Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Northern California → Death Valley → Harmony Borax Works

Location: Furnace Creek area, Death Valley

Time Required: 20 minutes

Red Tape/Notes: Access to Death Valley is $25/vehicle for a 7 day pass. Easy access, located just off Hwy 190

What’s Nearby?: Zabriskie Point, Artist’s Palette, Devil’s Golf Course

Although a rather generic stop just off the road near Furnace Creek, the Harmony Borax Works are worth visiting since they’re so convenient. If you have any interest in history at all, it’s rather interesting to see the ruins of the place that essentially opened Death Valley and the Furnace Creek area. The plant employed 40 men at its peak, and early marketing geniuses made use of the 20-mule teams used to haul borax produced there in a marketing campaign for “20 Mule Team Borax Soap”. The mule teams hauled the borax 165 miles over 10 days to the railroad near Mojave, and you can see one of the wagons they pulled, along with the ruins of the plant, on the short trail that loops around the site.

Epic Travel → North America → The West Coast → Northern California → Death Valley → Harmony Borax Works