September 27, 2015 - Through Hell's Gate into the Furnace Creek for a visit to Death Valley
Yesterday was National Public Land's Day which meant all the 147 National Parks that charge an entrance fee were free. I like free! This got me thinking about what National Park I wanted to visit to have the full advantage of a free entrance fee. There are only a couple of National Parks and Monuments near here and my time was limited, Cabrillo National Monument and Death Valley. I have been Cabrillo several times but never to Death Valley and it was on my list of places to visit. So I booked a trip.
Death Valley is recommended to visit during the fall, winter, and spring not the summer. Technically yesterday was still in the summer season. When I planned our adventure I did not know what temperature it might be, the predicated high as we got closer to the date was 112. The thermometer reading we saw was:
We were just grateful it wasn't a record setting day like in 1913 of 134. Interesting enough that year also was the lowest temperature of -9 and 1913 was also the record setting precipitation year too.
We went prepared for high dry temperatures and were able to do a good portion of our sightseeing and hiking in the morning. We spent Friday night in Pahrump, Nevada about an hour away - the closest place to stay.
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| 20 Mule Team Canyon |
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| Zabriskie Point |
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| My first view into the valley |
The first things we saw was the 20 Mule Team Canyon trail loop where borax was mined. I remembered my mom using 20 Mule Borax to clean our laundry. Which is one of the things borax is used for, it is also used in the glass of this touch screen computer I am using too. We drove a little further and walked up a view point to see Zabriskie Point, an amazing multicolored wildly eroded badlands area. Plus my first view into the valley.
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| Monument to the 49ers |
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| We were relative still high at this point, see that downward road |
Death Valley was used as a shortcut for the gold miners on their way to the 1849 gold rush. It was first named Death Valley because of the deaths of these men trying to cross it in hopes to make it rich with gold. Besides being at sea level, parts are below sea level - 190 feet below sea level at Furnace Creek.
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| look at those golden rocks |
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| Gower Gulch was really headed to that peak up ahead - a 4.2 mile trail |
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| Just a little tired, can you see the sweat on our foreheads |
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| where I hit my head on my way to the end of the canyon |
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| the end of the trail |
Our first real exploration was into Golden Canyon, it was labeled as an interpretive trail which would have been made possible if the guides were not all gone. We took a few bottles of water and wished we would have taken more along this 2ish mile hike. About halfway in there was a side path labeled Gower Gulch Loop which I thought meant a short loop in and out to see the inner workings of some of the erosion. We quickly discovered that was wrong as the trail kept leading us uphill and certainly not in a gulch. So we found our own way back to the Golden Canyon trail downhill. I was finally drained and found a shaded spot to rest and drink my water. Craig went a little further and called for me to come. It was the end of the canyon and I was able to enjoy more of the golden rocks that the canyon was named for.
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| Pink caused by iron salt |
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| The green is from decomposition of mica and purple from manganese |
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| Back into the valley from Artist Drive |
It was time for an in the air conditioned car view through Artist Drive, a 9 mile loop. The scene is referred to an artist palette but Craig and I thought it looked more like melted cotton candy ice cream. What do you think?
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| Mosaic Breccia - see all those different stones in the wall |
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| This polished marble sounded hollow and was so smooth to the touch |
We were ready for another exploration in this vastly different area. Onto Mosaic Canyon at the end of a rough unpaved road. Craig and I probably wandered in about 1/2 mile but were ready to turn back after feeling like we had experienced a good part of the reason it was named Mosaic Canyon. First you notice the Mosaic Breccia which is referring to pebbly gravel. But just 1/4 mile in you see the remarkable difference with the polished marble walls of the slot canyon. We were discovering Death Valley was a hodgepodge of landscapes.
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| The obligatory selfie in front of the dead tree |
After lunch we drove up to Hell's Gate which was referring to another entrance into Death Valley - do you get it? Down the hill we drove to the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes. Truth be told this is what I though all of Death Valley looked like, I discovered differently.
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| Charcoal Kilns originally built in 1879, used for 3 years, restored in 1971 |
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| The start of the Wildrose Peak Trail |
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| Our reward view of Death Valley after a 2,000 feet 2 mile climb |
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| Golden sun reflection |
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| The trail down in the evening |
Now when I was planning our trip to Death Valley, I was asked what do you want to do there and my answer was take a hike. I truly didn't know what to expect and what kind of hike. Little did I know I would be taking a hike into the mountains. Wildrose Peak Trail was the only hike recommended for summer season. It is a 8.4 mile round trip hike up climbing 2,200 feet in 4 miles. It is at the end of a 9 mile one way drive in to the Charcoal Kilns - used in 1879 to produce charcoal that was then carted 25 miles west for smelting of silver and ore. We started about 4 pm because we were significantly higher elevation about 7,000 feet much cooler. We started in 84 degree weather, it felt like heaven. Craig and I hiked for an hour, a little more than 2 miles where we were promised views of the valley and we were not disappointed. On the way back down we enjoyed the golden hues of the sun reflecting on the mountainside plants.
What a day, we loved it. Adventures with Craig are my favorite. Discovering new sites and sights of this beautiful world are the best. Death Valley is amazing! What a mishmash, hodgepodge area. I truly felt like perhaps it was a place where bits and pieces of our earth's creation were left behind as the rest were scattered around.
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