We camped out in San Diego for a whole week...then cops showed up. I TOLD Anthony we were being overly paranoid. We hadn't seen a single cop the whole time. But he got spooked, so we made a quick decision to go in-land to Joshua Tree National Park and make our first attempt at staying on BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land. Upon talking with some other vanlife folks we met, the officers were indeed simply moving folks parked in spots near the lawn where, on Tuesdays, they do yard work.
Let me tell you one more thing before I write more about our time in Joshua Tree - cooler life is something ELSE. Someday we'll get a fridge, but for now we have a cooler. And ice melts fast. Keeping up with the melting, keeping our open bags of food from drowning in ice water, keeping cheese from getting demolished in the moisture (real gross), is tough. But if that's our only complaint about this life so far...I'm into it.
OK I LIED, one more thing. At the bottom of all my story here, I've left instructions for how to research and get in touch with your local Indigenous communities. I'm making it a point to find out the basics of Indigenous roots of each place we stay in, with the goal of un-settling my own view of land and how it came to be "settled." BUT it would be super exhausting for me to try to do in-depth research or to create a relationship with the original stewards of every place we pass through, so I'm counting on you. See a place you live in? Do more research, make a donation, give land back, get in relationship. OR just use those steps to do the work in your home town NOW. Thanks :)
And if you're a nomad yourself, check out this Rooting Ritual you can do to unsettle/decolonize for yourself.
Indigenous Roots
The town of Joshua Tree (not to be confused with the NP) near the BLM we stayed on is land that belongs to the Yuhaaviatam-Serrano people. Also possibly the Newe Segobia people. Sometimes the land maps overlap and it would require further clarification with the Native Nations to confirm whose land this is. You can find the basic land maps on native-land.ca.
Joshua Tree National Park is on land belonging to the Cahuilla people, or the Ɂívil̃uwenetem Meytémak.
Why is it important to recognize this? I see SO many signs in national parks and around towns that were colonized, talking about the Promised Land and vaguely mentioning the ways the Indigenous people used to live in community with the land.
What we don't know without extensive research? What is the Indigenous NAME of the land? I promise it wasn't called Joshua Tree. What happened to those people? Usually they were murdered and those left were driven out of their homes by force. We don't put up plaques about it in public spaces, because then we would have to acknowledge and maybe DO something about the people white ancestors have harmed and displaced, and whose culture and presence we are now consciously choosing to continue to erase.
Some of the Native websites erase their history as well, focusing on the settlers' accomplishments rather than on what they did to their people. I don't know why. It's up to them how to deal with it, and I won't knock them.
Let's look at a brief history of the Yuhaaviatam clan (meaning People of the Pines), of the Maara’yam people. Serrano was the Spanish name for them, meaning "highlander." Spanish settlers came between 1769 and 1823. I will spare you ALL the raw details, but please read the history on this link. Quit basically, wave #1 in the 1700s saw the Spanish settlement and murder of thousands of the Indigenous people, forcing the rest to give up their way of life as the Spanish "Mission" was established. Wave #2 in the 1800s: The Spanish used displaced Indigenous people for forced labor in the Missions. A "month-long killing spree" ensued among the Yaahaviatam who had remained on their land and were viewed as nuisances. Wave #3, looking at the late 1800s and 1900s: How kind of the federal government (sarcasm) to grant the "San Manuel Band of Mission Indians" sovereignty as a nation. However, they still tried to influence what the nation could and could not do as an independent people. It was not until 1970 that Native Americans gained the right to self-governance.
Our Joshua Tree Experience
We were pleasantly surprised how amazing cell coverage was in the BLM land (pictured above), especially with the help of our mobile booster. We let Diego roam around without his leash, for the most part, and just followed him or left the ambulance door open so that he could come in and out.
There are a few other RVs, tents, vans, campers, etc. sprinkled across the desert, but we were spread out by at least 100 yds and felt very secluded and safe.
Going into the national park, we got our National Parks Pass so that we can go to as many as we want!! Spoiler alert for later posts - we've already been to three this month :D It's only $80 for an annual pass, compared to up to $35 for a week-long pass that we would normally get EACH time we go into a park!
We only went into the park for a 1/2 day, but it was beautiful! We hiked Ryan Mountain, a quick 3-mile trip to a tall peak where you can see out over all of the desert. I'll be posting an album of it soon - Anthony is processing photos once we get wifi again :)
We've been making great meals in Arnold, mostly toasted sourdough sandwiches and greens for lunch, and for dinner I'll typically make some kind of protein and greens with a yummy sauce. I love to cook, and we're so excited that, with our solar panels, we don't lose much charge for our batteries during the day! We can cook, turn on the water heater for showers, and run our lights and devices and still be at 100% battery by the end of the day.
Let's also talk about water - we've been able to go for about 4 days on our 30-gallon fresh water tank. Technically we have 35 gallons, since we let water run into our 5-gallon hot water heater as well. That's a little cheat we have :)
What other questions do you have about nomad life so far? I'd love to answer them in coming posts. Just comment below!
Steps to connecting with your local Native community (source: According to Weeze Podcast, Giving Land Back to Indigenous People, with Nazshonnii Brown):
Find out where you live, on native-land.ca.
Do your own research on the history of your land, which tribes occupied it, and what peoples are there currently.
Contact the Indigenous tribes who may have occupied that land (according to native-land.ca) and ask permission to enter into conversation. Something simple like, "Hi, I've learned about [X] from [website, museum, etc] and I have a few questions about confirming the Indigenous people to attribute this land to, and how to help with current re-matriation efforts or anything else that serves you. If you are willing and have the time I'd love to hear how to best offer support."
Be in relationship, and don't make it about you. If you're invited into community, bring coffee and tobacco as a gift for the elder making the greeting with you (source: Corinne Rice-Grey Cloud)
Instead of donating towards this post, go make a donation to the Tribe whose land your are settled on.