He knew, so tradition goes, that the world was going to be flooded, and he saved himself in a cask made from greasewood "gum" with a cover of the same material. He also taught the coyote how to save himself in a reed. He advised the pinnacate (a black beetle for which the region is named) to go down into the ground and the vulture to rise high up into the sky. Elder Brother saw how water came forth from the tops of the mountains, and when it was rising he entered his cask which floated four times around the world, and then he landed at Pinnacate and was very thin after the long voyage." The second legend deals with Cerro Pinnacate's volcanic history. l'itoi lived in Boboquivari before he came to Pinnacate. At that time there were many people in Pinnacate. The mountains were very high then, and the sun used to set soon after it had risen, so the days were very short. He saw that this did not suit the people, and he decided to lower the mountains. He built two Fires, where the two peaks are found today, making fire by drilling one stick into another one. The wind blew the ashes about to all parts and made the mountains lower, covering the country so as to look as seen today. After that the people lived contented, and there was not so much shade from the west. All this without bulldozers, yet. If you are lucky enough to pass through Sells during its hours of operation, stop at the Papago tribal store. There you will most likely find an Indian-woman sitting amidst her wares, patiently weaving a basket or plaque (a flat, circular wall-hanging). You will probably observe one or more plaques with this pattern:

If asked, the basket-weaver will tell you that this is a tribal symbol. The little man is l'itoi. The complex pattern is the maze of life, and Elder Brother, like each of us, must pass through the maze to find the way home, denoted by the round spot at the center, which for him is Waw Giwulk, the Papago word for Baboquivari.

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