Death Valley National Park

Death Valley National Monument, established in 1933, covers 2,981 square miles (2,067,795 acres), 550 of which are below sea level. This 120-mile-long basin is the hottest spot on the continent, and Badwater, at 282 ft below sea level, is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere.

Geology

Geologists call this landscape "basin and range" country. Large segments of the Earth's crust are slowly stretching apart and tilting; their upturned edges are the mountain ranges, the downdropped edges - filled with sediments - are the valleys. Basin and range country extends from the Sierras of California across Nevada to central Utah. Near Badwater in Death Valley is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere; Mount Whitney on the Sierra crest, only 85 miles and three ranges to the west, is the highest place in the lower 48 states.

The rocky ribs of Death Valley tell geological stories that began nearly 2 billion years ago. At least four generations of rocks are exposed in the surrounding mountains. During the Mesozoic era this was probably a region of low mountains and wide valleys with streams and lakes. During this period these were many earthquakes, and much volcanic action, with flows of volcanic mud and lava and with fragmental material accumulating and forming tufa. It was in this era, also, that Death Valley was created by faulting. As can be seen, the strata of the Panamint and the Black Mountains tilt in the same direction; the Panamints dip at a long angle towards Death Valley, with a steeper face toward Panamint Valley, while the Black Mountains present an abrupt face to the Valley and slope gently eastward towards the Armagosa Desert. For a long time Death Valley was a desert. In the last few thousand years, almost no changes have taken place, except erosion of the mountains, the accumulation of the debris in the Valley, and the formation of the Ubehebe Crater.

Driving Tour

Zabriskie Point The soft rock layers that surround Zabriskie Point were deposited in an earlier generation of mountain lake basin that was similar in some ways to the present valley but had a wetter climate. The oldest sediments here accumulated as mud, sand, and gravel in and around a major lake. The gravel formed in washes and fans near the sand of beaches and bars near the lakeshore,a nd the mud settles to the bottom of the still water in deeper parts of the lake. the lighter colors - yellows, tans, and browns - are mostly from iron minerals exposed to air; the darker ones - gray-green to dark gray - are volcanic ash and lava flow.

Furnace Creek Junction to Badwawter Loop is about 16 miles one-way. Add about 6 extra miles if you decide to do Artists Drive.

Golden Canyon is named for the glowing color of the canyon walls. These rocks are the same older playa and lake sediments seen later from Zabriskie Point. The layers were originally horizontal, but have been tilted 45 degrees or more.

Devil's Golf Course is formed by salt - about 95% pure table salt. A lake 30 ft deep existed here about 2000 years ago. Salt precipitated from its drying waters and formed this top layer that is form three to five feet thick. Below this is at least 1000 ft of alternating layers of salt and rubble representing deposits in and from other laked that have existed in Death Valley. The largest of these was Lake Manly, which was more than 100 miles long and 600 feet deep.

Badwater is the lowest point that you can drive to in the Western Hemisphere, at 279.8 ft/85 m below sea level. About four miles west of here is the lowest point - 282 feet below sea level.

The pond gets its name from one of the early surveyors who saw that his mule wouldn't drink from the pool and noted "badwater" on his map. The name stuck. Though not poisonous, it is not drinkable.

Artist's Drive is a 13 mile, one-way road takes you into the foothills of the Black Mountains. Although these rocks are generally older than those at Zabriskie Point, their origins were similar - lake beds, alluvial fans, lava flow and volcanic ash deposits.

Artist's Palette The red, pink, yellow, orange and brown colors result mainly from two minerals that commonly occur in rust - hematite, a red iron oxide, and limonite, a yellow iron oxide. Other colors, especially the violets and greens, are formed by the alteration of minerals found in the volcanic ash.

Mushroom Rock originally got its start as molten lava welled up along the fault that borders Death Valley. This then cooled and hardened. As time passed wind, water, and chemicals beat the surface of the rock to create its present shape. Wind-blown sand was the most important tool. Heavy particles are not lifted far above the surface, but their striking forces are greater and have formed the stem. For hard rocks like basalt, this may take thousands of years; a wooden telephone pole whose base is not protected by a pile of rocks can be cut down by wind erosion in just a few years.

Changes in temperature cause a rock to expand and contract which produces cracks. Blowing salt packs into the cracks and pores of the rock. Rain dissolves the slat carrying deeper into the cracks. As it dries, crystals form and exert tremendous pressure, chipping off particles of rock. In 1956 natural forces caused a large section of the cap of Mushroom Rock to break off.

Furnace Creek Ranch gets its name from Furnace Creek, which originates in the form of several springs about a mile east of the ranch. In 1860 a party of prospectors, led by Dr. Darwin French, came through this area in search of silver. He found a small, crude smelting furnace left here by earlier prospectors and reportedly named the creek after this find.

In the late 1870s the Lee brothers, members of a prominent Mormon family, ran cattle at the site. They were quite versatile, and were able to scratch out a livelihood by exercising many talents including prospecting. "Phi" and "Cub" Lee later located and sold borax claims in 20 Mule Team Canyon (near Zabriskie Point) and elsewhere to F.M. "Borax" Smith. The four Lee brothers' chief notoriety, however, is due to their parents who demonstrated some kind of literary background by naming them Philander, Leander, Meander and Salamander.

The growing of dates at the Ranch was considered as early as 1911 and in 1921 or 1922 seeds were obtained and planted in a nursery. This was unsuccessful, but in 1924 some well developed trees were successfully transplanted from the grove in Yuma. Several varieties were tried and for a while the U.S. Department of Agriculture maintained an experimental station here to assist in determining the most suitable variety. At one time the grove had 1500 trees, offshoots of the original transplants, and produced 200 tons of fruit per year.

The Inn and Ranch were opened after World War II and operated by the Death Valley Hotel Company, an affiliate of the Borax Company until 1955. In 1956 the operation was leased to Fred Harvey Company, the famed Santa Fe Railroad provider of meals, hotels, resorts and dining cars throughout the west. In 1969 the Furnace Creek properties were purchased by the Fred Harvey Company and have been owned and operated by it since that date.

Visitors Center contains weather and road conditions.

Devil's Cornfield

Sand Dunes