Giant Rock sits on the edge of a long-abandoned small aircraft runway in an otherwise undeveloped desert valley at the north end of Landers. Said to be as tall as a seven-story building, the natural wonder has been a gathering point for Native Americans and UFO enthusiasts. In recent years, off-roading and community groups have attempted to keep the area clean of litter and debris on an ongoing basis, but recent desecration of the site has gone to a new level. Mike Lipsitz files this report…
Vandals with spray paint have made a mess at Giant Rock. “Jaw dropping” is how James Massenburg, a camper visiting from New York, described the graffiti there. Others in the area say the tagging has been intensifying since March and described it as “ugly, pointless scribbles.” An exceptionally large work on the rock’s west side showed up on the Instagram account of a user calling himself “The Classy Vandal.” The piece spells out the word “Paradox.” Efforts by Z107.7 News to make contact have been unsuccessful and the account has since gone private.
Giant Rock and the surrounding area is under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management or BLM. Woefully understaffed, the BLM is virtually powerless to monitor the site and doesn’t have a cleanup scheduled until October. Meanwhile, vandalism at Giant Rock continues to spread. Those planning a trip to may want to think twice before taking young children out there to witness the obscenities and explicit renderings.
