Also Celtfire, the thing I find interesting is through conversations I have had with people who used to reside at the Moss Mill back in the time before Mike Castro took up residency there, is that Mike Castro used to hang with the Moss Mill crew and shared thier opinion that people should not have to pay the Bowen Ranch people ( at that time ) money to visit the springs. The Moss Mill crew ( including Mike Castro ) would tell people they should access through the Moss Mill for free and not pay the resident of the Bowen Ranch. Then a time came when the Crew decided that they should make a group called " The Friends of Deep Creek ". This group would seek to gain control of the Bowen Ranch for the benifit of all hotspringers. Too make a long story short, instead of " The Friends of Deep Creek " gaining control of the Bowen Ranch, Mike Castro got control of it by paying Fred Moss a sum of cash to lease the property. Not too long after Mike Castro got control of the Bowen Ranch " The Friends of Deep Creek " group fell apart. Mike Castro who before had said that people should not have to pay to go to the hotsprings, continued the toll at the Bowen gate, just like the other residents. Now that Mike Castro was on the other side of the fence, William who he used to hang with became the enemy that allowed people to cross " HIS " property. People who were now crossing " HIS " property to get to the hotsprings for FREE! But of course as Mike Castro has told many people " the money doesn't matter to him ". The entrance fee through the ranch went from two to three to four dollars per person but " the money doesn't matter ". Mike Castro became so incensed about visitors accessing for " FREE " through the Moss Mill that he and some of his compadres went out one night and rolled huge boulders onto the Moss Mill road to block it. He blocked a road that was not even on his property. I talked to one of the people who was present with Mike Castro the night this was done. But of course, Mike Castro was just protecting his property, it surely wasn't about " lost Revenue ". Think about it, who else in the world would have any interest, and spend that much effort, to block that particular road. I have talked to people who used to " work " for Mike Castro in taking the toll at the gate and they can tell you how " interested " Mike Castro was in " The Money ". The money taken at the gate " IS " the reason Mike Castro has acted out in his aggressive ways, protecting " HIS " turf, " HIS " money machine. Oh yeah, and naturally fueds have developed because of all of the aggressive acts. If the Bowen Ranch was not in the unique position it is, as a conduit of flow of visitors to the springs with the potential for income that it presents, you would not have seen Mike Castro buying that property or having been in the area except for possibly an occasional visit. Also I have to wonder, if " the money " didn't matter like Castro says, then why doesn't he just let everyone in for FREE. Why doesn't he just stop with the aggressive acts around the ranch, and if he cares for Deep Creek Hot Springs so much, why do you never see him down there, ever? As far as I can see, and what I've heard from Mike Castro himself in the past, there are a whole host of things that " occur " in regards to Mikes residency at the ranch that keep him all riled up. From unruly visitors, people Mike Castro feels he " has " to rescue or help, people ( like Gary Roe ) who Mike Castro feels the need to continuely harass, etc, etc, etc. From my experience and from my discussions with other visitors through the ranch, seems like Mike Castro is always unhappy about something related to his time at the ranch. Why in the world wouldn't he just put up a gate, mark his property for no tresspassing, no hotsprings access, kick back, go hang with the regulars at the springs and forget all about the old Bowen Ranch troubles. The only thing that explains it is " The money does matter ", and Mike Castro, so far, appears ready to " do what it takes ", to keep the money flowing, and it appears to be non-taxed money too. I know I'd have a lot more money, if it wan't taxed to death.
