Tag: Desert Life
How the Desert Was Fed: Tecopa’s Farming Roots in the Mining Frontier
In the late 19th century, when settlers first began to cultivate the Amargosa Basin and the valleys surrounding Tecopa, they were not starting from scratch. The land had already been studied, shaped, and survived by the Southern Paiute and Mojave peoples for centuries. As historian Sherryl Lynn Weber documented in her 1995 University of Nevada, Las Vegas…
Tecopa Town Hall Unites Residents to Tackle Food Insecurity After Federal Cuts
“You guys are tough people out there,” said Jessica from the Inyo-Mono Advocates for Community Action (IMACA), nodding from her Zoom screen toward the handful of desert residents gathered inside the Tecopa Community Center on a cool October evening. “And we’re hungry,” a local resident replied. The exchange captured the tone of a town hall…
Sagebrush Sally: Between Memory and Imagination Lies Community
Dear Sagebrush Sally, As the season picks up, I can feel the energy shifting in town. New faces are arriving, old friends are returning, and everyone seems to have a different idea of what Tecopa should be. Some want growth and investment, others want peace and preservation. It feels like we’re caught between change and…
Sagebrush Sally: Service Without Spotlight
Dear Sagebrush Sally, After the recent fire, I’ve been thinking a lot about how best to support the people in our community who lost their homes and belongings. I keep hearing the names of those affected, but I don’t personally know them, and I want to make sure I’m helping in ways that are actually…
Sagebrush Sally: Sharing the Desert—Engines, Echoes, and a Little Etiquette
Dear Sagebrush Sally, With the new off-road season gearing up at Dumont Dunes, a lot of us in Tecopa are feeling the ripple effects—some good, some not so good. The influx of off-highway vehicle (OHV) riders brings a big boost to local businesses, especially food and lodging. But it also means more traffic, more dust,…
Sagebrush Sally: Brace Yourselves—High Season Is Coming
Dear Sagebrush Sally, High season is almost here, and you can feel the shift already. Trailers and vans will soon roll into town, bathhouses will fill up again, and businesses that sat shuttered all summer are now sweeping off the dust and unlocking their doors. For many of us, this is the season that pays…
Sagebrush Sally: Finding Balance in a Small-Town Drama
Dear Sagebrush Sally, Sometimes living in Tecopa feels like being trapped in the audience of a play you didn’t buy tickets for. There are personalities in town who cause no shortage of drama, yet instead of addressing the behavior directly, most people either reward the few good deeds, ignore the rest, or sit on the…
Sagebrush Sally: When the Crowd Gets Loud, Stay Grounded
Dear Sagebrush Sally, Sometimes living in Tecopa feels less like a community and more like a courtroom, where the loudest voices in town act as judge, jury, and executioner. I’ve seen neighbors gang up on individuals—online and in person—without all the facts, and once the mob gets rolling, it’s hard for anyone to step in…
Sagebrush Sally: The Fine Line Between Freedom and Friction
Dear Sagebrush Sally, I love our little desert town, but I’m getting concerned about some behavior from a few longtime locals—things like speeding through residential areas, driving under the influence, and letting their dogs roam off-leash. These habits might seem minor to some, but they can, and have, put people, pets, and the community at…
Grimshaw Lake: A Desert Landmark Rooted in Local History
At the edge of the Amargosa Basin, where the Mojave Desert blurs into Death Valley’s outer reaches, a small, spring-fed wetland carries the name of one of Tecopa’s mid-20th century settlers. Grimshaw Lake, barely still there, represents the way individuals leave their mark on a place — sometimes through enterprise, sometimes through accident, and often…
Sagebrush Sally: Tecopa’s Reputation Is Everyone’s Business
Dear Sagebrush Sally, Some of us in town are worried that certain local businesses aren’t treating customers well—and that it’s driving visitors away from Tecopa for good. On top of that, there’s concern that a few of these places might be cutting corners to keep operating, which could put their customers at risk. If the…
Sagebrush Sally: Trust Runs on Truth
Dear Sagebrush Sally, I’m troubled by a recent public social media post that blames reporting by your website for the end of the Tecopa Hot Springs Park concessionaire contract, rather than acknowledging the operators’ own documented failure to comply with Inyo County requirements and the terms of the contract they signed. The post even referenced…