Back in 1862, Owens Valley was not quite as peaceful as it is today. White settlers were just moving in and starting up ranches. Prospectors were combing the hills in search of that elusive next big strike. The Paiute, Shoshone, and Kawaiisu people who lived here didn’t appreciate being forced off their lands and losing access to water and springs because of cattle. They led raids and ambushes against the newcomers to try and force them out. People were being murdered on both sides. The situation escalated and turned into what was later called the Paiute War.
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Sally Ann Mine
Unknown to most people, there used to be a mining camp at the southeast corner of the Racetrack. A cabin and two enclosed yards belonging to the Sally Ann Mine, sitting on the alluvial fan a mile out across the playa. The Park Service removed the buildings, almost certainly because
Abandoned Drott International Tractor (Death Valley)
When I heard a rumor from Guy that there was an abandoned excavator with a view of the salt pan in Death Valley that he had never visited, I knew I had to take a look and see if I could find it. After a bit of research, I was
Lost Burro Mine
Bourke Lee wrote in the 1930s: "There is a Lost Burro Mine on almost every mountain." Prospectors spent so much time chasing their wandering burros through the desert hills that the animals became their best prospecting partners. The Lost Burro in the Cottonwood Mountains of northern Death Valley