanging coal oil lamps. Here are a few more pictures of this amazing ghost town of the gold-fevered West.

Bodie's Firehouse on a snowy spring day

Coal oil lamps in Bodie's firehouse

Bodie's firehouse with Mine Buildings behind

On Bodie's boardwalk 3 May 2011

Richard & Jennifer enjoying a breather

Eastern Sierra Adventure

Robber's Roost on the 395

The Cowboy Poetry Festival is over and it's Monday morning. Time for our road trip up the Eastern Sierra Nevada mountains to Virginia City, where I want to do some more research on my Western Mysteries series of books for kids.

My sidekick is my husband Richard. His Indian name is "Goes the Wrong Way". My Indian name is "Stands in Confusion". So it's just as well that my sister Jennifer is with us. Her Indian name is "Hawkeye". If we were on a wagon train west, "Goes" and I would be the ones travelling in circles and just missing all the waterholes. Hawkeye would be our driver, scout and hunter. She's the one who sees all the little critters on the ground even though she's busy driving.

Which brings us to our transport. It's a cramped rental with a parsimonious front window. Front window size is important for me, because I have to be in the back seat. But Hawkeye rings the car rental agency in Valencia and asks if she can change it. They say yes. She and I drive there to find our proper transport waiting happily. An adventurous little silver Jeep. And nobody else has reserved it. We can have it if we want it. We do.

Every long journey must begin with farewell to family and a fortifying meal. So Hawkeye, Goes and I meet my Santa Clarita family for brunch at the Egg Plantation. What a great place! The English manager gives us our own private area out back and we have a real pioneer meal of three egg omellettes, pancakes and coffee and EVERYBODY IS HAPPY. Bittersweet farewells to those we have to leave behind then off to Adventure in our silver Jeep.

An hour or two later we are heading east on Highway 14. Our first Adventure is spotting Vasquez Rocks off to the north of the highway. Hawkeye is a relaxed sort of person and has never been there before, so we nip off the highway and find it. Vasquez Rocks are famous for being the location of many, many films, especially Star Trek films. Especially the episode Arena, where Kirk battles a Gorn. (left) When "Goes" and I went on the Santa Clarita Valley film tour, our guide was telling us about some funky cafes in the area and I thought he mentioned one called the "Gorn Cafe". When I found out I misheard I was so disappointed. "Gorn Cafe" denied!

After Acton, Highway 14 turns north and takes you past the towns of Palmdale and Acton. Edwards Airforce base is on your right and Reefer City a blur on the left. After Mojave you start seeing Joshua trees and now you are in the desert proper. At Indian Wells near Inyokern we join up with the 395, which will take us virtually the rest of the way.

Red Rock Canyon takes us all by surprise, even Hawkeye. There is nobody else there, just a pair of fishermen packing up their tackle. Like Vasquez Rocks, it's another favorite with Hollywood. Films like Jurassic Park, Westworld and The Mummy were all shot here. One of the fishermen tells us not to miss Lone Pine further up the road. It's the site of a movie museum. We look at Red Rock Canyon, then pile back in our silver Jeep.

Then one of those straight highways right out of the American Myth. An empty ribbon of road stretching to the horizon with desert, mountains, a blue sky... and a Free Ghost town? Whiskey Flats is owned by Roscoe and his bitch Precious. You have to stop and visit his Antique Shop. The sign outside says: Buy Something. Buy Anything! I love the way he labels everything with signs: Hanging Tree, Cowboy Tower, Jail, House, Wagon. He came to say hi even though he's closed on Mondays. An historic plaque tells us this used to be known as Mojave Station.

Lone Pine is a gem of a town on a flat ribbon of highway with the Sierra Nevadas rearing up on one side and farms and ranches on the other. It is another popular spot for movie makers and every September is host to the Lone Pine Film Festival. You will also find the Beverley & Jim Rogers Museum of Film History. Full of posters, props and other memorabilia of B, C and D Westerns and other films made here. It shouldn't have come as a surprise that part of Iron Man was filmed here. Those mountains aren't Afghanistan. They're the Eastern Sierra Nevadas.  Jagged, blue, snow-capped, breathtaking.

