Searles Valley facts for kids

Searles Valley is a large valley located in the northern part of the Mojave Desert in California. It stretches across two counties: the northern half is in Inyo County, and the southern half is in San Bernardino County, California.

This valley is surrounded by mountain ranges. To the west, you'll find the Argus Range, and to the east is the Slate Range. Just to the northeast of Searles Valley is the famous Death Valley. Inside the valley, there are interesting natural features like Searles Lake and the unique rock formations known as the Trona Pinnacles. The valley was named after John Wemple Searles.

Towns in Searles Valley

The main town in Searles Valley is Trona. It was originally built as a company town for Searles Valley Minerals, a company that mines minerals from the dry lakebed.

Besides Trona, other smaller communities in the valley include Westend, Argus, Pioneer Point, Homewood Canyon, and Searles Valley itself. Sometimes, the towns of Argus, Westend, Pioneer Point, and Trona are all grouped together and simply called Trona.