This is a delightfully desolate area, and we particularly enjoy it in the peak of the summer heat.  Tourist traffic is light, and it is primarily Germans and other Europeans.  The only down-side of being here in the summer is that Amagorsa Opera House is closed for the season. 

The history seems to be genuine:  twenty-mule teams carrying wagonsfull of borax, mining, etc.  Both the Inn and the Ranch were originally part of the Pacific Borax Company (1881-1888).  The Inn opened in 1927 and the Ranch opened as a hostelry in 1930 (1933?) -- after being a working ranch since 1881.

The Ranch was originally called Greenland Ranch, and housed mineworkers at different times from Harmony Borax Works (1907-1926) as well.  Alfalfa was grown on the property to feed the mules.

PROPERTY	FURNACE CREEK RANCH
ADDRESS	P.O. BOX 1 -- DEATH VALLEY, CA  92328
TELEPHONE	760.786.2345 OR 303.297.2757
WEB	www.furnacecreekresort.com OR www.amfac.com

Please note that we are guessing, here.  We have not stayed at this specific property.  Our estimation that this place is worthwhile is sort of an interpolation between Stovepipe Wells and Furnace Creek Inn.  We've stayed at the former and it was too spartan; we've eaten at the latter and it was clearly Beyond Mudhole in quality.  The Inn is closed summers and reopens in mid-October.

2006 Update.  Furnace Creek Ranch was visited September 2006; the cabins here are quite nice and intimate, but not really rustic.  The pool is large, with a constant water temperature of 84 degrees.  There's a good general store, cafe, and good (expensive) restaurant.  All follow the European norm:  the gratuity is included in all beverage and meal prices.

Entrance fees to Death Valley National Park have increased now to $20.00 (good for a week), up from $5 or $10 in the late 90's. 

WHEN TO GO AND HOW TO GET THERE:

"You appear to have valuable information on your website.....We changed our name from Amfac to Xanterra Parks and Resorts.  Call tollfree 800.236.7916.  Our website is www.xanterra.com or guests can still use the www.furnacecreekresort.com to book reservations" ---Lynn Brannon

The Wildrose Charcoal Kilns are quite a sight -- but note on the map the long driving distance; even the ranger station is closed in summer for lack of interest.  Car trouble here spells real trouble indeed.  The Kilns were designed by Swiss engineers and built by Chinese laborers 1877-79 for George Hearst's Modock Consolidated Mining Company.  These structures are approximately 25' high with a diameter of 30 feet, and were stabilized by the CCC in the 1930's.

Brief road trips from The Ranch are the general appeal -- ghost towns, sand dunes, etc.  A particular favorite of ours is seeing the bats at sunset at the pool at Stovepipe Wells  (the bats go after the bugs attracted to the artificial lighting).  And the coyotes watch the tourists from a distance.

Scotty's Castle is also very interesting.  Construction of this mediterranean-style desert mansion for Chicago millionaire Albert Johnson was begun in 1922 and never completed.  Along the way, the property fell into the hands of Walter E. Scott -- Death Valley Scotty (hence, the name).

The average maximum temperature in August is 113 degrees F and two degrees warmer than that in July.  The average minimum temperature in December and January is 39 degrees F.   Annual rainfall is less than two inches.

The Amargosa Opera House.  Painter and dancer Marta Becket performs from October through mid-May.

RESTAURANT RECOMMENDATIONS

DINING ROOM AT FURNACE CREEK INN     DINING ROOM AT FURNACE CREEN RANCH

There's an odd, open-air museum at Rhyolite -- Goldwell (www.goldwellmuseum.org).  Rhyolite is a rather disappointing ghost town, 4 miles from Beatty, Nevada (signs there boast "free parking").  This is also the location of the Yucca Mountain Science Office (yes, THAT Yucca Mountain is close-by to the northeast).

ZZYZX.  Getting to Death Valley means, for most of us, taking I-15 east and getting off at Baker.  Just eight miles west of the Baker exits, one sees the Zzyzx Road exit.....  The Zzyzx Mineral Springs anbd Health Resort, unfortunately is now the California State University Desert Studies Center.

The gravel road from this exit to Zzyzx is tough:  4-1/2 miles of washboard gravel.  The resort, begun in 1944, once boasted a two-story 60-room hotel, cruciform-shaped swimming pool, a chapel, and an artificial lake.  The founder, Curtis Howe Springer dismantled an ocean freighter for parts used at his resort.  Springer was evicted in 1974, having neglected to actually own the property he developed.