Desert Messenger

October 4, 2017 www.DesertMessenger.com 15 Desert Messenger offers FREE Classifi ed Ads! Here's the small print: Items for sale under $1000. Private Party Only. 1 per month. Yard/Garage/Craft Sales, Wanted, Give-a-ways, Free, Lost & Found, etc. (non-commercial) For more information, contact Rain at 928-916-4235 or Email: Editor@DesertMessenger.com stone formations called Swiss Cheese by the locals, and a fossil site called the Mud Mound containing fossilized sea creatures about 450 million years old. Petrifi ed wood and coprolites can also be found in the deserts and canyons around Beatty. For hot springs enthu- siasts, Bailey's Hot Springs is on the edge of town to the north. For lots of great historical artifacts, photos, and information visit the Beatty Museum and Historical Society. Beatty is also a lesser used entrance to Death Valley. For an exciting 4-wheel drive excur- sion into Death Valley, you can take a trip through Titus Canyon. If you just want to take a leisurely drive into the park, take 190W out of Beatty and en- ter the park near Stovepipe Wells. There is a small casino in town and a few cute restaurants, and for a glimpse into the colorful history of Beatty, allow a couple of hours to vis- it the small but very comprehensive Beatty Museum and His- torical Society. Don't for- get to visit with the local burros as they wander around town. Often, the burros will politely re- quest food and on a rare occasion they will let you pet them, however they will expect a culinary reward in exchange for the privilege. Even if you choose not to feed them, Beatty's burros are quite used to the paparazzi of tourists and will typically offer a least a few op- portunities for photo shoots. For more information about Beatty, as well as photos and links, visit our website www.AdventuresWithRocks. com our Facebook page. We have lots of interesting rocks and fossils from the Beatty area plus a ton of other great stuff. Check out our new line of Fitness and Outdoor Adventure gear, too! You can order over the phone at 480-579-7036, by email at Sales@ AdventuresWithRocks, or through our website no matter where you are. Happy traveling and we'll see ya' on- line! In the meantime, remember: Life is Short. Go Outside and Play! ADVENTURES WITH ROCKS ™ By Jenn Jedidiah Free • www.AdventuresWithRocks.com Heading south down Hwy.95 just past Tonapah on your way to Quarzsite, is the unique and historic mining town of Beatty. Beatty is a small town in the middle of the desert, 75 miles south of Tonopah and 150 miles north of Las Vegas. To the east is a military reser- vation, and to the west is Death Val- ley. In between there is vast expanse of desert, and lots of opportunities for outdoor adventure. There are old mines, ghost towns, rockhound- ing and fossil hunting sites, cool rock formations, gold prospect- ing areas, hot springs, and more. Wild burros roam the streets and bighorn sheep can be seen in the mountains surrounding the town. The Amargosa Toad is endemic to the area and can be seen in the evenings along the banks of the Amargosa River. The Bullfrog Hills surround- ing Beatty are rich in gold and brought settlers to Be- atty in 1904. The Montgom- ery Hotel was built in 1905 and was one of the fi rst businesses in Beatty. Other businesses sprang up in Beatty to serve the mining communities of the Bullfrog Mining District. Beatty became the economic center for the large but sparsely populated region consisting mostly of mining camps. During the peak mining years, Beatty was the business and transportation hub serving the surrounding mining camps. Horse or mule drawn wagons and rail lines connected Beatty and the camps to Tonopah and Las Vegas. There are a few mines still in operation in Beatty. One of the largest ones is the Carrera Marble Mine south of Beatty. Many interesting abandoned mines Fossils, cool rocks, and ghost towns, oh, my! can also be found throughout the des- ert and offer plenty of opportunities for exploration. A network of jeep trails takes the explorer to many different mines. Besides gold, some of the min- erals that have been mined near Beatty are Gypsum, Talc, Limestone and Di- atomite. For a more modern mining experience, take the drywasher out for a spin in the washes and near the Ama- rgosa River which runs through town and then goes underground before coming back up near Pahrump. The ghost town of Rhyolite is well worth the short drive out of town to visit. Rhyolite began in 1905 as one of several mining camps that sprung up in the Bullfrog Mining District. The Montgomery Shoshone Mine just out- side Rhyolite produced ores assayed as high as $16,000 per ton at 1905 prices. At its peak, Rhyolite is esti- mated to have had up to 5,000 people or more, piped water, electric power, railroads, telephones, newspapers, and its own stock exchange. Remains of several of the buildings are still standing, including the train station and an interesting bottle house. Other things to do in and around Be- atty include some interesting lime- We have great lunch menus, serving at 12 noon sharp! Suggested donation is only $3.50. There's cards, books, games, puzzles, pool table, Wi-Fi available. Community Services, Volunteers Needed! Come join the fun at Quartzsite SENIOR Center 40 Moon Mountain Ave. For more information call 928-927-6496 Senior Center open all year! Monday - Friday, 9am – 3pm DEADLINE : WED. OCT. 11 TH for the oct. 18 th edition Desert Messenger News Email: editor@DesertMessenger.com 928-916-4235 www.DesertMessenger.com

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