Death Valley Deep Dive 2024

[Brice]

I took an adventure way off the beaten path into the very heart of the Panamint Mountains to find these cool fossilized camel tracks.  Or something like that…  

This is a good time to bring up a bit of trivia that I find interesting.  I've thought it strange that I never see half eaten creosote bushes.  I come across cactus with chunks bitten out of them and that's a much nastier plant, so why not creosote?

From wikipedia: 

Of mammals, only the jackrabbit will eat the leaves of a creosote bush, and only when there are no alternatives. 

The Arabian camel, brought to the area by the United States Camel Corps, readily ate creosote bush. It is thought that this meeting reestablished a biological relationship that was broken when the American camels became extinct in the Quaternary Extinction Event.

This is an example of an Evolutionary Anachronism.  Another great example I know of is the north american pronghorn, which is much faster than the fastest predator around, the wolf.  Why?  Because there used to be cheetahs in north america.

[Beardilocks]

Huh. That’s really cool. Good point about creosote, I never thought about how it’s never eaten.

Cool terms to know.

So are we starting a Cheetah Corp now? Sounds dangerous.

[netllama]

Thanks for the good exploration out there ! Are these canyon roads now graded well enough that 4x4 isn't needed? They used to be quite rough in places (years ago).

[netllama]

I took an adventure way off the beaten path into the very heart of the Panamint Mountains to find these cool fossilized camel tracks.  Or something like that…  

This is a good time to bring up a bit of trivia that I find interesting.  I've thought it strange that I never see half eaten creosote bushes.  I come across cactus with chunks bitten out of them and that's a much nastier plant, so why not creosote?

From wikipedia: 

Of mammals, only the jackrabbit will eat the leaves of a creosote bush, and only when there are no alternatives. 

The Arabian camel, brought to the area by the United States Camel Corps, readily ate creosote bush. It is thought that this meeting reestablished a biological relationship that was broken when the American camels became extinct in the Quaternary Extinction Event.

This is an example of an Evolutionary Anachronism.  Another great example I know of is the north american pronghorn, which is much faster than the fastest predator around, the wolf.  Why?  Because there used to be cheetahs in north america.

Can't say I'm surprised about the camels. They seem willing to eat just about anything. I've seen them chewing on rocks, gourds, and every part of fruits (including seeds, pits, etc).

[Beardilocks]

Thanks for the good exploration out there !  Are these canyon roads now graded well enough that 4x4 isn't needed?  They used to be quite rough in places (years ago).

Trail is ok until the canyon mouth.  But you’d struggle to get in all the way in the current “south only” entrance situation.  The usual deep sand in a few spots.  I’d want at least AWD and good clearance. 

Johnson you’d belly out somewhere along the way without at least decent clearance.  

Galena is as rough as ever.  Hell you’re not jumping the sand berm at the start of the road without a decent vehicle right now.  

The thing is, with everything recently fluffed by the graders it’s a bit soft until enough ppl drive in.  They didn’t follow up with rollers where they rebuilt sections.  Completely fine in a decent truck or Jeep.  Rentals should still stay on pavement tho.

[DAW89446]

The Arabian camel, brought to the area by the United States Camel Corps, readily ate creosote bush. It is thought that this meeting reestablished a biological relationship that was broken when the American camels became extinct in the Quaternary Extinction Event.

I don't know the various eras of prehistoric time. But does the period that American camel roamed correspond to the time that the creosote came to North America? I found this on a Bing search:

• The creosote bush is native to South America, specifically regions in Southern Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina1.
  
• It spread to North America during the Pleistocene period, which occurred from approximately 1 million to 10,000 years ago1.
  
• The first North American creosote appeared in the southern Chihuahua Desert about 109,000 years ago
  

It sounds to me as if the camel came before the creosote.

[DAW89446]

Here's a relic of a different kind that I found in Death Valley: The remains of a pair of B-24 Liberator WWII Bombers. ... I did manage to track down one of the propellers.  From my research, I think there are 3 or 4 propellers still on the ground in the salt pan from this crash. 

Fascinating. I have read about the incident and aftermath but didn't know this much still existed. Great stuff! Thank you for your efforts.

[GowerGulch42]

Awesome stuff! I haven't seen a report anywhere from Galena in YEARS, so thanks for doing that. I was so bummed when they opened Emigrant and WSR just days after we left!

[Beardilocks]

I decided to bag a peak this week and check off one thing off my long “to-do” list in Death Valley:  Hit the ridge-line somewhere overlooking Eureka Dunes on the East from the Last Chance Range.  Or more accurately, Brice was hitting it and I tagged along.  But boy was it worth it.  Sandy Point Benchmark.  *Warning: Gratuitous view photos*

We climbed up from Big Pine/Death Valley Rd, East of Crater.  The bushwacking for the two miles or so was moderately annoying but we soon climbed up out of it and the views started.  First looking at the far North end of Death Valley and Slate Ridge.


Looking down through and unnamed canyon. 


Opposite canyon looking towards Eureka Valley. 


The hike is a nice mix of terrain, keeping it interesting. 


I love ridgeline hiking.


First peek at Eureka Dunes.


There they are.  4000ft below.  Lovely. 


At the peak.


Gratuitous dune shots.








Looking South towards Death Valley proper. 



Ridge headed back.


Absolutely gorgeous hike.  Not a killer at ~11mi round trip with around 2200ft of gain.  And views in one direction or another the whole way up.

[netllama]

I'll never tire of seeing Eureka Valley. Thanks for those gorgeous shots.

BTW, is that some leftover snow in the last photo ?