  Death Valley National Park
Click to get the inside scoop from
real travelers here at VirtualTourist. See the Death Valley National Park Travel GuideInside advice from real people on:Overview, Hotels, Things to Do, Restaurants, Nightlife, Shopping, General Tips, Transportation, Off the Beaten Path, Tourist Traps, Warnings or Dangers, Local Customs, Packing Lists or Sports Travel.
 1020 Death Valley National Park Tips.1703 Death Valley National Park Photos.0 Death Valley National Park Videos. Death Valley National Park Pages by goingsolo
Tips 1 - 10 of 27 Death Valley National Park Off The Beaten Path
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Its a perfect weather day. About 60 degrees, blue sky and only stray wisps of clouds break the otherwise endless vista. Death Valley is so stark, so extreme that is is soul searchingly, hauntingly beautiful. Barren land flanks the weather beaten road, salt and other minerals accumulate on the ground where they have been abandoned by long since dried up lakes and subtle rock formations in the form of mountains populate the horizon.
Leave a Comment
Website: www.nps.gov/deva
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Its a different crowd out here than the hordes of tourist that flock en masse to the Grand Canyon or Yosemite or the climbing jocks who congregate in places like Zion. Its a more quiet and subdued crowd. Those that are more into looking and observing than being easily wowed by obviously impressive scenery. This is a pretty out of the way place, one you have to travel far over desolate roads to enter and one which you have to patiently explore in order to truly see.
Leave a Comment
Website: www.nps.gov/deva
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The first successful mining operation in Death Valley involved the extraction of borax, which is apparently a very valuable mineral. The sign explains the importance of borax and its uses. Click on the picture if you're interested in learning more about it.
Leave a Comment
Website: www.nps.gov/deva
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
One of the original wagon trains used to transport borax, on display at the Harmony Borax Works.
Leave a Comment
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Off The Beaten Path: Salt Flats
|
Tip Rating: [Not enough ratings yet] |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
A description of the constantly changing salt flats in the Badwater basin. Click on the picture if you're interested in learning more.
Leave a Comment
Website: www.nps.gov/deva
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Bad Water: Cracks in the Earth
|
Tip Rating: [Not enough ratings yet] |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Lakes once existed in this area, but have long, long since dried up, leaving salt in their wake. Here, the sun scorched earth cracks from the intense heat and severe dryness, causing the salt crystals to expand.
Leave a Comment
Website: www.nps.gov/deva
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I dare you to move
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor
I dare you to move
Like today never happened
Never happened before.
Switchfoot, Dare you to move
To really see Death Valley, you must get off the main track and do some exploring. There is far more to this park than dry brown earth and some mountains. The hidden canyons and roadless areas offer hidden treasures that belie the true beauty of the desert and the beauty that is Death Valley. The ghost towns, inaccessible to those who are true to their rental car contracts, offer a glimpse at past attempts at life in the area. Along the main roads, you can find glimpses of the past at abandoned mining communities and in century old wagon tracks
Leave a Comment
Website: www.nps.gov/deva
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off The Beaten Path: Twilight
|
Tip Rating: [Not enough ratings yet] |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Twilight and sunrise are the best times to view the park. While I generally prefer sunrises, there's something special about sitting on the ledge after a long day of hiking and watching the sun fade into the horizon, creating a glorious golden sheen on rock and earth and mountain.
Leave a Comment
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off The Beaten Path: Sunrise
|
Tip Rating: [Not enough ratings yet] |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Just watched daylight slowly break over Telescope Peak. The sun crept slowly past the thin grayish clouds, burning them into a pinkish orange color that is unlike any I have ever seen. The sky slowly turned to light, creating a new day filled with promise.
I thank G-d for these moments. Watching something so much bigger than the sum of its parts, seeing time as a wheel in constant motion, viewed by the turning of the Earth in its seemingly endless cycle and, most of all, knowing that there's more magic yet to come. It truly is a day filled with so much promise, captured forever in a moment so small as this.
Leave a Comment
Website: www.nps.gov.deva
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
In some ways, it is the desolate areas of Death Valley that are the most beautiful. It is easy to see beauty in dazzling rock formations, golden sand dunes or snow spotted mountains rising gracefully towards the sky. By contrast, flat brown land which stretches endlessly in desolate morbidity without a hint of green doesn't sound like anything you'd drive hundreds of miles to see. But driving these long stretches of road where nothing ever grows is surprisingly peaceful, surprisingly serene, and, most surprising of all, beautiful.
Leave a Comment
|
|
|
|
|
|
More Death Valley National Park Tips
|
Join a Discussion Camping in Death Valley in June
(2 replies, Saturday, Jun 14, 2008, 4:36 PM UTC) Once in a lifetime wildflower displays and kayaking at Badwater?!
(5 replies, Saturday, May 24, 2008, 9:18 AM UTC) Ronnie
(9 replies, Friday, Apr 11, 2008, 1:49 AM UTC) Be the first to reply to these questions Big Pine Road / Death Valley Road
(no replies yet, Saturday, Mar 10, 2007, 10:07 AM UTC) Long-term Rental - cabin, trailer, mobile home, or house wanted in/around Death Valley
(no replies yet, Sunday, Jul 24, 2005, 9:02 PM UTC) Long-term Rental - cabin, trailer, mobile home, or house wanted in/around Death Valley
(no replies yet, Sunday, Jul 24, 2005, 8:27 PM UTC) » All Death Valley National Park Posts
» Ask about Death Valley National Park |
 Comments for goingsolo about Death Valley National Park | | | | |
Belgium_traveler Fri May 16, 2008 11:55 UTC
we are going to the westcoast for 30 days this october, and I was looking for some additional information to plan my trip a bit... Just have to say you got most amazig pictures and really good travel pages... they have been really helpfull allready! | mydreamquest Wed Mar 21, 2007 06:59 UTC
Amazing pictures and description of Death Valley. I'll be there in a month. Your comments helped. thx | Redang Sat Dec 24, 2005 15:59 UTC
What a great place, isn't it? | CoAir13 Fri Dec 2, 2005 18:03 UTC
It's cold..I needed a virtual trip somewhere HOT. I was here in Spring of 94 and is still one of the most mesmerizing places I've been! GREAT page!! J |
|
|
email me
add as friend
on Dec 6, 2004
