Along Emigrant Canyon Road

Death Valley National Park


"Did you see any wild flowers?"

This is the one and only question we were asked by friends and relatives on our return from Death Valley.

Well, it was the only reason Mimi tagged along with us, too.  "So where are the wild flowers?" she kept asking from the back seat.  Frankly, I was so obsessed with alluvial fans, craters and mineral deposits, I had completely forgotten about the flowers.  That's the main reason we came to the park in late spring.  So where were they?

We were told to head for the higher elevations, so we crossed the park, taking Route 190 from the Amargosa Range over to the Panamint Mountain Range.  At Stovepipe Wells Village, the road began a gradual uphill climb.  An eight-mile stretch through Emigrant Canyon was again breathtakingly beautiful.  "But where are the flowers?"  Mimi's voice was getting a little more demanding.  My travel buddy was ready to throw her out the window.

We finally reached the highest point on the pass--5,318 ft.  Our ears were popping.  Further along, we saw Telescope Peak in the distance.  It is the tallest mountain in the Panamint Range at 11,049 ft., and unbelievably, there was snow on the top.   That we had driven all the way up here in a few short hours from below Sea Level, was a thrill.  We got out of the car and breathed in the crisp, clean air.  "Still no flowers," came the voice from the van.

But finally, finally, as we continued our drive, Mimi screamed and I screeched to a halt.  There, by the side of this lonely highway, was a clump of Indian Paintbrush.  A small patch of vivid red (like Mimi herself) in the middle of a barren landscape.

You would think we were seeing the Holy Grail, we were so excited.

"So did you see any wild flowers?"

"Yes, we did."

And we left it at that.