Iron Man was filmed near Lone Pine, not Afghanistan

After Lone Pine, the 395 chases the exciting West Walker River which jumps and froths and leaps, full of all that icy snowmelt. This is the place to put on your waist high rubber boots and go fishing for trout. We take a quick detour to Mammoth Lakes, which is a big disappointment. It's bristling with hotels and ski lodges... but nary a lake. Quickly back on the 395 to Lee Vining, the town on the shores of America's Dead Sea, Mono Lake. We arrive around 8.00 at dusk. It is cold and crisp up here with snow on the mountains and the scent of pine resin.

There are a handful of motels there but only one place to eat, Nicely's. This will be our stopping place before we press on to Virginia City.

Cowboy Fest 2011

Yee-haw! Another ripsnorting weekend at the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival!

Even before the weekend started we took a Tour of Santa Clarita Valley film studios and sights on Thursday 28 April and on Friday evening we attended the Melody Ranch Movie Night, a fun open-air dinner on main street of a western town, followed by a screening of the film "Stagecoach".

My highlights of the weekend proper were the Behind the Scenes Tour of Melody Ranch. We found out where Al Swearengen drank his coffee, where Wu kept his pigs and lots of other fascinating facts about the history of the site.

A new event sponsored by Buckaroo Book Shop (AKA OutWest) were some literary panels. I especially loved the discussion of True Grit, comparing the two films to the book. It was chaired by C. Courtney Joyner who told us things I never knew, e.g. that Charles Portis himself wrote the alternate ending for the John Wayne version of the film!

I was there with my husband Richard and sister Jennifer. We heard some of our favorite musicans, like the Brass Band of California who are always lively, funny and accurate. (I got some tips about 1860s Music Hall traditions.) We also managed to catch Wylie and the Wild West and the Hot Club of Cowtown. I missed Sourdough Slim and his saw-playing sidekick, but Richard and Jennifer loved them.

It was great to meet re-enactors like the Buffalo Soldiers and Ann Dinsdale, (above), who was spinning and weaving on the porch next to Sheriff Bullock's house.

The merchandise was another highlight, too. I was tempted by a coyote pelt, but ended up buying a beautiful carpetbag from Jerry Tarantino. I can use it to carry my spittoon to school events and literary festivals when I promote my Western Mysteries in costume.

Food'n'drink were great, too. There's nothing like drinking coffee from a tin mug and eating peach cobbler while listening to Don Edwards over on the Main Stage.

It was great to meet some old friends and also to make new ones. I've never been anywhere as friendly and fun as the Cowboy Festival. Here Here are some pictures to give you an idea of the fun we had! Yee-haw!

Punk cowboys were in evidence!

John Hustead lassoes us!

Wild Bill Hickock got himself a Lady friend!

Scrimshaw Rick shoots, skins and makes his clothes himself!

Some people were totally authentic!

But everybody had a great time. Can't wait till 2012... Yee-haw!

Melody Ranch Movie Night 2011

Last year (2010) my faithful sidekick Richard and I had a great time at the Melody Ranch Movie Night. It's part of the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival my husband and I are attending. This is the one weekend a year you can tread the streets of Gunsmoke and HBO's Deadwood. As we're back at the festival we signed up for this year's movie night, Friday 29 April 2011. Once again, we had a great time.

Last year we got rides to and from the shuttle pick-up point thanks to the kindness of strangers. This year, too. Show cowboy John Hustead gave us a ride there in his pickup truck and Agua Dulce residents Paul and Carrie Riley gave us a lift back. Thanks, kind strangers who are now friends!

Last year we got a thrill arriving on the streets of "Deadwood" at sunset. Same thrill this year.

Last year we met some great Western movie fans. Some in costume, some not. Among them was western reporter Mark Bedor who told us to go to White Stallion Dude Ranch in Arizona. This year we were able to tell him we had followed his advice!

Last year I bought a fancy fringed buckskin jacket made by Tribe. This year I wore it and got lots of compliments. That jacket is a great ice-breaker.

