We took a lot of photos this day, you know I love my National Parks, so this will have to be a two parter.
We got up around 8 and got ready. We got on the road at 9:20. I enjoyed all the southwestern scenery while Adam concentrated on driving.
After about an hour, we stopped in Pahrump to pick up some snacks, water and sandwiches for lunch in the park. We arrived in the outskirts of Death Valley National Park at 11:20, so it was a two hour drive from Vegas. We ended up spending about 4.5 hours in the park.
It was Adam's first visit to California!!! I may have sang the "California" theme song from The O.C. to him a few times....
Our first stop was at Dante's View. The road up there was quite steep and kind of scary (I thought at least). Towards the top, there was a 15% incline.
From the top, 5,475 feet up, there was a panoramic view of the southern portion of Death Valley. It was kind of a hazy day, but the view was still lovely. And windy.
We had our sandwiches while enjoying the overlook.
Apparently this view can be seen in Star Wars (the first movie) with the city of Mos Eisley located in the center of Death Valley.
Our next stop was at Zabriskie Point. It was a short hike up to the point, which offered a view of the badland-esque landscape.
We enjoyed just sitting and relaxing here. By then it was about 80° out.
Then it was on to Badwater, which was a bit of a drive from Zabriskie Point.
Badwater is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere at 282 feet below sea level, and one of the hottest.
The sodium chloride pool is all that remains of the lake that used to occupy the valley floor. It's also how the spot got its name as early explorers couldn't get their animals to drink from it, hence "badwater."
We strolled a bit down the salt flat and just appreciated the cool landscape.
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| photo by Adam |
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| photo by Adam |
The tiny little sign in the middle marks sea level!
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