DEATH VALLEY, CA - The National Park Service has purchased 680.8 acres of private
land within Death Valley National Park’s borders. From salt flats to mountain tops, the
lands are a stunning addition to the Park’s cultural and geological history.
“This fills in several holes in the park," said Death Valley National Park Superintendent
Mike Reynolds. “These areas will never be developed and are now protected for visitors
to enjoy."
The seven tracts were acquired from the Mojave Desert Land Trust, which purchases
land from willing sellers for conservation purposes. Death Valley National Park used the
Land and Water Conservation Fund to buy the land.
Two parcels totaling around 320 acres are located in the Owlshead Mountains, along a
trail to a former Epsom salt mine. In the 1920s, a 28-mile wooden monorail was used to
transport the salt.
In the Panamint Mountains, a 55-acre former gold mine prospect at 8,230 feet on Porter
Peak was patented by the Haskell Mining Company in 1919. Historic artifacts such as
glass and pottery shards, a concrete and steel monument, and mine shafts provide a
glimpse into mining activities in the early 20th century.
Close to Panamint Springs, 160 acres were acquired within the Death Valley National
Park Wilderness. The property includes canyons and rugged 3,500-foot ridges
overlooking Panamint Valley.
The Park purchased 80 acres at 1,000-foot-elevation in Saline Valley. The salt flats
consist of a crust of delicate crystals covering mud. The landscape is stark and open
with sweeping views.
Twenty acres have been acquired in Marble Canyon in the northwest corner of the Park.
Placer mining, where water is used to separate heavier gold from sand or gravel, began
in Marble Canyon as early as 1882, causing the local population to swell to around 200.
In 1934, miners discovered large gold nuggets on the bedrock, but by 1960 most mining
there had ended.
At the opposite end of the Park near the southeast border, 36 acres of former quartz
mining land in the Black Mountains have been purchased. Among the creosote,
brittlebush, and burrobush lie several mine shafts, some ten feet deep.
Since 2006, the Mojave Desert Land Trust has acquired 17 parcels totaling 1,039 acres
within Death Valley National Park - almost all of which have now been conveyed over
to the National Park Service.
“These lands help piece together Death Valley National Park and protect the integrity of
ecosystems, enhancing National Park Service management of natural resources. They
are representative of the rich natural, cultural, and scenic values of this precious
National Park," said Geary Hund, Executive Director of the Mojave Desert Land Trust.
-www.nps.gov/deva-
Mojave Desert Land Trust
The Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with the
mission to protect and care for lands with natural, scenic, and cultural value within the
Mojave Desert. Since its founding in 2006 the Land Trust has conserved more than
78,622 acres, donating more tracts of land to the National Park Service in the last
decade than any other organization. The Land Trust has established a seed bank to
ensure the preservation of native species, operating an onsite nursery at its
headquarters to propagate native species for ecosystem restoration. MDLT educates
and advocates for the conservation of the desert, involving hundreds of volunteers in
our work. Learn more at www.mdlt.org.
Death Valley National Park
Death Valley National Park is the homeland of the Timbisha Shoshone and preserves
natural and cultural resources, exceptional wilderness, scenery, and learning
experiences within the nation’s largest conserved desert landscape and some of the
most extreme climate and topographic conditions on the planet. About two-thirds of the
park was originally designated as Death Valley National Monument in 1933. Today the
park is enjoyed by about 1,300,000 people per year. The park is 3,400,000 acres -
nearly as large as the state of Connecticut. Learn more at www.nps.gov/deva.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