Last year we ate some delicious food: salads, fried chicken, roast pork & beans, plus coffee in a souvenir mug. Same this year: the food was excellent.

Last year we watched "High Noon" after a fascinating introduction to the film. This year we saw "Stagecoach" after hearing an original ode to John Wayne, composed and recited by Larry Maurice.

Last year we enjoyed the comments, applause and laughter of a lively crowd. Same this year. Especially some of the comments offered up.

2011's Melody Ranch Movie Night was a great night out. Just like last year. Only one small fly in the ointment: it got durned chilly sitting out there on the Main Street of Deadwood. But you pays your money and you takes your chances. Next time I'll bring something to keep me warm. Now what was the cowboy version of a hot water bottle? 

Santa Clarita Films

This year the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival offered a new event - the SCV (Santa Clarita Valley) Film Tour.

Santa Clarita Valley, on the outskirts of LA, is like Hollywood's back yard. It has been used for films since the beginning of the film industry in Southern California. Some have even dubbed this area "Newhall-ywood". (Newhall is one of the several towns that make up the city of Santa Clarita.) The 55 of us who had booked the tour met at Heritage Junction, the old Railway station. There we watched a few clips from movies filmed at the station itself (e.g. Frank Sinatra in Suddenly, Charlie Chaplin in The Pilgrim and John Cusack in The Grifters) as well as scenes from the surrounding area. The most popular clip was that of Kirk fighting a Gorn at Vasquez Rocks, from a Classic Star Trek episode, Arena. After the clips, we filed out to the waiting bus, popping our tickets into a spittoon & getting a brown bag snack in return.

Our guide was E.J. Stephens, a knowledgable and enthusiastic lecturer from the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society. We spent an hour at the NCIS set at Valencia Studios then another two hours driving around the hills while E.J. pointed out features of interest.

Here are fifteen fascinating facts I learned from the tour:

1. Apart from Melody Ranch (the venue of the Cowboy Festival) there are dozens of other film ranches and studios dotted around Santa Clarita: Valencia Studios, Blue Cloud Ranch, Sable Ranch, Disney's Golden Oak Ranch, Firestone Ranch, to name a few. Many residents are totally unaware of their existence.

2. NCIS is filmed at Valencia Studios. Set designer Lynn Wolverton Parker generously spent an hour showing us the sets and props, which was fun for fans of the series.

3.The final sequence in the very last silent film was shot on the Sierra Highway: Charlie Chaplin and Paulette Goddard walking into the sunrise in the film Modern Times.

4. The hit TV series Justified is not filmed in Harlan County, Kentucky, but right here at Santa Clarita Studios.

5. The high school in Pleasantville is Valencia High School.

6. James Dean possibly ate his last meal at Tip's Restaurant (now Marie Callender's)

7. Some scenes of Twilight (those meant to be Arizona) were filmed in and around the Hyatt Valencia.

8. The Halfway House Cafe (halfway between L.A. and Palmdale) has appeared in so many films that they have a whole page of film clips and stills on their website.

9. The Birds actress Tippi Hedren has a big cat sanctuary called Shambala in the hills. Sometimes you can catch a glimpse of lions on the metrolink train just before it gets into Palmdale.

10. The famous Vasquez Rocks are named after a bandit who hid out there for a while. He was later hung.

11. The man in the Gorn suit is named Bobby Clarke and still lives in Santa Clarita.

12. There is a gibbon preserve up in the hills near Vasquez Rocks.

13. Steven Spielberg filmed most of his first movie, Duel, on the roads around Santa Clarita Valley. At the end of the film, the demon truck falls over dramatic cliff at Mystery Mesa on Agua Dulce Movie Ranch.

14. Mystery Mesa has also featured in Iron Man, Thor, etc. According to E.J., it was saved from development thanks to the presence of "sea monkeys", an amazing type of brine shrimp that can lie dormant for years until water is added and they revive. If a film-maker ever needs a handy cliff, that's the place to go.

15. Beale's Cut (above) was is a deep cut in a pass made by Phineas Banning in 1854 as part of a road he built to provide service to Fort Tejon. Originally made for real stagecoaches, it appears in the 1939 John Wayne film Stagecoach and many others. Today it is on private property. 

