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eldon and HHK 17th NY 2008

prologe

On May 2008 Eldon flew to New York to meet with HHK17th who was visiting the USA for the first time. while meeting him HHK17th recieved a copy of the following text and the request to be of help in manifesting this vision

We shall post any update in regard to the progress of this vision .

Kagu Nyedon Ling

The beginning:
31 years ago, when HHK the 16th Karmapa was in Los Angeles we were a small Sangha and were allowed to be the attendants for the Karmapa at James Coburn's house in Hollywood.
One of our group had what he calls a vision. He saw a sign offering remote mountain land. He said the sign was glowing. The property was large and very remote. 160 acres on the top of the Santa Rosa Mountains .   The price was modest and financing was available so we spoke to the HHK 16th Karmapa about it. This land was (and still is) very hard to get to ( there are no roads and there is no surface water). HHK 16th Karmapa said not to worry about the difficulty, that "the place was very auspicious" and then he held his hand over his head and said that "In the future, 21 accomplished beings like Milarepa will arise from this place", and named it Kagu Nyedon Ling. Since that time we have completely paid off the original land and purchased another 160 to make a total of 320 acres.

Description:

The land is located in The Santa Rosa range about 35 miles from Palm Springs high on a cliff looking down on the small town of Anza Borego which is about 18 miles away. Los Angeles is about 110 miles and San Diego is about the same. Half the Salton Sea is visible from the peak which is on the property. The shape of this piece is a Swiss cross and is one mile by three quarters of a mile. That is 1600 meters by 1200 meters.

The surrounding area is completely uninhabited, all of it (but our piece) owned and controlled by the US government. It has been made into a wildlife refuge for the peninsular Bighorn Sheep. No roads or vehicles will ever be permitted.   We have the only private land that has ever been sold in the whole area.

The additional land (which we bought later), has more benefit than as a potential airport. It has the highest peak in the area at 6200 feet with a gently rounded top which we have named Milarepa Peak.
The top of this peak is pretty flat for about a hundred meters and commands a view of hundreds of square miles. We would like to build a stupa on it which would illuminate the world.

At the lower part of our property there is a high ridge looking down over the whole of the Anza Borego desert. Absolutely breathtaking view off a shear cliff.   There is a mountain peak in Mexico about 120 miles away which is visible from this vantage point. There is another larger ridge looking down toward Mexico but not as steep which is also on the lower part of the property.

Accessibility:

This magnificent isolation comes with a price. There are no roads for 15 miles and the walk up takes all day and is pretty steep. We will have to bring in most of the food and equipment by helicopter. At the moment the cost is $825 an hour. The helicopter can carry up too 800 pounds all together, or four passengers and takes about an half hour to fly in.
It is possible to reduce Helicopter expenses by building an airstrip on the property and the cost would go down to about $150 per hour to rent a small plane. The original property was too small to accommodate an airstrip, so we bought the extra 160 acres to be able to put in an airport.

helicopter

Bell Jet Ranger Helicopter

Water supply:

The middle of the property is a valley with peaks on either side which slopes down to a big rock formation which shades a little reservoir. It has a small waterfall and a natural stone bridge across the pool. The reservoir is the size of a medium size swimming pool and about five feet deep. It had developed a couple of small holes so several years ago, we sent a crew with shovels and cement and dug out the silt and patched the leaks and made it ready to hold maybe 50,000 gallons of water when rain comes. It rained a week after we fixed it and filled up with water but later we found the water had seeped out the bottom. So it will be necessary to dig it out again and seal the bottom with clay to keep the water from running out.

The water available determines how many people can be supported on the mountain. There is a large aquifer under the mountains which supports agriculture and golf courses around the base of the mountains. With a portable drilling machine we can tap into this aquifer.
However in the summer we will need water as well so we thought of using the newest technology which extracts water from the air. The water maker takes air, cools, it and produces drinking water. The technology is new, the smallest water maker takes 500 watts and makes about five gallons per day. We can use solar panels for that.
Most year the area is very dry , we are considering constructing a dew pond to provide water for the big horn sheep. A dew pond is a shallow hand made pond which is insulated from the ground with layers of straw and clay, collects dew during the night and keeps it in the form of shallow water.

driller

water from air machine

Driller Water from Air Machine

dew pond

Dew pond

Local Habitat : past and present:

The Kaweah Indians used to walk up to this place when the desert below was too hot. There are visible signs of their presence. There are pottery shards and arrow heads and Metates. A Metate is a hollowed out space in a rock where the Indians ground their grain. If you close your eyes you can visualize where they were setting and when you look closer you find pieces of their clay bowls that were broken and left behind.

use of metate

Metate foramtion Metate traditional use for grinding grains

There is a small cave in the rocks next to the reservoir that has fire marks that show that it has been inhabited and we found a buried box that had some food and whiskey in it. I think the whiskey came from an American anthropologist who was studying the Indians that used to inhabit the place.
The place is totally isolated and there are no neighbors. There are no houses for 15 or 18 miles in any direction and there is no other private land anywhere in the Santa Rosa mountains. There was only one square mile that was ever sold and we own the best part of it. The other half mile is steep cliffs and ravines and not likely to be developed.
The land is home of the peninsular Big Horn Sheep that currently amount to about 200 animals, each of which is tagged and monitored periodically by local authorities.

Big Horn Sheep

accomodation:

After researching different kinds of shelters ,we built a geodesic dome (see pic below).
The structure is made of electrical pipe which is cheap and cut into short lengths so the whole dome house can be easily transported by helicopter. It is 8 meters across by 4 meters high . It was easy to set up and makes a very nice space to live in and it will stand up to an 80 mile per hour wind. It is supposed to last for six or eight years in the outdoors

geodesic dome before and after cover

Geodesic domes are large enough to host several people for the purpose of meditation and teachings as well sharing meals .

Energy:

we hope to generate our electricity by solar panels, using the largest energy source in the area : the Sun.
We plan to live on the top of the mountain using water makers, solar panels and canvas tents. With a helicopter flight every month or so to bring in supplies and later on hoping maybe to arrange for well drilling machine.

Solar Panels

Final words:

We want this place to benefit sentient beings by providing space for Dharma practice.
This Isolated location creates great opportunity . With the guidance of the Kagu Lineage we pray, to bring all precious being to perfect realization.
May the light of Dharma guide us surely on the path and help us manifest this wonderful vision.

For more details, offers, suggestions or offerings you are welcome to contact us

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