Rumors abound on Senator Wash…..a camel footprint in the desert……a pile of camel dung sighted in the desert……could it be true??
Legends abound about the camels used in the 1880’s at Fort Yuma. There is the “Red Camel with a Dead Rider” legend, a reluctant soldier was tied to the camel, the soldier died, & the camel still wanders the desert trying to get rid of the corpse. There is the “Red Ghost Legend”, a pioneer woman was killed, all they found were tufts of red hair & camel tracks……….the conclusion was a red haired camel must have killed the pioneer woman. Then the “Gold Miner who Used Camels”, struck it rich and said too much in town. The miner and the camel are still wandering the desert, minus the gold.
The Army did experiment with camels for a short time but the camels spooked the horses, mules & soldiers. There is a monument to “Hi Jolly” AKA Hadji Ali up in Quartzsite. He and “Greek George” AKA Yiorgos Caralambo were among the men hired as camel drivers. Legend says that when the Army no longer wanted the camels, the Army released them into the desert. More legends say that Hi Jolly & Greek George didn’t know what to do with them, so they released them into the desert.
Legends abound, take your pick 😉 There is a rumor that there will be a camel expedition in Feb of 2015, led by Slobberjaws and/or McGyver. This expedition will be equipped with motion sensitive cameras, some camel food, and some worthy explorers. Will they find any camels ?? Truth or fiction will be told around many campfires in Feb. of 2015. A camel potluck ?? A camel playing music at the Sunday afternoon jam ?? A camel camper on our Senator Wash ??