Thanks to E.J., his wife Kimi, Lynn Wolverton Parker, the organizers at the Cowboy Festival and the Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society for a great tour!

Richard and Caroline at Valencia Studios

Lesson Plan Ideas

Great lesson plan ideas for reading the Roman Mysteries from half a dozen clever sixth grade students from Lebanon Middle School. This term they were reading Roman Mystery #3, The Pirates of Pompeii, with Mr. Klosowski.

Hi, my name is Catherine... I attend Lebanon Middle school in the small town of Lebanon, Connecticut. I just recently finished your outstanding book, "The Pirates of Pompeii". My reading teacher's name is Mr. K and he has read a little bit of another of your amazing books, "The Thieves of Ostia"... When we were assigned "The Pirates of Pompeii", we were given about six scrolls every Wednesday. On Monday when we came back from school, we would have a test on the reading that was due. These tests included about 2 to 4 questions. The tests would see if we had read over the weekend or not. Mr. K would also give us comprehension questions and vocab questions. I thought the vocab questions were very handy because some words such as brazier confused me on what they meant. We would take a good guess at what the word meant, and when we all finished, Mr. K would give us the real definition for us to fill in on the back. One thing that was due when we were all done was the character chart. It would have the names of each important character and we would have to fill in the following: physical description, personality and skills, and the character's actions. Last but not least, we would have a simile worksheet that had different similies from the story. We would have to illustrate what we thought it meant...
Catherine


Once I started reading it, I wanted to keep going from the assignment that Mr. K gave us. He set a certain amount of pages for us to read, and I found it hard that I had to stop reading at a page filled with so much creativity to put it down and do something else. We had to do certain activities along with the book that I enjoyed a lot. One of them was a vocabulary page where we had to find out the meaning of a word. I found this interesting... Seeing how Jonathan and Flavia used the word, I could really relate to it because it gives me a good visual picture in my head. Some of the words I really use today, and I prefer these words to ones I have kown, but am striding for newer and better ones... Your book was more interesting than a boring textbook... history just came alive!
Giana

The reason why I think everybody likes your book so much is because you added so much suspense and action. I personally think that the book is up there with my top 10 favorite books I've read in my life. And the reason why it is my favorite book is because you added so much action. I'm sure you know that every class assignment comes with either homework to do at night, or a little bit of class work during the day. Our teacher would give us a quiz just to make sure we read that week... On these assignments I do pretty well, but sometimes I have my ups and downs with my reading homework. Most of the time I will get 90s and above... As I was reading your book, I noticed that Jonathan and Lupus have some things in common with me. Jonathan is a good shot with his sling shot. When it comes to throwing things at  animals or trees, I can do the same thing... You know how Lupus is good at diving into the water for things? I can do the same thing here at my house when I'm swimming in my pond...
Colton

The work my class has been doing on this book is comprehension questions, character charts, and simile pages. The comprehension questions are about what happened and why in the last few chapters to better understand the story. Also the character chart includes physical descriptions, actions describing the person and characteristics about the main characters. Another page we do is the simile page, where we take some of the creative similes you included in your story and talk about what they mean. On these pages I have mainly gotten 100% due to your easy to understand book. We have also watched a few of the Roman Mysteries television shows. I thought the characters looked a lot like the characters in the book. It was so interesting to see a chapter book like the Roman Mysteries, which is so vivid, become a television show... In social studies we will soon be learning about ancient Rome. "The Pirates of Pompeii" gave me a lot of background knowledge about that time in Rome. Things like the Roman beliefs, myths, and the way things were with patrons and slaves...Titus was also a character in your story that was a real person in Ancient Rome, a person who my class will be learning about soon.
Julia

I am currently reading the sixth book in the series, The Twelve Tasks of Flavia Gemina. It is very exciting and hard to put down. I also love the way it's elaborately linked to the twelve labors of Hercules. I have not finished reading it yet, but so far my favorite part is when Jonathan and Lupus are hunting an ostrich with Aristo. I could actually imaging the story in my head because there was so much detail. When I am reading it feels like I am watching a movie in my head.
Elijah

