This is the location of the Santuario Cimarrón, a project of the UABC Foundation.
– September 9, 2022 –
As part of the Alberto Tapia Landeros Conference Cycle offered by the UABC Foundation to commemorate the life and work of the prestigious researcher and professor, the virtual conference “La sierra de La Asamblea: an early history” was presented by explorer and historian Carlos Lazcano Sahagún.
The Sierra de La Asamblea is one of the best preserved and least known regions of the Valle de los Cirios and is home to the Cimarrón Sanctuary, a project of the UABC Foundation. It covers about two million hectares and is in a good state of conservation thanks to its isolation. Only about 3,000 people live in this area, which occupies one third of the territory of Baja California.
The researcher explained that this area is not very well studied, so its flora and fauna are largely unknown. It is a mountain range from the Cretaceous era -approximately 80 or 90 million years ago-, its soil is granitic, which makes the rocks white, giving beauty to the place.
He detailed that the first records of settlers date from about 9,500 years ago, although there are some doubtful data of 14,000 years. Its archaeological traces are intact and there are traces of rock art, which is a sub-style of art called great mural. It is in this area that the Cochimí culture developed, which had the ability to adapt to the harsh conditions of the central region of the peninsula.
He also spoke about the presence of Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century, led by Hernán Cortés, and the arrival of missionaries, the first of which was the Jesuit Juan María Salvatierra, who arrived in 1697 and initiated the founding of the missions that exist in the peninsula and who also dedicated himself to the exploration of this land.
The Cochimi groups that inhabited the region at that time rebelled against the evangelization, so they held a meeting at the top of the mountain range that was then called San Luis, where they were attacked by a group led by Juan Nepomuceno, who was in favor of the missionaries, and from that historical event the region was also known as Sierra de La Asamblea.
You can listen to the entire conference on the Facebook page/Fundación UABC, A.C.
Carlos Lazcano Sahagún is a renowned Mexican explorer and historian. He has published more than 50 books on the exploration of Mexico’s diverse natural regions and the history of northwestern Mexico. He is president of the National Society of Explorers and director of the Ensenada History Museum. He has been a member of the Geographical Institute of the UNAM, the University of Yucatan and the UABC.