Thursday , November 19, 2020

Final approach to home.  From Death Valley going south rather than heading west and connecting up with HWY395 we head west but then cut off earlier and travel the road through the Panamint Valley and into the Searles Valley.  These parallel the Hwy395 but further inland.  The scenery is stark but surrounded by mountains (The Panamint Range and Argus Range which are obscuring our view of the Sierras.) Although the landscape is stark there is still beauty to it and it was obviously a lake bed long ago.

As we head out of Death Valley we see some impressive alluvial plains and it suddenly occurs to me that the incredible uplifting that we saw in the Titus Canyon may have actually started with the formation of alluvial plains ( that are already on a slant) that then are being uplifted more by earth movement.  I have wondered how the earth got some of the layers in mountains almost vertical.  This satisfied me a bit how this is accomplished.

Going up and over these Panamint Mountains we descend into the Panamint Valley with it's obvious sand bed right in the middle.  To help give  you some perspective, you can see the road transecting the valley floor.

Again, the layers laid down over millenial of years is fascinatingly displayed in the mountains:

Once we get down into the valley we are actually taking a left turn just past the light sanded area of the valley and traveling down the Panamint Valley.  Interestingly you cannot see from this view point that road that goes down the center, only the one that bisects it.

So our destination is the Trona Pinnacles which are interesting coral- or pumice- like structures raising out of the valley floor - formed millions of years ago and resistant to the ravages of time, wind and water.  Again the size of these pinnacles are not apparent in a far off shot, but good old "Waldo" Bob helps with the imagery.

Isn't that the cutest little sign?

Put this picture in because I wanted you all to know that we are safe from being shot at......

Pinnacles against a beautiful blue skyline...

Ok - here is your "Where's Waldo" picture.  Can you find him?  Waldo Bob?

Close up of the structure of the pinnacles or calcium carbonate tufa towers....looks like pumice to me....but breaks like glass if something is thrown at it...(I learned this from one of the information signs, not by experimentation)

More perspective pictures....Waldo car to help

In the picture below you are looking for "Waldo" Bob.  These pinnacles are large!

I included this picture, just because I liked the juxtaposition of the spikey tufas with the backdrop of the purple mountains in the far distance.

 

So these pinnacles are called the Trona Pinnacles because they are just outside the town of Trona which  still actively mines the mineral Trona  - Trona is the raw material which is refined into soda ash. Soda ash, in turn, is used to make glass, paper products, laundry detergents, and many other products. It also is used in the manufacturing of other chemicals, such as sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and sodium phosphates (detergents).  Kinda useful ingredient that I never knew about.

Also, Trona smells....not a place to pick to live.....there are several plants like this in Trona.

And that is all folks    we are home.....