Death Valley National Park

I flew in to Los Angeles and braved the traffic to make it out to Panamint Springs after dark (Not to be confused with Paramount Springs, which I called it to a local hahah). The air was dry and it was hot – just what you would expect from the desert landscape. It was sad driving out in the dark, imagining that beyond the reach of my headlights there could be vistas I was missing out on! I pitched my tent with my head lamp on and climbed inside. I woke up to the sound of what I thought (and later confirmed) was the sound of coyotes outside my tent! I am not sure if it was just because I was tired, but the idea that there were at least 2 tents closer to the howling than I was was enough motivation to drop right back to sleep.

I woke up early and began the drive into the valley. I always love the initial drive into the park – anticipation mixed with excitement makes every bend in the road a mystery waiting to be revealed. 

First stop on the drive in was the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes. With the sun catching them on the side it looked like a movie sunrise/sunset scene.

The Devil’s golf course was next. I didn’t do a ton of hiking because I was a bit intimidated by the signs warning of injury while hiking over the salt rocks. I did enjoy the views though! It has just started getting hot, so I didn’t hear any of the crackling associated with the salt crystals but I can imagine it would have been cool to hear.

Next I drove down to Badwater Basin where I got to hike out onto the salt flats. This is the lowest point I’ve ever been to coming out to 282 feet below sea level! I particularly enjoyed seeing the sign showing where sea level was on the cliff face nearby

I took some close ups of the path and the nearby crusty surface. I’ve never seen anything quite like it

On the way back out I stopped to see the Artist’s Palatte. The color in the rocks was very cool, and apparently changes with the sun’s height, rain, and cloud cover.

Last, but certainly not least, I have to include the pictures I snapped at the golf course. It felt like I was in an oasis (which was, not surprisingly, the name of the place). All this green in Death Valley?? I guess the allure of playing golf below sea level is somehow enough to keep people coming!