Day 7 - Touring Death Valley

Sunset At Zabriskie Point

 Mileage Leaving Death Valley

 Ouch!

 Pupfish

 King of the Hill

 Mosaic Canyon

 Pile of rocks somebody assembled

 I added my contribution

 The mosaic breccia

 Dante's View

 Artist's Drive

 Badwater Basin

Devil's Golf Course

Today’s Bug Count: 0 as far as I know.

Today was a full, tiring, and fulfilling day at Death Valley National Park.

I awoke this morning around 6 am as it started getting daylight. It was 82 degrees at 9 pm last night when I went to bed and 66 degrees when I got up this morning (nice!). I started out on top of the sheet and ended up under it with a light blanket. I fixed my coffee and ate my oatmeal bar and looked over the visitor’s guide to see what to possibly see today. I headed over the Visitor Center to talk with a Ranger about access to some of the sites in my low clearance auto. I got there a few minutes before they opened so I walked around Furnace Creek Ranch which is a resort lodge complete with palm tree lined golf course if you can believe that.

Went to the VC and talked with a Ranger and eliminated some sites due to the road conditions, etc. I stamped my National Parks Passport with the Death Valley stamp as proof of my visit.  I then headed out toward Stove Pipe Wells with a couple of stops on the way. I stopped at the Harmony Borax Works, then at the Salt Creek Trail which has the rare pupfish. Walked around the ½ mile loop and got some pictures of the pupfish at play. They were called pupfish because they “play like puppies”. I’m sure that’s a scientific term, etc. Their biological name is Cyprinodon Salinus, but pupfish is easier to remember.

I left Salt Creek and continued toward Stove Pipe wells and stopped at the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes. I walked out on the dunes a ways until they all started to look the same and then headed back to the car. I continued on in to Stovepipe Wells, elevation 5 ft above sea level, and just past there to Mosaic Canyon. I had to navigate a gravel road for 2-1/2 miles but had no problem with clearance on the bottom of the car. I hiked up (and I do mean “up”) into the canyon for approximately 2 miles until it dead ended and turned back. After the first ½ mile there is the “mosaic” part with patterns of breccia, whatever that is. I’ll have to check that out when I get to an internet connection. The good news was the return trip was downhill and there was a breeze in my face which wasn’t there going up the canyon.

I headed back in to Stove Pipe Wells and had lunch at the “Saloon” dining on a turkey BLT and Death Valley Root Beer. After lunch I headed back to camp to get some more water to take on the trip south of Furnace Creek in the afternoon.

During my morning outing I met folks from Alberta Canada who have come from some of the parks where I am headed, Ohio, Colorado, Minnesota and Washington State.

The afternoon was spent driving 25 miles south to Dante’s View, at over 5,000 foot elevation. From there you can get a panoramic view of the southern end of Death Valley. The temperature up there was 73 compared to 91 at the campsite when I left. I drove back down to Furnace Creek and since I was getting a little low on gas and not wanting to chance it, I purchase $25 worth of premium that my care requires for $5.87 a gallon which is why I only bought $25 worth.

From there I headed back south on a different road toward Badwater and stopped at the Badwater Basin, which at 282 feet below sea level is the lowest spot in North America. On the way back from there I stopped at the Devil’s Golf Course and then at the Artist Drive which takes you through sections where the multi-color mountain surfaces are prominent. For some reason my pictures of Artist’s Drive did not come out. I must have had the camera setting messed up and all are over exposed and just “white”. I did get a few shots though. I returned to the campsite from Artist Drive had a quick meal and headed to Zabriskie Point to catch the sunset, which was fantastic as the pictures posted will attest. I am back at the campsite typing this up since I don’t have an internet connection and will post it tomorrow night along with yesterday’s offering. Currently the temperature inside the tent is 91 at 8 pm and there is a good breeze blowing in the campground. I am sitting outside the tent typing this where the breeze is stronger. It is fairly pleasant all things considered.

Tomorrow morning I will break camp and head to Visalia CA, about an hour or so from Sequoia National Park and be there Friday and Saturday. So I will see you down the road a bit.