For Immediate Release
Photos Available
DEATH VALLEY, Calif., February 7, 2008 - The wildflowers are coming. Early in March, the lowest elevations of the Death Valley National Park desert begin to come alive with colorful wildflowers. This annual show in the 3.3 million-acre park continues through the middle of April and in some higher elevations, as late as June. With a measurable rainfall as recently as late January, the possibility for a particularly colorful show has strengthened.
"In a place where the average annual rainfall is 1.9 inches, we measure rainfall by the drop," said Phil Dickinson, director of sales and marketing for the Furnace Creek Inn & Ranch Resort in Death Valley. "In late January we had a rainfall totaling 0.38 inches, and that's practically a monsoon in our part of the California desert." The Furnace Creek Inn & Ranch Resort posts a regularly updated "Wildflower Watch" on the home page of its website, www.furnacecreekresort.com.
According to the National Park Service, the best wildflower shows occur during years when rainfall significantly exceeds the park's annual average, and when there has been sufficient warmth from the sun as well as a lack of desiccating winds. Although the rainfall since July 1, 2007 - the beginning of the "water year" in the park - has not yet exceeded the average, the month of February often brings the rain that makes (or breaks) the wildflower season. The National Park Service posts wildflower updates throughout the beginning of the year.
Regardless of whether it is a banner or average wildflower year, the annual wildflower bloom draws visitors from around the world.
From mid-February through mid-April, the best viewing opportunities are near Furnace Creek Inn and other lower elevation sites. The early blooming species include Desert Star, Desert Gold, Poppies, Verbena and Evening Primrose. By early April, the Panamint Mountains and other higher elevation sites begin a showy bloom of Paintbrush, Lupine, Joshua Tree and Panamint Daisies. By late April, the highest elevations of the Panamint Mountains sprout Mojave Wildrose, Rabbitbrush, Mariposa Lilies and Lupine.
Dickinson said the most spectacular bloom since he began working at the Furnace Creek Inn & Ranch Resort was the spring of 2005, which many experts call the "bloom of the century." "That year we had an unusual amount of rain, and the result was a wildflower show of the level that we will probably not see again for many years," said Dickinson.
Death Valley National Park is within driving distance of Las Vegas and Southern California. The park is known as a land of extremes and is one of the hottest, driest and lowest places in North America. Death Valley is the largest park in the lower 48 states, yet it draws fewer than 830,000 visitors a year. By comparison, the nation's second-largest park in the lower 48 states - Yellowstone National Park - hosts some 2.8 million visitors annually. More information about Death Valley National Park and updated information about the 2007 wildflower bloom can be found at http://www.nps.gov/deva/index.htm.
Operated by Xanterra Parks & Resorts, the Furnace Creek Inn & Ranch Resort has been welcoming guests since the 1930s. Open from mid-October through mid-May, the Furnace Creek Inn is a AAA Four Diamond-rated property featuring 66 rooms and two suites with a full array of amenities, fine dining, tennis courts and a spring-fed pool. The Furnace Creek Inn is also home to the tourism industry's largest solar PV system, set to open in March 2008.
Open year-round, the Furnace Creek Ranch is situated adjacent to the golf course. The Ranch features 224 rooms in a casual setting, general store, spring-fed swimming pool, tennis courts, horseback riding and the Borax Museum. Stovepipe Wells Village is located 23 miles northwest of the Inn and offers 83 guest rooms, swimming pool, a general store, dining facilities and lounge.
For more information about facilities in Death Valley National Park or to make reservations at in-park lodges, call toll free at 1-888-297-2757 or 1-303-297-2757 or go to www.furnacecreekresort.com.
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Xanterra Parks & Resorts® (consisting of Xanterra Parks & Resorts, Inc. and Xanterra South Rim, L.L.C.) operates lodges, restaurants and other concessions at national parks and state parks and resorts. Xanterra Parks & Resorts is the country's largest park concessioner. Xanterra operates concessions in the following locations: Yellowstone, Bryce Canyon, Zion, Crater Lake, Death Valley, Rocky Mountain and Petrified Forest National Parks, and Mount Rushmore National Memorial; and at the Silverado Resort in Napa, Calif.; and eight Ohio State Parks. Its affiliate Xanterra South Rim, L.L.C. operates concessions at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Xanterra also operates the Grand Canyon Railway in Williams, Ariz.
Long committed to the preservation and protection of the environment, Ecologix, Xanterra Parks & Resorts' environmental program, includes a variety of proactive environmental stewardship programs in each location. Xanterra has been repeatedly recognized for its environmental leadership in the hospitality industry and is the recipient of many honors, including major awards from the U.S. Department of the Interior, Environmental Protection Agency, Travel Industry Association, Colorado Department of Public Health, State of Arizona, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality and Utah Department of Environmental Quality.
For more information about Xanterra, links to individual properties and reservations numbers, visit www.xanterra.com.
Media contact:
Mona Mesereau
(1) 720-842-5271
mona_mesereau@msn.com