Death Valley National Park & Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge

By Joseph Albino

From Dantes View one looks down into the Badwater Basin of Death Valley, with the Panamint Mountains across the Valley and Telescope Peak out of view to the left.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Apr 6, 2009
• ISBN: 9781543472981

Joseph Albino

Joseph Albino is a professional writer-photographer who specializes in writing photographically illustrated feature articles and books.

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Copyright © 2009 by Joseph Albino. 44704-ALBI

Library of Congress Control Number: 2008904952

ISBN: Softcover 978-1-4363-4760-0

ISBN: Ebook 978-1-5434-7298-1

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission

in writing from the copyright owner.

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DEATH VA

LLEY NATIONAL PARK

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Map of Death Valley National Park

In the fall of 1849, as part of the California Gold Rush Fever, a wagon train of about 100 wagons headed from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles, California on what was called the Old Spanish Trail, a well-established route between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles.

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49ers art sale in Visitor Center parking lot

Not too far along on their journey, a fellow came riding up and introduced the travelers to a short cut map. All but seven of the wagons in the wagon trail started out on the short cut,

but it turned out to be erroneous. As a result, most of them turned back.

Twenty-four wagons, with about 100 travelers, continued on. This is the group that is called the Lost 49ers and included groups of young single men and families. Surprisingly, of the one hundred people, only one person died in Death Valley. A few others died along other sections of the route.

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Athena Turner at Raven Programs

The group stayed in what is today called Death Valley for two months while they waited for two young fellows, William Manly and John Rogers, who, traveling by foot, left the others in an attempt to reach civilization near Los Angeles. Subsequently, Manly and Rogers returned with food and supplies and led the others out to safety.

After Rogers and Manly had departed, the Wade family struck out toward the Old Spanish Trail on their own. Having departed Death Valley via the southern end, they reconnected to the Old Spanish Trail and became the only members of the Lost 49ers to make it through with their wagons intact.

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Creosote bushes in storm along