Album California Death Valley area from Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)

CA-127 Dumont Dunes (0184)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 08:54:07 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Just across from Dumont Dunes, a cluster of mountains (lava?) with developing dune areas.

CA-127 Dumont Dunes (0183)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 08:53:59 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Just across from Dumont Dunes, a cluster of mountains (lava?) with developing dune areas. (Best in large sizes with black background)

CA-127 Dumont Dunes Mercedes tests (0182)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 08:53:47 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Didn't catch this picture at quite the right time. The day before I took this I had seen a cluster of four Mercedes SUV's leaving the Tecopa area and headed towards either Pahrump or Las Vegas. Here they were again, headed into the Dumont Dunes area.

When traveling around this section of California you often see clusters of almost identical cars, sometimes with the car bodies wrapped to hide model or brand-identifying features. The general Death Valley area is used quite a bit both for testing vehicles as well as in advertisements. I've talked with drivers who are part of these sorts of groups (not Mercedes, American cars) and they've described the work as boring...

CA-127 Dumont Dunes (0181)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 08:53:39 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Travel trailers or RV's at the dunes. See the link below for pictures taken at the base of the dunes at Christmas, 2006. www.ipernity.com/doc/donbrr/22308793

CA-127 Dumont Dunes (0177)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 08:53:33 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Dumont Dunes, from CA-127. The dunes are an off-road vehicle site and are quite large. They're roughly 4 miles from this point; there is an almost invisible cluster of trailers/RV's in this picture (noted, and see adjacent picture).

Death Valley Junction (0174)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Thu, 10 Dec 2015 10:21:14 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Abandoned housing area at Death Valley Junction.

Death Valley Junction (0170)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Thu, 10 Dec 2015 10:21:06 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Part of the elegance of the hotel structure at Death Valley Junction.

Death Valley Junction (0166)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Thu, 10 Dec 2015 10:20:54 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

E Clampus Vitus plaque describing the history of Death Valley Junction and its historic railroad connections.

Death Valley Junction (0168)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Thu, 10 Dec 2015 10:20:42 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Part of the main building at Death Valley Junction includes the Amargosa Opera House. Given the remote location, it is always surprising to see an opera house there. See my picture from a few years back for more detail: www.ipernity.com/doc/donbrr/22308733

Charleston View, CA (0153)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 07:45:36 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Charleston View, described on some maps as Calvada Springs, and listed on Zillow as Spring Valley Ranchos. On Zillow vacant lots have been selling (in the past 2 years) for as high as $15K and as low as $348; the latter makes the most sense given that it is unimproved desert land. (See discussion with adjacent picture.)

Charleston View, CA (0153)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 07:45:26 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Looking in the wrong direction (Mt. Charleston is in Nevada and behind me (in the sun)), the village of Charleston View. Charleston View is one of the many fascinating, failed, development schemes of the intermountain west. If you look at a satellite view you'll see a fairly extensive grid of streets mapped out across the surrounding desert, but very few homes (see adjacent picture). From the 1960's I remember regularly seeing the ads in various magazines for "Western Ranchettes, $999" with pictures of rustic but thriving western communities. I imagine it was these sorts of developments that were being sold. Having seen many across the west that are very similar to this, I can't help but wonder what goes on in the minds of the people who did buy and moved here, only to find themselves isolated, with no services, and possibly even having drug manufacturers as the nearest neighbors.

Old Spanish Trail Highway (0151)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 07:45:12 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Looking east across the Pahrump Valley (California) from Emigrant Pass in the Nopah Range on Old Spanish Trail Highway. From what I could find, the low mountains to the east do not have a separate name.

Old Spanish Trail Highway (0149)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 07:44:53 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

From Emigrant Pass in the Nopah Range on Old Spanish Trail Highway, looking west towards Resting Spring Range and then the mud hills around Tecopa.

Old Spanish Trail Highway (0150)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 07:45:03 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Tiny butterfly that seemed willing to pose! Taken near Emigrant Pass.

Tecopa / Old Tecopa (0109)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Sun, 06 Dec 2015 06:48:25 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

A collection of foundations and rubble in the area of the original Tecopa, which is about 8 miles from the current town of Tecopa. Based on the location of these foundations and the type of construction, I'm guessing that these are the remains of administrative buildings associated with the mines. For other photos of old Tecopa, see: www.ipernity.com/tag/donbrr/keyword/4575596

Tecopa Western Talc (0104)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Sun, 06 Dec 2015 06:48:14 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

"Danger No Trespassing" Though the posted danger is due to risk of sliding down into a very deep pit just to my right, the sign seems appropriate for describing the fact that the entire view seen here, far off into the distance, is littered with unmarked mining waste.

Tecopa Hot Springs (0145)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Sat, 05 Dec 2015 10:39:56 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

A collection of mobile homes, travel trailers, and sheds, on the east side of Tecopa Hot Springs. Best viewed in Lightbox (with black background).

Tecopa Hot Springs (0144)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Sat, 05 Dec 2015 10:39:45 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

Most of the area in this picture is Tecopa Hot Springs Resort, a private RV park and motel. I've stayed there in the winter, it's relatively primitive and quite affordable. Best viewed in Lightbox (with black background).

Tecopa Hot Springs park (0143)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Sat, 05 Dec 2015 10:39:34 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

In the foreground, a parking lot of the Tecopa Hot Springs park. The lot seemed to be of stored and/or abandoned vehicles; the gray school bus was once abandoned in the campground (see www.ipernity.com/doc/donbrr/22308899). (See adjacent picture)

Tecopa Hot Springs park (0146)

nobody@ipernity.com (Don Barrett (aka DBs travels)) — Sat, 05 Dec 2015 10:39:22 +0000

Don Barrett (aka DBs travels) has posted:

The story of "Florence"