Preserved by its remoteness and the dry desert heat, the remains of an early 20th-century mine make it look as though it was abandoned just a few years ago.
The oldest house in Death Valley is a 19th-century miners’ bunkhouse that now contains a shop surrounded by equipment that supported the valley’s primary product.
Panoramic and solitary views of the Badwater Basin and Panamint Valley, especially stunning at sunset, offer rewards at the end of a washboard-like drive.
The perfect introduction to Death Valley is this lookout near the entrance, where fighter jets occasionally whiz by on their way to nearby Rainbow Canyon.