Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
AROUND DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK
LIFE AT DEATH VALLEY JUNCTION
The spot where Hwys 127 and 190 collide, about 30 miles east of Furnace Creek, is known
as Death Valley Junction (population 2, plus a few resident ghosts) and is home to one of
California's kookiest roadside attractions: the
Amargosa Opera House
(
www.amargosaoperahouse.com
; 9am-8pm). Built by the Pacific Borax Company, this 1920s
Mexican colonial-style courtyard building was the social hub of Death Valley Junction but
fell into disrepair after 1948. In 1967 New York-dancer Marta Becket's car broke down
nearby. Marta fell in love with the place and decided to inject new life into it by opening -
what else? - an opera house. She entertained the curious with heartbreakingly corny
dance-and-mime shows in an auditorium whose walls she personally adorned with fanci-
ful murals showing an audience she imagined attending an opera in the 16th century, in-
cluding nuns, gypsies and royalty. In 2010 she starred in a 70-minute documentary, The
Ghosts of Death Valley Junction.
Now in her 80s, Marta's high-stepping days are over, but she still occasionally regales
fans with narratives of old times. Tours of the opera house cost $5; enquire at the recep-
tion of the attached
motel
( 775-852-4441; r $70-85). To complete the eccentric experien-
ce, spend the night in one of its seriously faded rooms with boudoir lamps and Marta's
murals but no TVs or phones. A newer
art gallery
and
train museum
open sporadically,
and a
cafe
(mains $9-19, pie per slice $5;
10am-6pm Mon-Thu, 8am-8pm Fri & Sat, 8am-3pm
Sun) has delicious homemade pies.
Beatty, Nevada
Around 45 miles north of Furnace Creek, this historic mining town (population 1154) has
certainly seen better days but makes a reasonably inexpensive launch pad for visiting
Death Valley. There's an ATM, gas station and library with internet access all along Hwy
95 (Main St).
Sleeping
