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Published: November 20th 2008
Sunrise @ Furnace Creek
The sunrises and sunsets were really beautifulKept this blog separate so that I could add extra photos:
I travelled to Furnace Creek, Sunset Campground with one of my SOLO friends, Lorraine. Lorraine is 80 years old and loves to go into hot spring pools. We left a day ahead of the main group to stay overnight in a little place called Shoshone so that we could enjoy the pools there. The water comes into the pool at 25 gallons/minute from a pipe which comes out of the side of the side of the mountain at 93⁰F. The water is full of minerals, and because it is constantly being refreshed there is no need to add chlorine. They have to cool the water during the warm months otherwise it’s just too hot to sit in. We really enjoyed our three hour soak.
The next day we travelled into Death Valley’s Furnace Creek Sunset Campground. Eight of our group was already there. The SOLOs enjoy “Happy Hour” every afternoon and “Hugs and Mugs” each morning, so are a very social group. “Hugs and Mugs” is a coffee gathering when members exchange their plans for the day and link up for car pools etc. People started to trickle in
Golf Course
The golf course is a full 18 holes but I am guessing this must be the lowest 1st Tee in the world. every day and by the time the Encampment started we were about 30 strong. Most of the early Encampment activities were in the evenings which left us the daytime hours to explore and enjoy Death Valley.
Here are a few Death Valley facts that I won’t have place to share in the photo section of this entry: Furnace Creek is the main informational area of Death Valley. The National Park office is there. The village with a general store, two restaurants, a golf course, a museum, a laundry facility and a U.S. Post Office is there, and two campgrounds are there. The elevation of Furnace Creek averages 200’ below sea level. I was staying in the Sunset Campground, which basically is a marked parking lot with flush toilets! It is 196’ below sea level. The average high temperature in the winter months (December and January) is 65⁰ the average high for the hottest month (July) is 115⁰. The record high recorded in July of 1913 was 134⁰F, ironically the record low was 15⁰F recorded in January of 1913. Must’ve been something going on in 1913 I guess! We experienced the low 80⁰s for highs and overnights were in the high
Old Dinah
Although mining for gold and silver wasn't too successful, mining for borax was. Originally the borax was pulled out of Death Valley to rail heads more than 70 miles away, by teams of 20 mules. Old Dinah replaced the mules. 40⁰s; just perfect for sleeping with the windows open. There are warnings posted at the beginning of all the trails because it is easy to get lost once you get out into the desert and without water dehydration is a major concern. There are no street lights and we were too far away from any large cities, so the night skies are phenomenal; I have never seen so many stars. During the Encampment quiet hours were 9 P.M to 7 A.M. -what makes you think a lot of older people attend this event???
There is so much to see here, I couldn’t cover it all. I thoroughly enjoyed my Death Valley experience and will certainly come back to another 49ers Encampment.
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Shalena
non-member comment
Great blog!
I'm really enjoying reading through your adventures! Your pictures are amazing. You should look into getting a gorillapod. It's a flexible and portable little tripod for your camera. They're a great invention! (and we've used them for lots of "dashboard shots"! http://www.joby.com/products/gorillapod/