In 2009, I had a nice hike up this sandy canyon to check out some algae fossils and petroglyphs on limestone bedrock. Not much out here in these lonely hills of eastern Death Valley National Park.
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El Dorado Mine
James “Chuckwalla Jim” Wilson discovered a rich gold-bearing outcrop of rock in this canyon in 1901. He called it the El Dorado (also spelled Eldorado). Wilson loaded small batches of ore on burros to be processed over at the mill at Pinyon Well, and all the way to an arrastra
Silver Bell and Golden Bell Mines
These are two relatively easy mines to reach in the heart of Joshua Tree National Park. It is just a few miles west of the popular Cholla Cactus Garden.
History
Silver Bell Mine
Phil Sullivan (who also worked at the Contact Mine) and Albert Vivian staked the Silver Bell claim
Hess Mine
Not far from the Tioga Pass entrance station to Yosemite National Park lie the remains of the Hess Mine, one of the more accessible 1940s-era tungsten mines in the High Sierra. Three widely-separated claims comprised the mine: the main claim at the north end of Steelhead Lake; a small middle