Death Valley

"On Monday, May 12 we left Las Vegas for Death Valley, California. We decided to eat breakfast on the road. After being on the road for about 1 hour and 30 minutes we stopped at a rest stop for a bathroom break. I asked a young man about restaurants in the area. He recommend the Longstreet Inn down the road. 

This place was built in 1995 but made to look like 1895 and the breakfast was well worth the wait.

Back on the road again toward that California Sign. 

Then the entrance into Death Valley.

Once we were in the valley we headed to the visitor center to check in and get our car pass. We thought we would see if we get check into the hotel early but no such luck. So we decided to head to Scotty's Castle which was about 30 miles down the road. First, we needed to stop for gas. 

It was a good thing we did not gamble all our money away in Las Vegas so we could afford the gas. Here is the castle. A beautiful site in the middle of the desert. 

Scotty's Castle is a two-story Mission Revival and Spanish Colonial Revival style villa located in the Grapevine Mountains of northern Death Valley in Death Valley National Park, California, U.S.. It is also known as Death Valley Ranch. Scotty's Castle is not a real castle, and it did not belong to the "Scotty" from whom it got its name.

Construction began on Scotty's Castle in 1922, and cost between $1.5 and $2.5 million. Prospector, performer, and con man Walter Scott born in Cynthiana, Kentucky, also known as “Death Valley Scotty”, convinced Chicago millionaire Albert Mussey Johnson to invest in his gold mine in the Death Valley area. Though initially angered when theConstruction began on Scotty's Castle in 1922, and cost between $1.5 and $2.5 million. Prospector, performer, and con man Walter Scott born in Cynthiana, Kentucky, also known as “Death Valley Scotty”, convinced Chicago millionaireAlbert Mussey Johnson to invest in his gold mine in the Death Valley area. Though initially angered when the mine turned out to be fraudulent, Johnson was fascinated with the colorful Scott and the two men struck up an unlikely friendship. By 1937, Johnson had acquired more than 1,500 acres (610 ha) in Grapevine Canyon, where the ranch is located.

After Johnson and his wife made several trips to the region, and his health improved, construction began. It was Mrs. Johnson's idea to build something comfortable for their vacations in the area, and the villa eventually became a winter home.

The Johnsons hired Martin de Dubovay as the architect, Mat Roy Thompson as the engineer and head of construction, and Charles Alexander MacNeilledge as the designer.^[1]

Unknown to the Johnsons, the initial survey was incorrect, and the land they built Death Valley Ranch on was actually government land; their land was further up Grapevine Canyon. Construction halted as they resolved this mistake, but before it could resume, the stock market crashed in 1929, making it difficult for Johnson to finish construction. Having lost a considerable amount of money, the Johnsons used the Death Valley Ranch to produce income by letting rooms out, upon the suggestion of Scott. The Johnsons died without heirs and had hoped that the National Park Service would purchase the property, and in 1970, the National Park Service purchased the villa for $850,000 from the Gospel Foundation, to which the Johnsons had left the property. Walter Scott, who was taken care of by the Gospel Foundation after Johnson's passing, died in 1954 and was buried on the hill overlooking Scotty's Castle next to a beloved dog. mine turned out to be fraudulent, Johnson was fascinated with the colorful Scott and the two men struck up an unlikely friendship. By 1937, Johnson had acquired more than 1,500 acres (610 ha) in Grapevine Canyon, where the ranch is located.

After Johnson and his wife made several trips to the region, and his health improved, construction began. It was Mrs. Johnson's idea to build something comfortable for their vacations in the area, and the villa eventually became a winter home.

The Johnsons hired Martin de Dubovay as the architect, Mat Roy Thompson as the engineer and head of construction, and Charles Alexander MacNeilledge as the designer.^[1]

Unknown to the Johnsons, the initial survey was incorrect, and the land they built Death Valley Ranch on was actually government land; their land was further up Grapevine Canyon. Construction halted as they resolved this mistake, but before it could resume, the stock market crashed in 1929, making it difficult for Johnson to finish construction. Having lost a considerable amount of money, the Johnsons used the Death Valley Ranch to produce income by letting rooms out, upon the suggestion of Scott. The Johnsons died without heirs and had hoped that the National Park Service would purchase the property, and in 1970, the National Park Service purchased the villa for $850,000 from the Gospel Foundation, to which the Johnsons had left the property. Walter Scott, who was taken care of by the Gospel Foundation after Johnson's passing, died in 1954 and was buried on the hill overlooking Scotty's Castle next to a beloved dog.

On the way back to the hotel we stopped for a hike around a large crater. 

Walking up. 

Now it was time for a beer.

After a beer and some dinner we headed out for a hike on the sand dunes at dusk. A beautiful place in the early evening. 

The end of a beautiful day. Tomorrow we will hike the Mosaic Canyon trail right down the road from the hotel.  The problem with being someplace were the sun rises at 5:45 am you tend to get up early also. Here is the wife at 6:58 am looking all ready to go. 

Our hike started a little after 7:00 am on the beautiful Mosaic Canyon trail. 

 

We discovered a visitor on our car after the hike. 

This wasn't a long hike about 3 miles round trip because we had a long drive ahead of us. We had one more walk to go before leaving the park. There is a unique pup fish that lives in a salty creek. This was a short walk of about 30 minutes just to see the tiny creature. We then headed out of the park and toward our condo in the Bay Area. A long drive of about 9 hours hours including stopping for lunch and a little food shopping. We had a wonderful time in Death Valley and Las Vegas.