DEATH VALLEY.........Augeberry Mine

 I still have quite a number of pictures of Death Valley left to post.My three weeks there hiking and exploring the old mines and some of the original trails made by the `49ers was not nearly enough time.Granted,the longer I stay out on this trip on the bike and the more remote and secluded places to camp that I discover,the more I seem to enjoy the peace and calm that only being far removed from "Civilization" can give.Death Valley is one of those remote and secluded places for me,especially in the winter months from October thru March,otherwise it`s just too damn hot to be there.Camping here in the winter can get a little chilly,but with a -20° bag you can stay warm all night no problem.There is a definite chill in the tent when you wake up at 5 am to make coffee,but the heat from my MSR stove takes the bite out of the air just a bit,and outside the view looking across the valley to the Panamint Mountains,Mount Charlston with it`s 11,900 ft peak to the east in Nevada,the green oasis of Furnace Creek and the white salt flats of Badwater Basin make the remoteness and the cold well worth it.
Obviously Pete Aguberry thought so too,born in 1874 in France he came to America in 1890,arriving in Goldfield NV in 1902.
Pete found a ledge that looked promising and indeed contained free gold,some of the samples being assayed as high as $500 a ton.
Pete worked the Eureka mine from 1907 untill the 1930`s when his health was failing him.

Pete died on Nov.23rd,1945 and is buried in Lone Pine,CA.

Be Well

Murph