Moon Death Valley National Park

by Jenna Blough

Overview

With sculpted sand dunes, crusted salt flats, and polished marble canyons, Death Valley is as close as you can get to another planet.

This book tells you what you need to know to plan the perfect trip for you:
• Strategies for how to get there, how long it will take, and where to stop along the way
• Hikes to abandoned mining camps, remote ghost towns, and hidden springs
• The most scenic backcountry roads in and around the park
• The best places to pitch a tent, park your RV, or bed down indoors
• Excursions beyond the park boundaries to offbeat sights like the Amargosa Opera House and the Trona Pinnacles

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781631210099
Publisher:	Avalon Publishing
Publication date:	09/01/2015
Series:	Moon Handbooks Travel Series
Pages:	200
Sales rank:	682,839
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 6.10(h) x 4.20(d)

About the Author

Jenna Blough grew up on the edge of the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, where she was allowed to run wild, instilling a love of the outdoors early on. After her parents dragged her and her sister on a cross-country road trip of epic proportions (visiting American classics like Wall Drug in South Dakota, Mesa Verde in Colorado, and the Petrified Forest in Arizona) she developed an equal appreciation for Wild West roadside attractions, historic sites, and wilderness.

Jenna eventually found the California desert to be her geographic soul mate. Drawn by the austere beauty of Death Valley, she is fascinated by its cultural history, ghost towns, native sites, and the Mojave's shifting landscape.

Jenna received an undergraduate degree in cultural anthropology, an MA in English literature, and an MFA in writing. When she's not living out of a tent, Jenna resides in Los Angeles with her husband Ryan Jones. Visit her blog at www.whentheroadends.com.

Read an Excerpt

From Moon Death Valley National Park

Declared a national monument in 1933, then signed into national park status in 1994, Death Valley is the largest national park in the Lower 48 states. One early travel advertisement promised “all the advantages of hell without the inconveniences.” Come to be awed and humbled, dazzled and pushed out of your comfort zone.

Remote. Vast. These words are often used to describe Death Valley, but the Eureka Valley takes them to the next level. In this northernmost valley, the only existing modern building is the tiny pit toilet at the Eureka Dunes. The trade-off for all this remoteness is the lofty and pristine Eureka Sand Dunes; the alien dry lake bed of “The Racetrack,” where rocks move and leave tracks; the shining and desolate views of the Saline Valley from Ubehebe Peak, the highest peak in the Last Chance Range; and the copper mining camps, forgotten and few.

• Scotty’s Castle: This Spanish colonial-style mansion lies in the rocky twists of the Grapevine Mountains. It’s a popular spot, with well-watered and shady grounds as well as fascinating architecture.
• Ubehebe Crater: A powerful volcanic explosion created this crater, 600 feet deep and a half a mile across. An easy hike allows you to peer into its colorful depths.
• Eureka Dunes: The Eureka Dunes are the northernmost destination in the park, so getting to them requires a special trip. Camp in the primitive campground at their base and enjoy sunset from their shining slopes.
• Lost Burro Mine: There’s something about the weathered camp and hand-painted sign that makes the Lost Burro Mine especially picturesque.
• The Racetrack: This dry lake bed has long attracted visitors because of its strangely moving rocks, which glide across its surface leaving trails.
• Ubehebe Peak: This wild and rocky peak towers over the Racetrack with sweeping views of the Saline Valley.

Part of the joy of visiting Death Valley is feeling like you’ve come to the ends of the earth, or even that you’ve landed on another planet entirely as you gaze over the cracked and alien landscape. In the western Panamint Mountains, the relatively high number of creeks and springs, historical sites, and network of old roads that just won’t die create a different kind of planet—one more akin to Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom than Star Wars.

• Wildrose Charcoal Kilns: Once used to make charcoal for the mining efforts in the area, these kilns now stand as works of hand-engineered beauty.
• Aguereberry Point: Pete Aguereberry, a hermit miner, built the road to Aguereberry Point. His legacy is most certainly the spectacular views of the valley that he gave us.
• Skidoo: Even though this former mining town is wiped clean off the map, it’s still worth a visit. Push on past the barren town site to find the rare and well-preserved stamp mill.
• Surprise Canyon: Cool pools, lush greenery, and beautifully sculpted white canyon walls make this a great place to escape the heat of the valley floor and soak in the beauty of the canyon.
• Panamint City: The hike to the silver-boom ghost town of Panamint City follows the scenic but strenuous Surprise Canyon. Crawl over waterfalls, trudge through creek beds, and scramble over rocks—all the while wondering how a road was ever built through here.
• Telescope Peak: The 13-mile hike to reach this highest peak in the park is well worth every switchback, affording sweeping views of Death Valley to the east and Panamint Valley to the west.
• Wildrose Peak: Gnarled bristlecone pines mark the way through the tight switchbacks that lead to this windswept summit with panoramic views of the valley.
• Trona Pinnacles: Limestone tufa formations rise from an ancient lake bed to create a place that is haunting and powerful.

Table of Contents

Chapter destinations include:
Furnace Creek and the Amargosa Range
Stovepipe Wells and the Nevada Triangle
Scotty's Castle and the Eureka Valley
Panamint Springs and the Saline Valley