23 DAYS OF DEATH. CLEMENTE GUILLEN'S EXPEDITION TO PUERTO DE LA PAZ (1720).

 

Author: Sealtiel Enciso Pérez

Today, when one travels along the Transpeninsular Highway that connects the main points of this southern California, one becomes filled with tedium and weariness while contemplating hundreds and hundreds of kilometers of desert from the comfort of a car or passenger truck. However, let us place ourselves 300 years ago, in 1720, during the mission period, when reaching this point in the Californian geography, La Paz, was little less than a challenge to death, since after the Mission of San Juan Malibat or Ligüí, there was no point yet touched by a permanent colonial settlement. It is here where the legend of the priest Clemente Guillén emerges, who made this journey through inhospitable areas and constant threats of death at the hands of the Guaycuras.

It had been 3 years since the Apostle of the Californias, the Jesuit priest Juan María de Salvatierra, had died. One year before this happened (1716), Salvatierra had unsuccessfully attempted to reach the port named La Paz by Vizcaíno. The difficult terrain but above all, the surly and aggressive character of the Guaycuras made his arrival impossible, and he had to return with a serious risk of an uprising of these Californians against him and the people who accompanied him on the expedition. Exploring the southern territory of California had once again become an important request from the Spanish authorities through the epistles sent by Viceroy Don Baltasar de Zuñiga y Guzmán, Duke of Arión, Marquis of Valero. The reason for this was to find and colonize a point at these latitudes that could serve to refresh the passengers and crew of the Manila Galleon, who arrived at this point extremely tired and sick.

It was then decided that the priests Jaime Bravo and Juan de Ugarte would make an incursion by sea, using the Balandra "El Triunfo de la Santa Cruz," the first ship built entirely in California, to reach the port of La Paz. However, this was not enough. Another priest was needed to make the journey by land to find a route through which they could bring the supplies and people necessary to support the future mission that would be established. At that time, ships were extremely fragile and at the mercy of the weather, so relying solely on sea support was extremely risky and imprudent. The ideal priest to carry out this task was Clemente Guillén. The reason for this was that Guillén had traveled from Loreto to Bahía Magdalena in 1719, which was an extremely important event because he knew at least fifty percent of the way to reach the bay of La Paz, and he had made friendships with some of the rancherías that inhabited those sites, which turned out to be very advantageous for him.

Clemente Guillén was born in the city of Zacatecas in the year 1677. At the age of 29, he was ordained a priest in the city of Oaxaca and taught at the Jesuit college there until 1713. In 1714, he arrived in California and was assigned to the mission of San Juan Bautista Malibat or Ligüí. He led several exploration expeditions in California, including the one from Loreto to Bahía Magdalena, San Juan Bautista Malibat to La Paz, and La Paz to Cabo San Lucas. In 1721, he founded the Mission of Our Lady of Sorrows and moved there after the closure of the San Juan Bautista Malibat or Ligüí mission due to a lack of natives. In 1732, he was appointed visitor of the California missions. In 1746, he retired to Loreto, where he passed away in 1748 at the age of 71.

Guillén's expedition began on November 11, 1720, ten days after priests Ugarte and Bravo had set out by sea. He faced great hardships and difficulties during his journey because he chose the steepest path to reach La Paz, which is located in the western part of the Sierra de La Giganta, adjacent to the Gulf of California. This entire part of the mountain range is extremely challenging terrain, and even today, few people dare to cross it, let alone with a mule train carrying a significant amount of provisions for the journey. Guillén stated that it was all steep inclines and bad roads, rocky beaches, and extremely steep hills where the cargo often slipped and the mules tumbled down the cliffs. Although they found water during the long journeys, it was usually brackish and undrinkable, so much so that even the animals refused to taste it. It was common during these journeys to advance a league (one league equals 4828 meters) and then have to turn back because of cliffs or mountains in the way. On several occasions, Guillén reported that the Californians he had brought from Loreto to serve as guides would flee at the slightest opportunity, terrified by hunger, thirst, and fatigue, as well as the constant threat of the Guaycuras who harassed them during the journey.

On November 28th, tired of so many setbacks, without water and with very little provisions, they held a meeting to decide the fate of the expedition. After multiple deliberations, they decided to continue until the point where it would be impossible for them to advance, and at that moment they would return to Loreto, subsisting on the meat of their horses and whatever mezcal they could find along the way. Fortunately, after walking about 12 leagues, they found a way out of the mountains and came upon flat terrain where they soon found some waterholes that satisfied their thirst, which had already been exhausting them. It was then that the few Californians who were accompanying them decided to abandon them, taking advantage of a moment of carelessness. It is interesting to read how the soldiers accompanying Guillen were skilled in performing the famous "batequi" in the streams' channels. "Hacer batequi" is a phrase that some ranchers in southern Baja California still use today and refers to the holes they make in the stream beds to search for the surface water that remains after the rains. Many ranchers claim that in the stream beds where mesquite trees abound, there is almost certainly water at a shallow depth. This knowledge kept them alive on more than one occasion during this journey. On December 4th, they arrived at a site where they discovered a very small stream but with enough water to quench their thirst. In addition, there was plenty of grass growing on its banks, which helped to alleviate the hunger of the horses. The next day, they arrived at a part of the Sierra de la Giganta that descends to the sea and were able to continue until they were impeded by some "cantiles" (cliffs). However, their desperation was so great that they decided to overcome this obstacle with the firm belief that the "Californian gulf," that is, the Bay of La Paz, lay beyond it. Crossing these cliffs was no easy task, especially pushing or pulling the mules, which were tired just like the exhausted soldiers.

