Inyo Mine
In Echo Canyon, east of Furnace Creek in Death Valley National Park, is Inyo Mine. The brief dreams of a gold rush that thrilled desert prospectors are here. It was opened in 1907 and seemed promising at first, but harsh conditions--no water, high expenses, and small quantities of gold--made it difficult to continue. Several owners attempted to sustain it, but it was never productive enough. In 1940, it was permanently closed. Today, its old buildings and rusty equipment indicate the challenges of working in one of the harshest places in the West.