Wildrose Charcoal Kilns - Behive kilns in Death Valley National Park

by Mike Lee

Title

Wildrose Charcoal Kilns - Behive kilns in Death Valley National Park

Artist

Mike Lee

Medium

Photograph - Digital Photography

Description

The Wildrose Charcoal Kilns, located in Death Valley National Park, were built in 1877 to provide fuel for the smelters of the nearby Modock Mines in the Argus Range. While mining operations continued into the early 20th century, records indicate that these ten beehive-shaped kilns, each standing 25 feet tall, were only in use until around 1879. Constructed from local stone with a sturdy lime, sand, and gravel mixture, they have endured the harsh desert conditions for well over a century and are considered the best-preserved examples of their kind. The kilns once processed local piñon pine into charcoal, which was a more efficient fuel source than raw wood.

My wife and I arrived here late on a crisp January morning, just after a light snowfall had blanketed the area. As this was my first visit to the park, I hadn’t realized how high in elevation the kilns sit—about 6,800 feet above sea level—and just how biting the wind would be! Our car thermometer read 32 degrees, but with gusts of at least 20 mph, it felt much colder. Visitors to this area should be prepared for extreme weather shifts. In fact, just an hour after capturing this scene in heavy coats, we found ourselves sweating in t-shirts on the valley floor, far below sea level!

𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘤 𝘴𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘣𝘶𝘧𝘧𝘴, 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘸𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘭𝘥 𝘞𝘦𝘴𝘵. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘢 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘤𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘦𝘴, 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘢’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺. 𝘈 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘨𝘪𝘧𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘥𝘰𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘩𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘳𝘴!

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January 20th, 2023

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