Episode 7 - Death Valley & Mitchell Caverns

Death Valley

Throughout our stay in southern Arizona and Nevada, the geology and vegetation have really fascinated us so the time came to venture off to Death Valley. Death Valley . . . it has it all . . . the lowest, the highest, incredible rock formations, desert, salt flats.

We travelled along I-40 and stopped at Baker to see the world's tallest thermometer . . . 134 ft. high, the same as the highest temperature ever recorded in North America ( 134 F.). From there we headed up into the valley. Our first stop was at Shoshone, a small village that at one time was at the edge of the area where Borax was mined and the famous twenty mule team was born.

The main road goes up through Shoshone to Death Valley Junction and then over to Furnace Creek but we decided to take the more scenic route and swung over to highway #178 and headed towards Furnace Creek right through the centre of Death Valley. As you drive through, you get a sense of all the tremendous geological happenings throughout the area. You are completely surrounded by mountains, rugged , both barren and colourful.

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On our way we stopped at Badwater which is a salt flat and the lowest point in the western hemisphere at 282 ft. below sea level.

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The next place on our way to Furnace Creek was called Artist's Drive. Artist's Drive is a narrow one way road (only driven by cars or pickups) that takes you into a unique colourful rock formation. The road is narrow and the corners so sharp but it is well worth the drive as it is so beautiful with so many different colours in the rock that I don't think it is possible to capture it with a camera and do it justice.

We finally got to Furnace Creek and spent some time at the information centre there and then decided to venture onto Beatty, Nevada for the night as the day was coming to an end (and the hotel rooms cost about $400.00 a night). So we headed back onto highway # 190. We drove and drive and after about a half hour of driving Fred happened to look up at the compass in the mirror. It said we were going south-east which seemed a little strange because we were supposed to be going north-west. So we pulled of the road and looked at the maps, and yes we had been going the wrong way so by this time the sun was going down and we made the decision to keep going east and go to Death Valley Junction instead.

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It is so much fun getting lost as you always find things that no one told you about and that's how we found the Amargosa Hotel and Opera House.

Like so many of the small towns in southern California and Arizona, Death Valley Junction was built around mining (Borax was mined around Death Valley Junction until the late 1940's) and the railroad . . . and like so many southern California and Arizona towns, it died. Apparently in the mid 60's, Marta Becket (an actress from New York-obviously with a lot of money) undertook restoring the Opera House and the attached Hotel. She and her partner still present performances every Saturday.

Death Valley deserves far more attention than we gave it, so it is definitely on our want to revisit list.

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Mitchell Caverns . . . last adventure before heading north

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The last couple of weeks before we left the Arizona/Nevada area were spent getting ready and visiting with folks we had neighboured with for the past almost five months. Our last adventure trip was to Mithcell Caverns. We went with Ann & Eldon, a couple we have travelled with before and had great fun doing it together.

Now to get to the Mitchell Caverns are in the Mojave National Preserve about 85 miles west from Laughlin, Nevada, you travel west along Interstate #40 and then go about 20 miles into the Preserve, but travelling with Ann & Eldon means taking all the back roads we can.

We heard about another site (Goeff) where they were restoring an old ghost town. Unfortunately, we were there in the wrong season at the wrong time and the place was closed but we did manage to get a couple of pictures.

There isn't much but desert until all of a sudden these large hills come into view. You start climbing until you reach a plateau where there is a small camping area and a ranger station.

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Mitchell Caverns tours were started by a couple in the 30's and taken over by the California Department of Parks and Receation to help to preserve the natural resources. The public is not allowed into the caverns without a guide. Our guide did a good job of pointing out the unique features in the caverns and giving everyone the opportunity to take pictures. The formations are very delicate and dynamic but if they are touched, they will no longer grow.

The tour started about a half hour after we arrived. We had the opportunity to wander around and learn about some vegetation and animals that call the Mojave home. The caverns are about half a mile from the station along a narrow path on the edge of the hill/mountain. The temperature outside on the walk was about 40 F. and once you arrived inside, the temperature jumped to 63 F. which is what it is all year round.

Once you enter the caverns its like entering a different world and the first thing that hits you is the meaning of darkness. At one point the guide turned off all source of light and you knew the true meaning of BLACK. You could move you hand in front of your face and not know it was there.

The formations are awesome coming from the floor as well as the ceiling (neither of us can remember which are stalagmites and which are stalagtites). In some of the narrow passages you were able to get up very close to them and it was at that point that you could see how over the centuries they were formed. We were able to get some pictures of them but once again you had to be there to get the full depth of it all.

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On our way back from Mitchell Caverns we went by Eldon's Rule which is, "Why take the main route when you can find something different on the back roads". And sure enough after some miles of washboard roads and sandy trails we came upon the dying town of Kelso.

At one time Kelso grew to almost 2000 people with a very immence railway station. The iron ore mining and processing was critical to the war effort during the second World War, but, like so many places in the desert, it is dying and the National Park Services are trying to preserve the history and restore important buildings. The first restoration in Kelso is the train station.

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Our next page will be about our trip to the west coast and our trip back to home so stay tuned.