I have many questions for you about many things. Are you working on a new book now? Is it related to The Roman Mysteries or is it a totally different book? Was it hard coming up with so many ideas for this book or do they just come to you? Do you spend a lot of time with your family while you are writing a book or do you stay at your desk a lot? Do you do much research for these books and does it take a while to gather it all? Also, what do you use to find the information? Do you get writers block or do you rarely get it? When the teacher assigns a writing assignment, I usually get a good start but then I run out of ideas. Could you give me advice like some way to get it flowing?
Olivia

For some more great letters from another class of Lebanon Middle School sixth graders, go HERE.

Sweetgrass

This is my Western decade, and I'm embracing it in every way I can. That's why my ears pricked up when I heard one of my favourite film podcasters praise a documentary about sheep farming in Montana. Then last week I went to the Renoir Cinema in Bloomsbury to watch Meek's Cutoff and they showed this charming trailer for the film that had piqued my curiosity last year: Sweetgrass.

The scenes in the trailer are the opening scenes of the film and that is what brought me back to the Renoir three days later for a screening of Sweetgrass followed by a Q&A with one of the filmmakers. Lucien Castaing-Taylor is a thoughtful, bearded Englishman now based out of Harvard. He introduces the film by warning us that we are in for two hours of sheep with no talking. In fact the film is well under two hours and there is plenty of dialogue between the two main shepherds. But yes, it is mainly watching sheep from the time of shearing through lambing through taking them up into the mountains for the summer and then bringing them back to a holding pen near the train tracks, so they can be shipped off for slaughter.

One of my favourite scenes can be seen in the trailer. In the farmyard, the shepherd rises up on the horizon and calls his sheep. They slow down, turn, one or two of the most clued-up start towards him. Soon a great, woolly, bleating, adorable mass of them flock after the shepherd. Ah. Bless. They know his voice. Just like Jesus says: "My sheep know my voice." Oh, wait. There's a tractor behind them, urging them in the right direction. Lol.

As they swarm after him, the sheep baa enthusiastically and loudly. There is something wonderful about the sound of sheep. They say "Baaa!" but they say it just like a human. It is comical and endearing.

It's no wonder that in the New Testament, 23.5% of Jesus's parables (my guestimate) have to do with sheep. We identify with them. We like them. They are woolly headed, thick and usually hungry. They like to clump together. But they can be ornery critters and spread out, when the mood takes them. Just like us.

In the Q&A after the film, Lucien is his own worst critic. He says the first 20 minutes of the film are the best. They are, but there are some gems in the following hour or so. He says the sound is too rich, dense, textured and dramatic. I think he's wrong on that score. The sound is wonderfully done. Especially when he shows us stupendous wide angle vistas but we can hear John grunting, muttering and urging his horse Jake to "watch your step". And the intense sounds put us right there in the Beartooth Mountains.

In a throwaway comment, Lucien mentions that the shearing scene is distressing for the viewer. Again, I disagree. You can clearly see that the sheep quietly submit to the firm, confident grasp of their shearers. There is something wonderful about seeing the shaggy outer layer sheared off; each swipe leaves a textured track and the sheep look like courdouroy when they're pushed out into the watery spring sunlight. Then the filmmakers poignantly cut to a shot of the newly-sheared sheep standing miserably in a spring snowstorm and the camera holds on them for several minutes. They do not complain, but one of them looks accusingly out at us. That's the distressing scene.

Some of the questions the audience put to Lucien were about the two main shepherds, craggy old John and peevish Pat. Lucien almost batted aside the question, saying he wanted the focus of film to be on the sheep, not the shepherds. I'm with the filmmaker on this one. The humans are prosaic. It's the sheep that are poetic.

