death valley (calif. and nev.)

At the height of the California Gold Rush in 1849, a wagon train of men, women, children and their animals stumbled into a one hundred-and-thirty-mile-long valley in the Mojhave Desert. Barren and hostile, with a dry and unearthly surface of white salts, they became hopelessly lost. After killing the oxen for food, they prepared to die until a twenty-nine-year-old hero, William Lewis Manly, volunteered to cross the desert and attempt to get help. Forty-five years later, Manly told his tale in a book first published in 1894. At his death in Los Angeles in 1903, he had been a miner, rancher, merchant, farmer, pioneer and adventurer and had helped to open the American West.

Explores the plants, animal life and landscapes of the Death Valley Desert in California.

An account of the ordeal endured by four families who crossed Death Valley during the gold rush of 1849.

Describes how different animals have adapted to survive the extreme conditions found in the world's deserts.

Traces the history of Death Valley and discusses the minerals, plants, and animals to be found there.

Describes the desert habitat of Death Valley and the plants and animals that live there.