Campgrounds and Picnic Areas – Death Valley National Park CA

Description

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was present in Death Valley National Monument  from 1933 to 1942.  Among their many projects in the monument, the CCC ‘boys’ created five campgrounds and picnic areas.

Texas Spring campground was the first and largest, and it remains the best preserved; it includes seven stone picnic tables and stone comfort station (restroom).  Two other campgrounds areas are also located around Furnace Creek, the park headquarters and visitors center.  The Sunset area on the east side of highway 190 serves mostly trailers and Furnace Creek campground and picnic area lies the visitors’ center.  

Emigrant Junction campground is in the western part of the park, across the road from Emigrant Junction ranger station. It includes a fine stone comfort station (restroom). Wildrose campground in the Panamint Mountains is closed in winter (and is not shown here).

Other campgrounds have been added in the park over the year. Campgrounds in Death Valley are quite spartan compared to those built by the CCC in other regions, given that Death Valley is the hottest and driest place in the country.

Death Valley was proclaimed a national monument by President Herbert Hoover on February 11, 1933, just before he left office.  Hoover set aside almost two million acres (8,000 km2) of southeastern California and small parts of southwestern Nevada. Death Valley became a National Park in 1994, in part due to the massive scarring of the landscape produced by continued surface mining allowed by Congress in national monuments. Public outcry  led to greater protection for all national park and monument areas in the country at the end of the 20th century.