Death Valley 2022/23

[Beardilocks]

During the 1902-1907 era prospecting became frenzied as the nation came down with "Tonopah Fever." The prospecting fever quickly spread to the south and into Death Valley and surrounding country. In my research in the Inyo County courthouse, I've worn out my eyeballs going through huge 10# books of handwritten documents of mine claims from all over the county, especially Death Valley and vicinity. Some individual's claims took several dozens to a hundred or more pages, filled with vague locations and boundaries that they had staked out on the ground, likely with those very same cairns. W.L. Hunter, of Hunter Mountain and Beveridge fame along with his brother Bev, was county recorder in most of those years, and he had deplorable handwriting that is very hard to read. Oddly, he went to using a typewriter when those newfangled devices came into use, but then reverted back to his horrible handwriting.

I was thinking that your interesting little cabin might be a good candidate for Camp Holdout, Walter Scott's hideaway, but checking Lingenfelter's DEATH VALLEY & THE AMARGOSA, Camp Holdout was simply a shelf under an overhang not far from the Confidence Mine.

I LOVE this kind of knowledge and history.  I wish I had more time for real, on paper research.  Eventually something will capture me enough to make dig.  Hopefully while there’s still places to dig.  Which reminds me that I need to contact the museum in Shoshone…

Did they identify Camp Holdout as being in what we now call Scotty’s Canyon?  Or am I making that up?  Different camp?   

Huge thanks for this.  That’s why I’m sharing these adventures: so all of you here who know more than me can tell me more about where I’m adventuring.  If that makes sense….Great community!