A plan to underground about 2.5 miles of the Escondido Canal through and near the San Pasqual Indian reservation has moved forward with an agreement reached recently for Escondido to pay the tribe for an easement through its land. The 14-mile-long Escondido Canal transports water from Lake Henshaw to Lake Wohlford where it is stored for use by Escondido and Vista Irrigation District consumers. Back in 1969, a lawsuit was filed by the federal government and five local Indian tribes along the San Luis Rey River contending that Escondido and Vista had stolen the tribes’ water by construction of the canal. After nearly 50 years of litigation, a complicated settlement was finally reached a few years ago.