Golden Canyon is a short gorge that cuts into brightly colored sandstone rocks in many glowing shades of orange, gold and red, with the ever-present deep blue sky above making the hues seem especially sharp and intense. Once there was a paved road running up the whole length but this has long been disused and most sections have eroded away. According to the hike guide, the road eroded back in 1976 when a massive flood came along.
Hiking is the only option in the Canyon, and it is quite popular (we saw many groups with kids on the trails). The trail gains elevation as it reaches towards Red Cathedral(a group of high sandstone cliffs). We decided to take Zabriskie point trails to go through the multicolored rock formations(they looked like Chocolate layers). The path started by climbing an exposed slope of whitish sandy ground to a panoramic area where you could see the Red Cathedral, Furnace Creek and other canyons surrounding the area.
The last part of this trip(video 4) took us through Gower Gulch canyon, It starts very wide and narrows down gradually and becomes more rocky and steep as it descends. We passed through a number of tunnels, relics of Borax and calcite mining and crystals(I managed to film one of those tunnels as I was walking through it). The rocky section then ends with a drop and reaches the main valley. You could then follow the skirt of the hills overlooking the highway to go back to Golden Canyon’s trail head where the parking lot is located. All in all, this was one of the most spectacular hikes I have had so far.
