Monday, September 3, 2012

Monday Mystery Time...!

Today is not only Labor Day, but it is also our annual family get-together.

If it were left up to me, we wouldn't be having this reunion, but Mom really likes to have it. I have to figure that given her age, what she wants I need to make happen.
After all, I figure I can put up with this group for one day a year!

Now, on to today's mystery! This is another one from here in the U.S., which is good for us!

Berkeley Mystery Walls


There is a bizarre set of ancient walls that exist in the hills along the East Bay of San Francisco. Little has been written about the walls and their origin. The walls are constructed from closely fit basalt boulders, which serve as the foundation of the structures. The rocks are deeply embedded in the soil and weigh up to 1 ton. The walls extend for many miles along the hill crests from Berkeley to Milpitas and beyond, even all the way to San Jose, which is located 50 miles south. Some of the walls have been destroyed over the years, but large stretches still exist. In some places, the walls twist and turn abruptly and climb large hills. However, they don’t appear to enclose anything or serve a practical purpose.

The walls surround mountains and extend to Mt. Diablo, where people have discovered a strange stone circle that is 30 feet (9.1 meters) in diameter. The best preserved sections of the walls can be found on Monument Peak, which is east of Milpitas, California. In some places the walls have been known to reach the height of 6 feet (1.8 meters) and the width of 3 feet (0.9 meters). In one location the walls form a spiral that is 200 feet (60.9 meters) wide and circles into a boulder. The construction looks old, but no research has been done to determine their precise age. Before Europeans arrived in San Francisco Bay, the Ohlone Indians populated the region, but they didn’t use stone construction.

To the west of San Francisco Bay, there is another rock wall anomaly in Point Reyes that has drawn some attention. It consists of over 400 carefully laid stones that bisect the Tomales Point peninsula. It is currently unclear who created the Berkeley mystery walls, but some feel the structures were used as a defensive stronghold or line between Indian tribes. In 1904, UC-Berkeley professor John Fryer suggested that the walls were made by migrant Chinese, who traveled to California before the Europeans. Some specialists have noted that the walls look similar to other ancient structures found in rural Massachusetts, Vermont, and Maine. Some sections of the Berkeley mystery walls have been torn apart by acorns that fell within cracks, sprouted and became mature trees, and then died and decayed, which indicates the structures have been around for a long time.

Well, that's all I have for today! Guess I better go get ready for the "company!" Wonder why the majority of these folks only show up when there is free food or presents? Now there is a modern mystery for ya!

At least my Baby Sis will be here, so I'll have someone I can carry on a grown-up conversation with!

Coffee on the patio this morning. If you want some cookies, better grab them now before the hoard gets here!

11 comments:

Sixbears said...

That's a new one on me. Thanks! Pretty cool. There have been whole peoples and civilizations that have risen and disappeared without us knowing what happened to them.

Phyllis (N/W Jersey) said...

Dang! Another good mystery that I now have to look up! Thanks Mr. Hermit, you always find the good stuff.
Enjoy the family - we had our get together yesterday, and it was fun!
I'll bring some chocolate chips!

Momlady said...

Hope you enjoy the day. Looks like there are lots of things we don't know about those who came well before us.

JMD said...

Never heard of this before. Hang in there for today. My husband would rather be hung than attend or have one of those "get-together's"...lol

Spud said...

We have been here many times before.
We too shall leave traces of our short stay.
Only the Earth is forever.
Yet even she has a life span...

linda m said...

Good mystery. I lived in the Bay area for a couple of years, but I don't ever remember hearing about that wall. Hang in there; it is only for one day :)

Gorges Smythe said...

If this is so, the amazing thing is that no-one has made a serious effort to study the structures. Maybe the powers that be are scared that they might find out that North American natives really DID construct them.

JO said...

This is a good mystery. I also can't believe they have never researched these walls.

Your a good son Mr. Hermit. Your mom did her job well raising her children. Try to enjoy the day.
Happy Labor Day.

Dizzy-Dick said...

I actually enjoy reunions but this year I missed the one in Pennsylvania. I was really lucky to be born in the family I was and since I was an only child, my cousins were my brothers and sisters.

rocking R rustics said...

wow, never knew about that wall before, thanks.

Anonymous said...

I've never heard of any wall at all in America so this was very interesting!

Have a great day!
Christer.