People don't usually identify with cattle (unless we're on a crowded tube train) but we do identify and empathise with sheep, and this gives the whole idea of a Western "cattle drive" a new twist. Instead of identifying with the "cowboy" we identify with the critters they are herding. We are the flock being driven, trusting that our shepherd will be patient and loving like Jesus, not angry and frustrated like Pat, who at one point descends to a profane rant that would have Deadwood's Al Swearengen blushing. Pat is tired and bored and sick of sheep and his knees are giving out. At one point this middle-aged man makes a mountaintop phone call to his mother and nearly dissolves in tears. It's not pure self-pity: he's upset because his beloved sheepdog has bleeding paws and his horse is nothing but "ribs and bones".

The myth of the Western is the myth of freedom and choice and the loner riding off into the sunset. And as you watch Sweetgrass you realize that's just what it is: A MYTH. This compelling film shows us that the reality of herding cattle or sheep (or whatever) is that it is a kind of prison. You can't just take off and ride west when you're looking after a flock of critters who depend on you. Sometimes you can't even get a phone signal.

Dirty 21-Mile House

In 1852 a man named William Host built a tavern on the stage route from San Jose to Monterey. The same year he sold it to a certain William Tennant, and he became landlord of the 21-Mile House, so-called because it was 21 miles south of San Jose. You can find a marker of this historic site on the NW corner of Tennant Ave and Monterey Hwy in Morgan Hill. According to the plaque:

This famous tavern and stage stop was located 21 miles from San Jose on the road to Monterey. The 21-Mile House was built in 1852 by William Host beneath a spreading oak that later was called the Vasquez Tree. The house was sold to William Tennant in November 1852. Now destroyed, this stopping station was a place where horses could be changed, fed, and stabled, and where tired and hungry passengers could refresh themselves.

One famous visitor who refreshed himself at the 21-Mile House was William H. Brewer (right, in the chair), a California state geologist who went up and down California recording details of life and landscape between 1860 and 1864. His journal is called Up and Down California in 1860-1864; The Journal of William H. Brewer.

Brewer and his party stayed at the 21-Mile House three times, each time camping out rather than staying inside the tavern. Brewer's entry for a blistering May evening in 1864 reads:

We got to the 21-Mile House and camped under the old oak trees. We had camped there before, once in ‘61, and again in ‘62. The spot seemed familiar and awoke pleasing memories, and that night, on the ground under the trees, sweeter sleep came than had for many a long night before...

Another visitor, Alf Doten, was less impressed. Arriving one October night in 1862, he and a friend dined and slept in the tavern. The next day, Doten gave it a scathing review in his private journal:

Oct 3 1862... got there at sunset - put up there – got a dirty supper – served up in a dirty manner, on a dirty table, in a dirty house, by a dirty waiter – when bedtime came, we turned in to two dirty little beds, in a dirty little room & slept cold, not having enough bed clothes, & fleas & bedbugs giving us Jesse – waked up an hour or two before daylight from the cold – some ½ doz other travellers there, all in the same uncomfortable fix - all got to shouting to each other and "carrying on" - no more sleep...

Oct 4 1862 ... Rose very early - after dirty breakfast, paid our dirty bill of $5.00 & left - won't stop there again, I guess...

But in April of 1863 Alf was passing through again, and had no choice but to give it a second chance. Apparently his experience this time was more pleasant, probably due to the fact that his musical talents were appreciated:

April 29 1863 ... After breakfast I started for Fred Lucas's - rode Kit with banjo rolled up in my overcoat & lashed behind saddle, carpet bag ditto - led Georgie ... couldn't ride Kit very hard on account of her being heavy with foal - stopped occasionally on the road to let her have a bite of green grass & cool off - at 6 PM I arrived at the "21 Mile" house & put up for the night... after supper, at request of Mr Tennant, the landlord - I gave them some banjo and songs in bar-room...

April 30 1863 ... My bill was: horses 75¢ each - $1.50 and 2 meals $1.00 & a bed 50¢ - Total $3.00 - left about 8 1/2 oclock...

But in May of the same year he found things 'dirty' again:

May 9 1863 ... at 2 PM arrived at 21 mile house - got dirty dinner, served up in dirty manner by Miss Maggie Tennant in a dirty dress & frowsy hair - knew me - Had quite a chat together - Took me into parlor - got me to write off the words of "Open thy lattice to me" for her - I rode on... 

