July 11, 2022
Welcome to Death Valley National Park!
First stop: Zabriskie Point
Great views from Zabriskie Point!
Next stop: Furnace Creek Visitor's Center to get some tips on where to visit while in the Park.
We were greeted by a sign documenting the temperature..... it was HOT!! 🔥
Little did we know, it would get 7 degrees hotter later that day.... more on that later!
The guy at the Visitor's Center suggested we visit the Mesquite Flat Dunes. This is where the scene from Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope was filmed where R2D2 and C-3PO land in their escape pod in the Tatooine Dunes after fleeing Darth Vader.
There were signs warning people not to walk out on the dunes and to keep your car in sight. There were warnings that "Sand temperatures can be hot enough to melt candles" right off your feet. In fact, two people died at Death Valley just last month. One died after he ran out of gas and he overheated/dehydrated before help arrived and another died for the same reason after getting a flat tire. The heat is no joke! We took the warnings seriously. We stayed close to our car. We made sure we had a full tank of gas. We brought plenty of water and we only stayed on paved roads, which our routinely checked by park rangers and other visitors.
Next, my brother did a round of golf at Devil's Golf Course 🏌
And then a visit to Badwater Basin - the reason why Death Valley is a National Park. It is 282 feet below sea level.
The salt flats are pretty cool - for something so hot anyway 😜
Left to right, this is my son Tanner, my brother Ryan, my nephew Eli and my niece Sophie.
Then we drove the 9 mile scenic loop around Artists Drive.
Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope shot a couple scenes here as well including the scene with Jawas' Sandcrawler and where R2D2 does the solo trek up the desert canyon.
And it was also here that the temperature got up to 121 degrees!
We got out of the car and ran around to celebrate and make a memory of being the very hottest any of us had ever been. How did it feel? Well, I felt my eyes drying up every second they were open and I felt my mouth drying up with every breath. It was HOT!
Cost: $30 vehicle entrance fee (although we had a 4th grader with us with a 4th grade pass which made it free for us - yeah!). Although make sure you arrive with a full tank of gas! There is only one gas station (located by the Visitor's Center) within a 70+ mile radius, so they charge $9.22/gallon!
Verdict: So, I'm not really sure what to say on this one. The five of us talked about this on our way home. I called my husband and was telling him about how hot it was, all the warnings, how you couldn't stray far from your car, how the sand could melt your shoes, etc. And his response was, "So why do people want to go there??" Well, I think that's exactly it! It's such a totally unique place. I've never been anywhere quite like it. And that's what makes me want to give it a "yes!" Having said that, if you can't handle the heat, this place is definitely not for you! In that case, best to visit another valley that's not quite so deathly 😉
No comments:
Post a Comment