Tag Archives: school

Dawn Light, Rhyolite

Dawn Light, Rhyolite

Dawn Light, Rhyolite. Rhyolite, Nevada. April 1, 2009. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Dawn sun strikes the ruins of the bank building in the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada, with the mountains of California’s Death Valley National Park beyond.

This was my second visit to the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada – just outside the Death Valley National Park boundary and a few miles from the small town of Beatty. Rhyolite is the result of a very brief gold-fed boom and bust cycle in the first years of the 1900s, when it went from being one of the largest towns in Nevada (not much of a challenge… ;-) to being completely deserted in a matter of a few years after the ore more or less ran out. Some structures remain, including this iconic bank building that is probably the most recognized (and most photographed) feature of the town.

On my previous visit, almost exactly one year ago, I arrived before dawn, as I did again this year. Repeating last year’s experience, once again there were high clouds in the sky, and I was concerned about whether or not the light would be good. Last year it never got better than OK, though there were still some interesting photographs to be made. I went ahead and set up, this time standing back from the building and using a long lens to capture an image of the front wall of the bank with the Amargosa range in the distance and beyond that the snow-covered summit of 11,000″+ Telescope Peak in the Panamint Range. At sunrise the light came through below the high clouds, and a brief moment of absolutely stunning light illuminated Rhyolite and the Amargosa Range. Yes, the light really was this color – I actually have reduced the saturation a bit in post.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: rhyolite, nevada, ghost, town, abandoned, bank, school, ruins, abandoned, structure, building, old, historic, desert, mountains, amargosa, telescope peak, panamint, range, dawn, light, sunrise, sage, brush, valley, cloud, sky, dark, death valley, national park, scenic, travel, stock, window, wall, column, brick

Schoolhouse Windows and Sky

Schoolhouse Windows and Sky

Schoolhouse Windows and Sky. Rhyolite, Nevada. April 2, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Schoolhouse windows and sky – Rhyolite, Nevada.

Back in April 2008 my brother and I spent several days photographing in and around Death Valley National Park. (I try to visit DV every April, and I’m hoping to be there again this year.) On this morning we got up early and drove to the historic ghost town of Rhyolite before dawn and spent a few hours photographing the old ruins, starting with pre-dawn light and continuing well into the morning. (When we finished we headed over to nearby Beatty, Nevada to get breakfast and gas, the latter at a much lower price than back in DV.) The old school house is one of the buildings that has withstood the ravages of the desert better than others. Despite losing windows, roof, and much else the building still stands – among the destroyed ruins of many other buildings. This photograph, made very close to actual dawn, looks through the interior of the building by lining up windows on a couple walls, with the nearby hills and high morning clouds seen beyond.

This photograph is not in the public domain. It may not be used on websites, blogs, or in any other media without explicit advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

keywords: ghost town, abandoned, school, rhyolite, mine, mining, nevada, death valley, national, park, structure, wall, window, sky, cloud, blue, light, morning, crack, stucco, wood, weathered, pattern, hill, mountain, ridge, shadow, travel, historic, history, scenic, architecture, frame, sill, stock

Rhyolite School Windows, Amargosa Range

Rhyolite School Windows, Amargosa Range

Rhyolite School Windows – Amargosa Range. Near Beatty, Nevada. April 2, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Color photograph of the Amargosa Range as seen through the windows of the abandoned school in the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada.

This is a reworking of a photograph I made in April of 2008 while visiting Death Valley National Park, California. The building is the ruins of an old – and once quiet impressive – school building in this abandoned mining town. The view through the windows looks out on the Amargosa Range, which runs along the eastern boundary of Death Valley NP. While visiting and photographing this scene, and now while considering the photograph, I wonder about the lives of the children attending school in this stark but beautiful place in the desert.

keywords: rhyolite, school, abandoned, ghost, town, windows, wall, amargosa, range, mountains, desert, nevada, usa, death valley, national park, black and white, ruins, historic, scenic, travel, landscape, stock

Windows, Rhyolite School

Windows, Rhyolite School

Windows, Rhyolite School. Rhyolite, Nevada. April 2, 2008. © Copyright G Dan Mitchell – all rights reserved.

Windows of the abandoned school in the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada look out over the Amargosa Desert. Students in the school who gazed out the western windows of the building were looking across a high sagebrush-filled valley at the range running along the eastern boundary of what is now Death Valley National Park.

keywords: ghost town, rhyolite, nevada, school, abandoned, ruins, mines, mining, historic, scenic, building, travel, death valley, national park, walls, windows, frame, stock