Jacumba

It was like the, uh...

Before you get to Jacumba, just that 15 mile, 7% downgrade.

It was...

We were bombing, like, 45 down this highway for 15 miles, and-

The final confirmed movements of Jonathan, thanks to CCTV and credit card information, was on May 1st, 2016 at a Valero gas station at around 5 a.m. After this, there had been no further transactions on his cards and no activity on his phone.

Investigators alerted authorities in National City and Encinitas, and on May 1st, his 2013 Honda Civic was found abandoned along Old Highway 80 near Jacumba Hot Springs along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Inside the car, officers found Sandy, who had unfortunately passed away of natural causes, along with dog food, bowls, and Jonathan's phone.

The only thing missing from the vehicle other than Jonathan were his keys and his wallet.

Little slippy.

Below us on the valley floor, the Jacumba Wilderness stretches out into the heat mirage that blends with the horizon.

From here, it looks barren, rocky, and hostile.

I've spent a lot of time in those canyons.

Perhaps that's why it took longer for the United States to protect its desert landscapes.

It wasn't until the 20th century, and often the latter half of it, that they gained the protections afforded by the national parks and wilderness designations that some parts of the desert now hold.

Like other capital W wilderness areas in the United States, the Jacumba Wilderness is covered by the provisions of the 1964 Wilderness Act.

This act, and the discussion around it, forms many of your perceptions of wilderness and what it means.