Death Valley National Park

When I sat down to write this a few days ago, it was my birthday.  Due to vagaries of timing on this trip, I celebrated in a wonderful place called Death Valley National Park.  Not sure how auspicious this is, especially since we had to cross over the Funeral Mountains to get here….  And with fun names like “Devils Golf course”, “Dante’s view” and “Furnace Creek”, I am somewhat rethinking my choice of birthday locations.  Although the girls did do an amazing job of decorating Mobi for my birthday and Christmas!  Shockingly, there is little to no connectivity in Death Valley so just now able to post this. 😊

Death Valley National Park is unique. It is massive.  At nearly 3.5 million acres it is the largest National Park outside of Alaska by a pretty good margin (over 30% bigger than Yellowstone which is number 2 in total size).  Death Valley is home to the lowest point in the contiguous 48 at 282 feet below sea level, yet oddly sits right next to the highest point (Mt Whitney at 14,494).  It also happens to be home to the hottest temperature ever recorded anywhere in the world at 134.1 F.  And to add to the fun, it is also the driest place in the United States, averaging less than 2 inches of rain per year.  To get here, you really have to want to come.  Death Valley is not on a road to anywhere – or on a road from anywhere. Coming in from the east as we did, you leave the town of Pahrump, NV (I’ll wait while you find that on a map) and you follow the only road heading west. Once you reach the point where you are absolutely certain no one in their right mind would ever stop, go just a bit further and you are there. 

As desolate and aptly named this area is, there is a surprising beauty to it all.  At Artist’s Palette there are more colors in the mountains that have seen anywhere else.  Beautiful reds, yellows, greens and bright orange – no picture I take could possibly do it justice.  Further south in Badwater, the site of the lowest point, the landscape turns a bright, almost brilliant white.  Since the whole area is an endorheic basin (new word I learned on my educational trip to Death Valley – it means a basin with no outflow) water collects at times and makes for some awesome reflections of the surrounding mountains.  The whole affect is pretty amazing.

Amidst all the dry, barren landscape, there are a surprising number of lush areas.  Some enterprising soul even put in a real golf course – right next to the aptly named “Devil’s Golf Course” which consists of salt rock formations so large and sharp that the park felt required to put up  large sign stating that hiking on these formations could lead to falling, broken bones, injury and death.  If you have a wicked slice like I do it is pretty much a guarantee that your ball will exit the real course and land on the Devil’s side.  I highly recommend sacrificing the ball, taking the penalty and moving on.

Without a doubt, for me, the most amazing part of Death Valley was the night sky.  Admittedly my skills are limited to a few major constellations and the north star.  But even I can point out the Milky Way to the girls when all we have to do is step outside the RV, look up and see a massive white stripe running across the sky.  If there was anything that would make me want to return here again and again, it was this.

I hope you enjoy the Holiday Season wherever you happen to be.  If Death Valley taught me anything it is that no matter what things look like on the surface, if you look closely, you can always find wonder and beauty.  Sometimes you just have to remember to look up!