Vegas Trip Report - Part 3 - Death Valley

So, I was thinking the other day, that I really have to do another post about our Vegas trip before Father time does a job on my memory.
After a day of recuperation from our adventure at The Grand Canyon, we decided to head over to The Golden State and visit Death Valley National Park.  It's only about a two hour drive from Vegas.
Death Valley National Park is HUGE!  We kept to the area of the park near Furnace Creek and Badwater.  I had a particular interest in traveling on the Badwater Road as I had recently watched a documentary on the Badwater 135 Ultramarathon. More on that later.

The first stop on the list was Dantes View, elevation 1669m (5475 ft). In the background, you can see the Valley floor, elevation -86m (-282 ft).

It was fairly chilly up here, and there was a stiff breeze blowing.  I think that is the Panamint Range in the background.

 Such an awesome view from up here.




Next stop was Zabriske Point.  A lot of geology going on here.  More than I care to elaborate on.  It was quite beautiful.  And a lot hotter than our last stop.

Decided to have a pit stop in the aptly named Furnace Creek area.  Had a look in the Visitor Center.

Picked up a few souvenirs at the gift shop. And an ice cream sandwich.  Had to eat it quick before it melted.  Mind you it was Death Valley and it was 'only' 92F (33C), BUT IT WAS MARCH!  Barely even spring.  It rarely gets this hot in mid-July here.

But it was a dry heat, LOL!

It definitely was not the stifling, oppressive humidity that I'm used to.  Something I never realized until I got home was that I had chapped lips while we were on vacation.  The arid air just sucked the water right out of me.  I think we went through a case of water this day.

So, here I am at Badwater Basin, lowest spot in North America.  It's March 30th.  33C.  It's friggin' HOT!

Fast forward 4 months. This is when the Badwater 135 ultramarathon takes place. It covers 135 miles (217km) non-stop from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, the highest point in the continental US.  Temps can reach 130F (55C!!).  The people who run this are machines!!

 So, I decided to stage MY version of the Badwater 135.

135 FEET, that is...

Yeah, that's right, I ran Badwater. I'm badass!

Also took a walk out onto the salt flats.  The valley floor stretches about 5 miles to the other side.  One can walk to the other side if they so desire. We didn't.

It looks like winter in the pic, but it's salt

Here's a nice little hike we took through Natural Bridge Canyon. 


My pictures never seem to do justice, but  here is someone who knows a lot more about how to take a great pic. Kind of neat.

Next on our tour was Artist's Palette.  It's on Artist's Drive, a nine-mile side road off the main road through Death Valley.

The colours were just amazing.  The colours are created from the oxidation of different metals. Red, pink and yellow are from iron salts, green is from decomposing tuff-derived mica, and manganese produces the purple.




By this time we were nearing the point of heat exhaustion (not really, but that heat just sucks the life right out of you) and we were getting hungry (yet another day of surviving on water and granola bars) so we headed back to Vegas.  It was a nice side trip and I was glad I took the time to see it.  In some spots, the terrain looked like what I would imagine it looks like on the moon.  Very little vegetation in spots and large boulders that have fallen from the surrounding mountains.  Yet, in some spots, living things have found a way to survive, like the Death Valley Pupfish.  A truly amazing spot.