Joshua Tree at Red Rocks Canyon State Park
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Campground at Red Rocks Canyon State Park
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so …… we headed further south to warmer temps. Once we hit Bakersfield, CA we headed north on HWY 14 that runs between the Sierra Nevadas to the west and the Panamint Range to the east. We are now in the Mojave Desert - over 47,000 square miles of high desert that includes much of southern California, Nevada and the western tips of Arizona and Utah. Our plan is to visit Death Valley and see what 282’ below sea level looks like. Besides - we grew up on the “Death Valley Days” television show and all those ads for “20 Mule Team Borax”!
End of day hike
Red Rocks Canyon State Park
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On this trip we have mostly been dry camping at each of the parks we have stayed in. Dry camping is basically being in an RV without electric, water and sewer hook ups at the site. Kind of like being in a tent - without sleeping on the ground. Campgrounds that don’t offer services are often much more remote and offer a better, less crowded view of the world and are usually filled on a first come first serve basis. We can usually go 4 days without adding additional water and/or dumping our waste water depending on the amount of showers we take. Most of the dry camping spots have fresh water and dump facilities within the park and we usually take advantage of that when possible. Sometimes we use the dump/water facilities at large truck stops or we seek out local waste water plants. Being aware of water and waste levels are one of the “uglier” aspects of RVing but all in all I think it is a pretty small price to pay for the flexibility we have and the beauty we get to indulge in!
Hidden behind the campground
Red Rocks Canyon State Park
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Sunrise
Red Rocks Canyon State Park
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We spent the night at Red Rock Canyon State Park. Only 5 other campers present and at a balmy, dry 68+ degrees we felt like we had reached nirvana! The towering red and ochre sandstone cliffs that surrounded us reflected the setting sun and warmed the area with their glow. Right before sunset we did a small hike into the playa behind the cliffs of the park. Climbing around and into small passes between the fallen rocks was magical, the setting sun creating moving shadows on the sandstone heights surrounding us as we followed the footprints travelled by others. So quiet and so alone. It is so magical to find these places - all there on a map, waiting to be discovered. There are so many of these spots in our beautiful country - hiding in plain sight and off the radar. I simply love finding them!
Dust storm as we head into the Panamint Mountains
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Death Valley National Park is 3.5 million acres of vast splendor! There is snow in the mountains, salt on the floor of the valley, sand dunes, towering painted mountains and a myriad of in betweens. We entered the park through the west on Rt 190. The climb up over the Panamint Mountains was staggered at first - flat plains with whipping dust storms and then high mesas. I kept thinking we must be in the valley but then another mountain range seemed to appear! We finally hit what I thought was the summit - Father Crowley Vista Point - and got a tiny glimpse into a tiny part of the massive valley below! Ultimately the ascent continued until the pass peaked at 4,954’. And then we had to drive down……. harrowing. Hairpin turns, no guardrails, and precipitous drops! Thanks to my Apple watch I was able to see that my heart rate, normally at 63 BPM, had jumped 20 points! Truthfully, I was happy to have the distraction of watching my Apple watch …. because the view down from the passenger side of the POD was about to kill me! However, once we were finally on the floor of the valley, we were either at or below sea level! And it was 80 degrees!!!!!
View from Zabriskie Point
(not my photo ... from a postcard!)
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Staying at the campground in Stovepipe Wells gave us a beautiful view north of all the snow covered peaks. The Panamints were now to our west and the Amargosa Range towered to the east. I could not help but think about the early pioneers who somehow managed to go over the 3 ranges that make up the Rocky Mountains and then, literally, do it again to get over these mountains and the Sierra Nevadas!!
setting sun at Stovepipe Wells Campground
Death Valley National Park
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Much of the park is four wheel drive only but we were able to see a great deal staying on paved roads. We did attempt to visit the newly re-opened Keane Wonder Mine ….. but turned around after 1/2 mile or so. The one lane dirt road (in and out) and the rocking and rolling in the POD were not conducive to an enjoyable experience! Instead we visited the Harmony Borax Works and learned how in 1884 borax was mined, refined, and loaded on large mule teams (could it have been 20 of them?) and carted 150 miles to the nearest train depot.
View into the valley floor - the white is salt at the lowest elevation in North America
(not my photo ... from a postcard!)
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We saw the sweeping sand dunes at Mesquite Flats looking more like an image from “Lawrence of Arabia” than from “Death Valley Days”! We walked up Zabriskie Point for a very windy, but spectacular view of the valley. We drove through Artists Palette, a one way loop nestled in-between sandstone and volcanic deposits and canyons that really look like nature hand painted them. Swaths of lavender, pink, teal, orange, yellow and russet are created by various minerals. Our last stop in Death Valley was Badwater Basin, at 282’ below sea level, the lowest elevation in the North America! No photo that I took could do justice to the enormity, depth or color that these vistas offer up. I will just have to savor and remember them.
Badwater Basin - 282' below sea level
Death Valley National Park
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Badwater Basin
Death Valley National Park
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We left the park on a very windy day and headed south on 190 through the park into Shoshone, CA and then into Nevada. After all the dryness of Mojave and Death Valley we felt like we needed to see some water! We settled at Boulder Beach Campground in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. The Hoover Dam, finished during the Depression in 1936, was built to control flooding along the Colorado River, provide irrigation water, and produce hydroelectric power. That same year the small Boulder Dam Recreational Area was established. In 1964 Congress set aside 9 wilderness areas and created the Lake Mead National Recreation Area - 1.5 million acres that attracts over 9 million visitors a year.
This quiet campground was lined with eucalyptus trees (such a heavenly scent!) and we had a small view of the lake. It was impossible for us to get down to the lake at this spot - mostly because the lake was SO LOW! This is something we have noticed a lot on our trip this year - how low all the lakes have been - everywhere! There has been so little snow pack in all the western mountains for the past few years and it is really impacting the water supply. I know … preaching to the choir …. but I’m not sure those climate change skeptics ever actually go outside!!
Artists Palette drive
Death Valley National Park
I cannot say enough about how stunning this country is. Each day I am re-amazed by the beauty and the diversity of its topography. I have to admit though that I am quite partial to the Southwest. There is a calmness for me in the vast expanses. In the book “The Nature Fix” by Florence Williams, there is a question about the power of awe; what do you, personally, need to relax, to be in nature. Some people a walk in a tree filled park is the perfect antidote to stress, some need risk taking adventures, and some people only need a room with a view.
We just each have to find our own.
Full moon sunset at Stovepipe Wells Campground
Death Valley National Park
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