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I have been there twice before in 1994 and in 1998 and I was always amazed by the colorful rock formations and by the diversity of desert life. Never in recent years has life been more abundant in the supposedly dead valley than in spring of 2005. Heavy rainfalls in winter created a lake in the middle of the valley and the largest wildflower bloom in 50 years. |
| Sand Dunes |
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| Entering the valley from the west, the first spectacular sights are the sand dunes at Stovepipe Wells |
| Devil's Golfcourse |
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| The Devil's Golf Course and Artist's Drive are both located in the middle of the valley. The "Golf Course" is accessible but use caution (At my last visit, I got a flat tire on the dirt road to the site.) |
| Artist's Drive |
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| Artist's Drive has the most colorful rock formations in the entire park. Currently, it is closed due to flood damage, but here are some pictures from my 1998 visit. More pictures can be found at the National Parks website. |
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Badwater
Badwater is most likely the most photographed water hole in the world. A long time ago, a scout was upset because his mule didn't want to drink the salty, murky water. So, he wrote "Bad Water" in his map. The name stuck. Usually, there is only a small puddle, but in spring 2005, it was grown to a real lake.
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Bernd at the lowest point of the western hemisphere. (Well, actually, the lowest point is still a couple of miles away. For details, read American Southwest.)
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| Standing in a saturated, salty brine - that should take care of the old athlete's foot . . . |
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The "lake" really is only temporary. Here is a "historic" picture taken in 1994 at the same spot. |
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Ashford Mills Ruins In 1914, gold ore from the Golden Treasure Mine, five miles to the east was processed here for shipment to a smelter. |
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| The house is not much good anymore, but the view is worth a million dollars! . . . |
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. . . in every direction! And it was here at Ashford Mills where we found the most wildflowers . . . |
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| For the rest of my wildflower pictures, click here, or at any of the smaller pictures.
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| Natural Bridge Trail |
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| Another great place for wildflowers was the trailhead of the Natural Bridge Trail . . . |
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. . . but as soon as we got on the trail, we were back in barren desert. For details on the trail, read American Southwest. |
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| The Natural Bridge, and Ken - in a "natural" pose. |
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Thank you, Dave! Ken (left) and I want to thank our friend and tour guide Dave (right) for a great day and wonderful experience! |
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| Nightfall |
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| Back at our camground in the middle of nowhere . . . | . . . and then, there was only the desert an the stars. |
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Death Valley National Park website and the National Park Service website. For a large map, click here. |
| The road back home |
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| It was mind-boggling how fast the scenery changed. Only two hours after we left the desert and America's lowest point, we were 5,000 feet high in the Sierra Nevada. Check my Sequoia National Forest site for pictures from the journey back home. |
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