The Truth About Shin-Au-Av, The Legendary Underground City In Death Valley

According to History Daily, a local tribe known as the Paiute has been repeating legends of an underground city in Death Valley "for centuries." The city is called Shin-Au-Av, or something approximating "Ghost Land" in English, and supposedly it's a portal to the underworld. Further, the tribe even has an origin story for how the city was founded. 

The legend goes that the wife of a chief died and, grief-stricken, he decided to follow her to the land of the dead. Guided by spirits, to get there he had to battle his way through an underground city filled with various perils, until he reached the place where he was to wait for his wife. After several days, the chief was finally reunited with his beloved, and they were just about to cross a bridge and return to the land of the living. However, the chief looked back at the Spirit Land, and his wife disappeared, leaving him alone. He returned to his people and told them about the underground city that leads to the realm of the dead. The tribe named the legendary place Shin-Au-Av.