Finally, on Friday, December 6th, 1720, they arrived at the western part of the Bay of La Paz, probably where the town of El Centenario is today. From there, they spotted the schooner that had already arrived at this site more than 33 days earlier (November 3rd). They made signals and loud shouts so that their companions could see them, and a few hours later, all the expedition members and part of the horse herd crossed over on the schooner. The rest were crossed the following day to regroup at the final point.

Father Clemente Guillén remained in La Paz until January 10th, 1721, when he began his return journey to his mission at San Juan Bautista Malibat or Ligüí, but he took a different route. During the days he stayed in La Paz, he dispatched a group of soldiers who searched for an easier way to cross the Sierra and found one on the side of the South Sea (this road is the one followed by the Transpeninsular Highway), which was less difficult and guaranteed a faster return. Although it is true that during the return march they did not face the obstacles of the orography that had previously presented themselves, here the dangers were with the Californians from the Jesús Remeraquí rancheria, who showed hostility towards them at all times, creating a very tense atmosphere for much of the way with an imminent risk of attack.

In one of the encounters with these Guaycuras, the soldiers and Father Guillén did not understand the phrases they were shouting at them. After a few hours, the interpreters traveling with them told them that they were insults trying to provoke them into fighting. Some of these insults were "Why don't these newcomers have bows?", "Maybe they are women", "They are afraid, if they are afraid, why do they come to our lands?". Fortunately, Father Guillén called for calm and patience among the soldiers, the Guaycuras did not decide to attack the expedition, and on Tuesday, January 21st, they reached the Santa Cruz Udaré rancheria, where the chief was a friend of Father Clemente, which discouraged any attack on them. Even the friendly chief strongly reprimanded the belligerent Guaycuras, reproaching them for the vile way they had treated his friends. Finally, on Thursday, January 23rd, Father Clemente Guillén arrived at his mission at San Juan Bautista Malibat or Ligüí, and shortly after, the soldiers who accompanied him arrived at the Real Presidio de Loreto.

During Father Guillén's expedition, he managed to baptize some places, some of which still have the same name, while others have been replaced. Some examples are: San Juan Bautista Malibat (Ligüí), Catechiguajá (?), Pucá (Agua Verde), Santa Daría Acuré (Santa Marta), San Carlos Aripaquí (San Carlos), San Gregorio Asembabichi (Tembabichi), Santa Isabel Cahué (Montalvá stream), San Félix Acuí (Punta Blanca stream), A paté (Los Dolores), Nuestra Señora de los Dolores (Los Dolores), Sierra del Tesoro (Burros slope), La Presentación de Devá (Kakiwi), San Martín Quaquihué (Kakiwi), San Eugenio lchudairí (Mezquitito plain), Santa Cecilia Caembehué (San Francisco stream), Santa Felícitas (San Francisco stream), San Chrysogono Arecú (El Potrero ranch), Santa Catalina de los Miradores (La Soledad stream), Los Desposorios de Nuestra Señora (Santa Rita del Coyote stream), San Andrés del Paredón (El Caracol ranch), San Saturnino del Pedernal (El Pilar), etc.

We are fortunate that the events of this journey were recorded by the priest Clemente in a diary entitled "Expedition by land from the mission of San Juan Malibat to the bay of La Paz in the Californian gulf, year 1720, by Father Clemente Guillén". The aforementioned document is preserved in the National Library of Mexico, Franciscan Archive, Box 3, Document 49.1, and has been printed on various occasions in both Spanish and English.

The dissemination of the explorations carried out by these missionaries, beyond characterizing them in that human, Manichean instinct of good and evil, allows us to learn more about Old California and its inhabitants from various perspectives that range from anthropological, biotic, botanical, ethnographic, etc. The task of historians is still great, as this is just the tip of the iceberg of the great history of this land.

Bibliography:

Diario “Expedición por tierra desde la misión de San Juan Malibat a la bahía de La Paz en el seno Califórnico, año 1720, por el padre Clemente Guillén”.

La Primera Entrada. Descubrimiento Del Interior De La Antigua California - Carlos Lazcano Sahagún.

“Tres Hombres Ilustres De Sudcalifornia, Jaime Bravo, Manuel Márquez de León y Agustín Arriola Martínez” – del Prof. Leonardo Reyes Silva

“La Paz, ciudad y puerto mexicano: Origen, proceso histórico y símbolos emblemáticos” del Prof. Gilberto Ibarra Rivera

Efemérides Sudcalifornianas - del Prof. Eligio Moisés Coronado