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Exploring the beautiful nature of California


California Nature: Death Valley


Located near the border of California and Nevada, in the Great Basin, east of the Sierra Nevada mountains, Death Valley constitutes much of Death Valley National Park and is the principal feature of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts Biosphere Reserve. It is located mostly in Inyo County, California. It runs from north to south between the Amargosa Range on the east and the Panamint Range on the west; the Sylvania Mountains and the Owlshead Mountains form its northern and southern boundaries, respectively. It has an area of about 3,000 square miles. Death Valley shares many characteristics with other places below sea level. Badwater Basin, in Death Valley National Park, is the lowest place in North America and one of the lowest places in the world at 282 feet below sea level. The Dead Sea, between Israel and Jordon, is the lowest at 1371 feet below sea level.
The Panamint mountains are the backdrop to death valley Death Valley is one of the hottest places on earth, attaining the second-highest temperature ever recorded, 134 degrees F. in 1913. It contains the lowest point in the western hemisphere -- 282 feet below sea level near Badwater, as well as numerous high-rising mountain peaks, including Telescope Peak at over 11,000 feet. Death Valley was named by gold-seekers, some of whom died crossing the valley during the 1849 California gold rush. Death Valley National Park comprises more than 3.3 million acres of spectacular desert scenery, rare desert wildlife, complex geology, undisturbed wilderness and sites of historical interest. Death Valley is unique because it contains the lowest, hottest, driest location in North America. Nearly 550 square miles of its area lie below sea level. Ecologically, its plants and animals are representative of the Mojave Desert. Death Valley is one of the best geological examples of a basin and range configuration. It lies at the southern end of a geological trough known as Walker Lane, which runs north into Oregon. The valley is bisected by a right lateral strike slip fault system, represented by the Death Valley Fault and the Furnace Creek Fault.
Death Valley National Park has lots of great desert scenery but is most famous for it's hot temperatures. The majestic prettiness of Death Valley National Park is there for your viewing satisfaction. There are loads of cool things to do for everybody. There is good outdoors recreation at Death Valley National Park, so you may have a good time during your stay. These mountains rock, just explore all the entertaining things to do in the Panamint Range. Death Valley is generally sunny, dry, and clear throughout the year. The winters are mild with occasional winter storms, but summers are extremely hot and dry. Summer high temperatures commonly run above 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Comfortable clothing providing sun protection and a broad brimmed hat are recommended in summer. Winter requires warmer clothing and light to medium jackets. Sturdy walking shoes are important year round.
death valley in California nature Although the Twenty Mule Teams, prospectors with their burros, and lost pioneers represent the extent of human history in Death Valley to most people, it actually started long before and continues today. Native people have been here since at least the end of the last Ice Age. Towns and mining camps have come and gone. Mining companies have moved from harvesting the mineral wealth to developing the valley for tourism. Most recently, Death Valley has become a cherished National Park, visited by humans from around the globe.

The Timbisha Shoshone Indians lived here for centuries before the first white man entered the valley. They hunted and followed seasonal migrations for harvesting of pinyon pine nuts and mesquite beans with their families. To them, the land provided everything they needed and many areas were, and are, considered to be sacred places.
During the Pleistocene ice age, which ended roughly 10,000–12,000 years ago, the Sierra Nevada ranges were much wetter. During that time, Death Valley was filled with a huge lake, called Glacial Lake Manly, that was nearly 100 miles long and 600 feet deep. Remnants of this wetter period can still be seen in the region today, including the presence of several isolated populations of pupfish that still call the region home.  In 2005, Death Valley received four times its average annual rainfall of 1.5 inches. As it has done before for hundreds of years, the lowest spot in the valley filled with a wide, shallow lake, but the extreme heat and aridity immediately began sucking the ephemeral lake dry. The western margin of Death Valley is traced by alluvial fans. During flash floods, rainfall from the steep mountains to the west pours through narrow canyons, picking up everything from fine clay to large rocks. When these torrents reach the mouths of the canyons, they widen and slow, branching out into braided streams. The paler the fans, the younger they are.
 
 
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