Boulder City, NV - Death Valley, CA
5/11/24 -5/13/24
Miles Traveled 163
Trip Total 3436
Travel Time 3:25
States visited: FL, GA, AL, MS, LA, TX, NM, AZ, UT, NV, California
Death Valley California - WOW is all I can say. Death Valley was one of the milestone stops on this trip for me. While I wasn't sure what there would be to do or see in Death Valley, I know I wanted to to see it.
Knowing our next stop was in California, we decided to stop in Pahrump, NV for fuel. We found a Maverick Travel Stop, which up until Pahrump has been a very RV friendly stop. This one was not, Mark & Karen were able to get to a pump, but I could not get close enough to a pump. After leaving that station, I had to back track a mile before I could find a place to turn around. We ended up at a no name station, but the price was the same as Maverick. At least it was easy to get in and out of. So far the only stress on this trip has been getting in and out of gas stations! As difficult as it was fueling up in Pahrump, $3.75 a gallon beats the $6.65 we saw in Death Valley.
Leaving Pahrump we passed through Death Valley Junction, the most desolate town I have ever seen. What we saw of the town was only a couple of blocks, with a couple of cars, a theatre, and a shopping center. The theater and shopping center look like they were from a old western movie ghost town.
Leaving Death Valley Junction we headed into the Death Valley National Park. As we descended into the valley the scenery quickly changed. I wish I had the words to describe it. (Nothing new about that, every thing we have experienced in the last six weeks has been indescribable) Our first stop in Death Valley was the Visitor Center. Rather than try to figure out, what was best to see in our short time here, We decided to leave it to the experts (Park Rangers) to tell us what to see. The Ranger was nice enough to map out sights to see on both days.
One of the challenges of this trip is as we move through different regions the "prime" seasons change. The prime season for Death Valley is September to April, with many of the campgrounds closing by May 1st. Most of the campgrounds are rough or "dry camping" with no hookups. During the day the temperatures reach over 100 degrees, making it very unsafe to camp. During the day it ranges from uncomfortable to dangerous for sight seeing, and out right dangerous to go hiking.
After setting up the RV's at Stovepipe Wells Campground, we headed out. Based on the Ranger's recommendation we started our tour at Ubehebe Crater. The 600 foot deep, 1/2 mile wide crater was formed about 2000 years ago when lava reached the surface water. In true national park fashion you can not only walk to the edge of the crater, but you can walk a trail to the bottom of the crater. It is refreshing to be able to see and be part of these parks, with very few fences or barriers keeping you away. We did not venture from from the top of the crater, as inviting as it looked, climbing back up the steep hill in 100 degree heat is not our idea of fun!
After the Sand Dunes, we called it a day and headed back to the RV's. We planned an early day for Sunday to try and beat the heat as much as we could. Returning back to the RV we found the inside temperature was 85 degrees, even with the AC set to 70. While it was 103 degrees outside, the temperature on the side if the RV was 179 degrees. It quickly became clear why most people visit during the winter.
Saturday Night we watched the sunset, and then came out after dark to see the stars. Even with the lights from the nearby park office it was unbelievable how truely dark it gets in Death Valley. It was very easy to see the headlights of the few cars traveling over 30 miles away.
Our next stop was Zabriskie Point, one of the most spectacular views in the park. It is also the starting point for many great hikes through the Valley. (No we did not do any hiking.) We did take the 1/4 mile walk to the over look and saw several people walking through the valley. If it was not so hot it would have been a great hike.
the lowest point in North America, 282 feet below sea level. On our way to Badwater we saw a small stream running along side the road. Finding a stream in the middle of the desert peak our interest. We stopped to see if we could see where it started and after 1/2 mile we could not still could not find it.
Badwater, Death Valley was the highlight of Death Valley. 282 feet below sea level, and miles of salt flats. Walking out onto the flats was incredible, flat white salt for as far as the eye could see. If you dug inches into the salt there was water. Badwater got it's name from an early prospector that tried to get his mule to drink the water. When the mule would not drink the water, the prospector told people it was "Badwater" and the name has stuck ever since.
After Badwater we headed back to the campground. Angel & I planned to go to the pool, but decided it was even to hot to go swimming. To celebrate Mother's Day we took Karen & Angel to the best restaurant in town for dinner. (Ok it was the only restaurant within 50 miles!) Sorry Ladies we owe you a better Mother Day Dinner!
Monday we Death Valley and head back to Nevada.
