Home»Death Valley Dec 2012

The first part of December 2012, I went on a 2000 mile journey from Las Cruces NM to Death Valley in California. I was in the Valley earlier in 2012 and found areas in the Valley so photographable that I wanted to return. The main thrust of this trip was to get to Baker Ranch in a remote area in the Valley. This is the ranch where in Charles Manson and some of his family were captured in October 1969. Manson was found hiding under the vanity in the bathroom. Due to its remote location, I was told by the rangers at the Death Valley Visitors Center, that it would be best to have another vehicle travel with you into the area should you have a vehicle problem. I was unable to find another 4 wheel driver who was interested in going to the area. The other area I wanted to revisit was the Racetrack Playa in a remote northern part of the Park. When I returned in December, I was told by the rangers that a recent flood had completely washed out portions of the road that leads to the Barker Ranch. Luckily, the road leading to the Racetrack Playa was not affected by the rains.
In addition to revisiting Death Valley I traveled over the mountains to Lone Pine, California. Lone Pine lies on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and has outstanding views and hikes to Mt. Whitney, the highest mountain in the lower 48. In addition, just outside the Lone Pine city limits are the Alabama Hills. The Alabama Hills are a popular filming location for television and movie productions, especially Westerns set in an archetypical "rugged" environment. Since the early 1920s, 150 movies and about a dozen television shows have been filmed here, including Tom Mix films, Hopalong Cassidy films, The Gene Autry Show, and The Lone Ranger. Classics such as Gunga Din, Springfield Rifle, The Violent Men (1955 film), Bad Day at Black Rock (1955), the Budd Boetticher/Randolph Scott "Ranown" westerns, part of How the West Was Won, and Joe Kidd.More recent productions such as Tremors and Joshua Tree, were filmed at "movie ranch" sites known as Movie Flats and Movie Flat Road. In Gladiator, actor Russell Crowe rides a horse in front of the Alabamas, with Mount Whitney in the background, for a scene presumably set in Spain. Star Trek Generations was filmed here in addition to Overton, Nevada and Paramount Studios. This range was one of the filming locations for Disney's Dinosaur. More recently, many parts of the films Iron Man and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen were filmed here.
Prior to leaving Las Cruces, I was sitting with three other RVers from MN and one from IN. I was telling them that I was heading back to the Racetrack Playa and I showed them some photos of the area to include Teakettle Junction that you pass by on your way to the Playa. We all decided it might be a good idea to hang our own kettle at the Junction. Although we did not have a teakettle, Connie from IN did have an old watering can. So we all signed he can. It was then my job to get to the Junction and hang the can. When I was there earlier in the year there were probably 50 or so teakettles that people had hung on the signage that shows the direction and mileage to the Racetrack. When I returned a couple weeks ago, all the kettles had been removed and there was only one can hanging. I hung our watering can on the one kettle and headed to the Playa. I found out later from a Park Ranger, they remove the kettles from time to time to make room for more cans. So I am sure the next time I visit the area there will be several kettles hanging.
I arrived at the Playa around 11 in the morning and departed around 7 in the evening. I was hoping to be there not only to photo the moving rocks but to photograph the stars. This part of the park is pretty much light pollution free and you have the opportunity to see stars that you normally do not get to see in other parts of the country. In addition, Nellis AFB, China Lake Naval Weapons Area and Area 51 are in close proximity to the Playa so there are all sorts of fighters flying night exercises over the Playa. It gets confusing, you do not know if during the 20-30 second time exposure, did you capture a falling star or a fighter in your image. I found after reviewing the photos, I captured fighters passing through the exposure. Also I realized I should have remained in the Playa later in the evening as I was told the stars become more intense. A good reason to return yet again.
I normally spend a couple nights at the Longstreet Inn and Casino in the Amargosa Valley just outside Death Valley, The Casino has a small RV park. The best part of the RV park it has wifi so I can get email. Inside the park communications are very limited. You will see that fuel prices inside the park are at a premium, especially at Panamint Springs as you are heading over to Lone Pine CA. Premium fuel cost at the Springs was 6.29 dollars a gallon. Also at the visitors center at Furnace Creek in Death Valley, a six pack of beer was 18 dollars. When I was at the Longstreet, I asked a MN transplant who works there where the best price for diesel fuel might be. She told me up the road is the Alien Travel Center. She told me not only is it a gas station, but also has a brothel connected to it. Brothels are not something you see connected to gas stations in Park Rapids MN or Las Cruces NM.