Roundup: December 14, 2016

Almansor Court – 700 S. Almansor, Alhambra, CA.
Social Hour: 5:00 PM
Dinner: 6:00 PM

Our Speakers: Alan and Claudia Heller
Their Subject: Curiosities of the California Desert: Historic, Offbeat, and Forgotten Attractions

This month’s presentation takes us to the California desert, one of the most misunderstood areas of the Golden State.  To many city-dwellers, the desert is merely a vast, sandy, wasteland punctuated only by rattlesnakes. But all experienced desert rats know otherwise, and the Heller’s talk will be a revelation to those less-traveled. Salvation Mountain, Cerro Gordo, the Integratron and Giant Rock, Willie Boy’s Grave and Devils Hole (with its playful pupfish) are just a few of the unique locations in the California desert the Hellers will guide us to during their program.  For more than 50 years, our speakers have explored and photographed these and hundreds of other localities throughout the length and breadth of California’s spectacular deserts.

Alan and Claudia Heller are Southern California natives, and members of the Los Angeles Corral. Alan was educated at CSULA, Claudia at LACC. They can boast more than a century of joint travel and exploration throughout our state’s deserts. Alan is past president of Duarte’s Public Access Channel, a former commissioner of Duarte Parks and Recreation, Duarte Planning, and Duarte Community Service. His photographs have appeared in Westways, Skin Diver Magazine, Route 66 Magazine and many other publications and newspapers. Claudia has been the president of the Duarte Historical Society and Museum for the past twenty years. She writes articles for Route 66 Magazine, a column for the Pasadena Star News, and is a regular contributor to The View, for the Duarte Chamber of Commerce. Singly or together the Hellers have authored Life on Route 66: Personal Accounts Along the Mother Road to California; Duarte Chronicles;  and Curiosities of the California Desert. 

Brian Dervin Dillon, Ph.D.
Deputy Sheriff