Scotty's Castle and Kaleidoscope Canyon

[DAW89446]

Back in the day one used to be able to get gas at Scotty’s Castle. I paid $1.44 per gallon in 1996.

Is the gas station you're referring to? 

I don’t really remember details, it was after dark. It was a tiny building. If that upright object at the right is an antique pump, then no I don’t think so; I don’t recall the pump being anything other that common for the period. I think I remember that it was within the parking area before the main building complex.

I remember the price because of another thread about high gas prices and I checked my field notes for gas prices in the past and found where I noted my visit and the price. I had just bought a new 4x4 pickup and had come in from Big Pine and spent the day concentrated on the northern end of the valley and Racetrack Valley. I wanted to return home to Big Pine via the paved highways (out to US95, in via NV266 and CA168) and wanted to make sure I had enough gas to make it.

[TacoLand]

Grabbed some gas at Scotty’s on March 26, 2006, while heading back to RNO after my first ever visit to DVNP.

The gas setup then was just two standalone pumps out in the open ... middle of the parking area before you hit the Castle.

[DAW89446]

Yes, that’s it. Thanks for sharing the photo. I remember watching the gas gauge, which was dropping down just under a half tank as I was descending down the Racetrack Valley road and wondering if the gas station at the castle would be open or not, or if I would have to make a long detour to Beatty. Before that day I had been skunked both by Furnace Creek and Stovepipe stations closing long before their advertised times more than once and had to detour to Beatty for gas. I was worried about what time the pumps at the castle closed, I pulled in at 5:15 and was told that they were about to lock them up for the night. The date of my visit was December 29, 1996. I was worried because my gas gauge was just under a half tank, but the truck took 7.9 gallons and had a 19 gallon tank.

[DeathValleyDazed]

The date of my visit was December 29, 1996. I was worried because my gas gauge was just under a half tank, 

These old gas station memories from inside DEVA are fun and fascinating. How cool to have Taco Land's photo of the pumps from that era. 

I wonder if NPS bothered to dig up the underground gas storage tanks or if they're left to rust out and leak the remaining contents into the groundwater? Just what we need, high octane burros racing all over the area. 

[netllama]

The date of my visit was December 29, 1996. I was worried because my gas gauge was just under a half tank, 

These old gas station memories from inside DEVA are fun and fascinating. How cool to have Taco Land's photo of the pumps from that era. 

I wonder if NPS bothered to dig up the underground gas storage tanks or if they're left to rust out and leak the remaining contents into the groundwater? Just what we need, high octane burros racing all over the area. 

I suspect that the EPA and CalEPA regulations wouldn't permit that. Underground tanks can't be left to degrade, at least not legally. And since this is federal govt land, I'd assume they aren't skirting regulations.

[DAW89446]

I wish I had taken a photo of filling up there. It’s was the only time I ever ever gassed up at the castle. Probably didn’t because it was after dark and I was still shooting 35mm film in those days and probably didn’t take a flash unit. I’ve got numerous photos of filling up at Furnace Creek, Shoshone and Beatty. I’ve put gas in at SPW but rarely and likely have no photos of that. In those days I had a Chevron gas card and generally stopped at those stations on the road.