Craig Deutsche

Craig Deutsche spent much of his spare time as a child exploring the lakes, rivers, and hills around his home in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He insists also that he was a bookworm and that reading was a passion. These activities were largely put aside during his years in college and as a high school science teacher in the Los Angeles area, Upon retirement he led backpacking trips and service outings for several environmental organizations. It was by accident that he discovered the Carrizo Plain National Monument, and for eight years he has explored the backroads and the history of this little known valley. Over one hundred oral histories have been completed in this time, and the stories have been archived in several California libraries. Writing an account of this project and of the people whom he met has represented a return to his early interest in exploring and reading.