A Starbucks now stands in the place of the tavern.

10 films by age 10

The BFI recently compiled a list of the 50 films every kid should have seen by the age of 14.

Here they are in alphabetical order, with the top ten starred:

* The Adventures of Robin Hood (Michael Curtiz/William Keighley, 1938)
Au revoir les enfants (Louis Malle, 1987, France/W.Germany)
Back to the Future (Robert Zemeckis, 1985, USA)
Beauty and the Beast (Gary Trousdale/Kirk Wise, 1991, USA)
Bicycle Thieves (Vittorio De Sica, 1948, Italy)
Billy Elliot (Stephen Daldry, 2000, UK/France)
A Day at the Races (Sam Wood, 1937, USA)
* E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (Steven Spielberg, 1982, USA)
Edward Scissorhands (Tim Burton, 1990, USA)
Etre et Avoir (Nicolas Philibert, 2002, France)
Finding Nemo (Andrew Stanton/Lee Unkrich, 2003, USA)
* It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946, USA)
Jason and the Argonauts (Don Chaffey, 1963, UK/USA)
Kes (Ken Loach, 1969, UK)
The Kid (Charles Chaplin, 1921, USA)
* King Kong (Merian C.Cooper/Ernest B.Schoedsack, 1933, USA)
Kirikou et la sorcière (Michel Ocelot, 1998, France/Belgium/Luxembourg)
La Belle et la bête (Jean Cocteau, 1946, France / Luxembourg)
Le Voyage dans la lune (Georges Melies, 1902, France)
Les Quatre cents coups (Francois Truffaut, 1959, France)
Monsieur Hulot's Holiday (Jacques Tati, 1953, France)
My Life as a Dog (Lasse Halstrom, 1985, Sweden)
My Neighbour Totoro (Hayao Miyazaki, 1988, Japan/USA)
* The Night of the Hunter (Charles Laughton, 1955, USA)
Oliver Twist (David Lean, 1948, UK)
The Outsiders (Francis Ford Coppola, 1983, USA)
Pather Panchali (Satyajit Ray, 1955, India)
Playtime (Jacques Tati, 1967, France/Italy)
The Princess Bride (Rob Reiner, 1987, USA)
Rabbit-Proof Fence (Phillip Noyce, 2002, Australia)
Raiders of the Lost Ark (Steven Spielberg, 1981, USA)
The Railway Children (Lionel Jeffries, 1970, UK)
The Red Balloon (Albert Lamorisse, 1956, France)
Romeo + Juliet (Baz Luhrman, 1996, USA)
The Secret Garden (Agnieszka Holland, 1993, UK/USA)
Show Me Love (Lukas Moodysson, 1998, Sweden/Denmark)
* Singin' in the Rain (Stanley Donen/Gene Kelly, 1952, USA)
* Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Disney, 1937, USA)
* Some Like it Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959, USA)
The Spirit of the Beehive (Victor Erice, 1973, Spain)
Spirited Away (Hayao Miyazaki, 2001, Japan)
* Star Wars (George Lucas, 1977, USA)
* To Kill a Mockingbird (Robert Mulligan, 1962, USA)
Toy Story (John Lasseter, 1995, USA)
Walkabout (Nicholas Roeg, 1971, UK)
Whale Rider (Niki Caro, 2002, New Zealand)
Where is the Friend's House? (Abbas Kiarostami, 1987, Iran)
Whistle Down the Wind (Bryan Forbes, 1961, UK)
The White Balloon (Jafar Panahi, 1995, Iran)
* The Wizard of Oz (Victor Fleming, 1939, USA)

And now, here are MY top ten films every kid should have seen by age 10.

1. Star Wars IV, V & VI (1977-1983) a cheat... but an epic cheat
2. WALL-E (2008)
3. Toy Story trilogy (1995-2010) a cheat... but an essential cheat
4. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
5. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
6. Back to the Future trilogy (1985-1990) a cheat... but a fabulous cheat
7. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
8. Jason and the Argonauts (1963)
9. Finding Nemo (2003)
10. The Black Stallion (1979)