Many years ago the Mackey family, owners and operators of the Canyon Creek Ranch outside of Alturas in Modoc County, California, acquired the old Beeman ranch adjacent to their property. Its 300 plus acres weren't prime land, to say the least, but it was a good investment at the time.
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| Entering Canyon Creek Ranch |
Running through the property is a vein of iron rich volcanic rock. The Northwest corner of California remains an active geothermic area with ancient volcano cones, ash deposits and obsidian everywhere; it’s only a few miles from the Klamath Basin, Tulelake and Lava Beds National Monument in Oregon.
Iron rich volcanic deposits are unusual; those two materials are rarely found together in such concentrations. Dick Mackey, current operator of Canyon Creek Ranch, has had a life-long interest in the ecology and geology of Modoc County and in this particular vein of rock on his property. It’s rare enough that he has spent years trying to figure out how to mine such a resource. So far there seems little commercial use for "Beeman Stone".
This is not to say it’s not the source of great wealth!
Dick Mackey is also an avid and accomplished potter. Years ago out of curiosity Dick dug up a bucket full of Beeman Stone to test as a possible glaze material. A ceramic glaze requires glass (silica), a flux to reduce its melting temperature (Na2O) and a refractory (alumina) to make it durable. Volcanic ash is known to have all three elements and with the addition of iron Beeman Stone would also include one of the most common colorants in ceramic glaze formulation. So Dick ground it up into powder and tested it in his kiln with nothing more than the addition of water for application.
Beeman Stone has turned out to be a staple in the Canyon Creek Pottery pallet. A natural rendition of a Japanese "tenmoku", dark iron brown, breaking with color on texture. It is used with great pride at Canyon Creek as a local resource.
Just a few years ago the Federal government made it possible to irrigate challenging properties like the Beeman Ranch and the Mackey family took advantage of the opportunity. They discovered a source of deep water under the property that could support pivot sprinkling for grasses and alfalfa hay. This geothermic water, warmed by the fires of the molten earth, comes out of the ground at 120 degrees, which is just fine for this operation. Today they harvest hay off of land that previously couldn't produce much at all.
Mackey creativity and ingenuity also produced yet another wonder as a result.
In the process of installing the pivot sprinkler system, the family hired a large earth mover to dig out a hot tub and swimming pool in a prominent spot in the Stone ridge. The temperature of the natural rock hot tub is a constant 103 degree, the swimming pool between 85-90. The water is pristine as is the joy the family has in using this new discovery, especially in the cold of winter. It is not unusual to swim in the tub or pool while there is snow on the ground!
Doing just that the other night, Dick and I conversed about the amazing circumstance of Beeman Stone. Floating in a hot tub of perfect water held in place by the very stone with which we glaze our pottery we felt connected to the earth and the stars that filled the jet black night sky. Our creativity joined with the divine's. All my Buddhist cowboy friend could say of the stone, water, fire and sky that has made such a difference in our lives, "..it is a gift...it is all a gift..." floating in Beeman Stone.