Echoes From Nearby Places, Echo Mtn. Echoes Summer 1997

Echoes From Nearby Places.

Echoes From Heninger Flats

On April 12, 1997 a hearty group was treated to a Historical Talk and Tour of Heninger Flats, given by Mr. Paul Rippens and sponsored by the Altadena Historical Society. A great luncheon was provided by the California Dozer Operators Group, the proceeds of which went to the burn center at Sherman Oaks Hospital.

Mr. Paul Rippens William K Heninger around 1880 settled this small hanging basin above Altadena. He built a house and a cistern for water storage. It was here that he decided to spend the rest of his years and he planted fruit, vegetables, and hay and nut trees. The produce he then carried into town a mile and a half down the steep trail that ended in Eaton Canyon.

In 1892 Heninger was visited by T. P. Lukens and R. J. Busch who started the very first experimental reforestation in California at Heninger Flats.

After Heninger's death in 1894 the property changed hands a number of times finally being sold to the Mt. Wilson Toll Road Company.

In 1903, under the direction of Lukens, a nursery was established at Heninger Flats and by 1907 the forest service had planted 62,000 experimental trees. In 1904 Lukens reported that over 231,710 trees were growing in the nursery.

During the years that followed the Mt. Wilson toll road was widened to accommodate the passage of equipment up to the observatory at Mt. Wilson. By 1917 the road was widened to the present width of twelve feet.

Currently at Heninger Flats the Los Angeles County Forest Service Division, provides trees for environmental projects throughout the County. Free trees are available to the public for conservation purposes from December through March.

The Visitors Center at Heninger Flats The folks there have built a wonderful visitors center that I suggest all able bodied folks visit by taking the hike up to Heninger Flats. The center provides conservation education as well as great displays of nature and local history.

An early photo of an autocar on the Mt. Wilson Toll Road. For all you Mt Lowe fans there are even some Mt. Lowe photos on display and a collection of postcards that was donated for the public to view. In addition there is a collection of insulators, two of which were specific to Mt. Lowe.

For more information on Heninger Flats contact the county of Los Angeles Fire Department Forestry Division or the Altadena Historical Society.

Echoes From The Past
A Trip To Wilsons Peak

While on the wonderful day trip at Heninger flats I had a few moments to speak with Betty Herr about letters written by a woman in the years 1892-1897. Mrs. Herr said I could view them at the Altadena Historical Society archives at the Great Western Bank on Lake Street. I was unable to do so however and Mrs. Herr was gracious enough to mail me copies of the letters.

Reading the letters immediately propelled me back to the 1890’s, as the writers’ descriptions were observant, colorful and humorous. I enjoyed them immensely and asked Mrs. Herr for permission to reprint excerpts in Echo Mtn. Echoes.

Flora G. Fay wrote the letters during several trips to California between 1892 and 1897. At the time she was engaged to Mr. Eben Foskett, who was studying medicine at New York Medical School. Miss Fay traveled with her well - to - do parents and wrote of her experiences to Eben. In 1897 Flora Fay and Eben Foskett were married.

The excerpts of the letters are being published by the gracious permission of Margaret E. Foskett, daughter-in-law of Flora Fay Foskett.

1895 Winter/Spring

Here I am at home again, just full to overflowing with the trip to Wilson’s Peak and back. We started yesterday at about 8:30. Had an hour’s ride to the foot of the trail then proceeded with our three mules up the trail. I rode very little—didn’t mind the walk of full 9 ½ miles very much for it began to cloud up at noon and after lunching we went straight to the clouds, which kept us cool and made walking easier but dampened our spirits as it hid the view.

All we realized was that we wound along over deep canons and that the immense tree, redwood, cedar, and pine was something we hadn’t imagined as from the valley , the mountain looks bare of trees.

It took just six hours to reach the summit where we were glad to rest around a campfire before going down on the other side a quarter of a mile to the camp, where we were to eat and sleep. The camp consists of three log cabins and two small tents and as some other people had quarters there before us we were rather distributed. The three men had two beds in one cabin, and as their room had the luxuries of a stove and a mirror and a few magazines we used it for a sitting room also.

We four girls had the funniest accommodations in another cabin – the cabin consisted of one room about 12X20 I should think, partitioned off to within a short distance of the ceiling something like this[see diagram a]. We had rooms A and B, divided from the main room C by calico curtains, only. The only entrance (3) was through room C which was occupied by two men and their wives. Annie and I had the room A because it had a window and B had none! Both rooms were about the size of staterooms—that is the standing room, so I just got up on the bed and dressed.

We took quite a tramp down a canon before supper and after, we went up to the tower on the summit to see the magnificent sun-set and the lights appearing in the valley below, the clouds having disappeared before a strong wind. The stars came forth slowly, appearing quite different than from a valley. From below they seem studded at a great distance against the sky but from that height, due probably to the thin clear air, they seem suspended not far above us.

The air grew chill and we started a campfire but were really tired and sleepy so got back to camp early and went to bed. Our four neighbors, separated form us by only calico, were playing cards till a late hour. Then the wind rose to a gale that roared all night through the trees, and I kept wondering what might be the result should a bear or panther stick his head into my window which opened right on the ground, so I couldn’t sleep till morning—just got into a snooze when someone hurried us out for the sun-rise.

We dressed rapidly by lamp-light and sallied forth through the room in which the strange four were still abed. Wrapped in shawls and blankets as the wind still blew hard. Walked about ten minutes to "Echo Rock" from whence I had as grand a view, if not the most grand, I have ever seen.

On our left snow capped peaks glistened against the sky; far down on our right Pasadena and Los Angeles lay sleeping still, in darkness. Opposite, across a deep canon arose another mountain back of which the sun was struggling up to peep into the valley. Finally it arose and flooded all the valley with sudden light—the sun-sets and sun-risings are very abrupt here- scattering the mists, and making fairyland of the clouds still drifting about in the ravine.

All this time we sat huddled together with blankets over head and all to keep the wind from blowing us to pieces, and speechless with the beauty and purity of the site.

Finally the cold, keen air drove us to action and we went back to camp to find still a half hour’s wait for breakfast so two of us went up to the summit whence a broader view could be had, and tried to drink in, with the bracing air, some of the grand beauty. The valley below looked like a checkerboard, so regular and clear- cut appeared the brown fields and the green orange groves and meadows. The plain was broken only by the dimpled green foothills, and stretched far away to the ocean which showed clear and blue against the pale sky.

After breakfast we spent the morning tramping about the mountains, and directly after dinner began our decent, every turn of which showed us new grandeur and beauty. We were just four hours coming down, and I rode a mule the first hour but it shook me so I declined to mount again.

Am feeling the effects today of that 9 ½ miles decent. Am awfully lame, got two big black and blue spots on my limbs from bumping against the saddle when Maggie my mule insisted on trotting. Then somehow I managed to get a tick from somewhere. Felt it on the trail and thought I was stung but when I removed my dress found the horrid thing had burrowed in nearly all over my arm. Etta unscrewed him, but it is much inflamed and I couldn’t sleep on that side all night. Got awfully burned and quite ruined my dress but in spite of these slight draw-backs look back with pleasure to the trip. We all wish we had planned to stay a week up there.

Flora G. Fay

Send email to Echowebmaster@aaaim.com to report any problems.
Last modified: February 12, 1999