I think the single coolest experience I had that stood out the most on my trip is the drive through the Titus Canyon narrows in Death Valley National Park. I think everyone that visits Death Valley should take this drive (provided you have a high clearance vehicle, that is). It is a 27 mile drive over some pretty rough roads but once you get into the narrows the experience is unforgettable. I had a hard time not stopping to take a photo around every single corner of the canyon. I would love to do this route again via mountain bike. Now THAT would be even more fun :-)
Some days are just perfect for exploring and this was one of those days. So many beautiful scenes throughout the day!
This was the coldest night of my trip (it got down into the high teens on this night) and one of the most beautiful. The stars were amazing but so was the moonlight. As the moon was setting there was a giant ring around it. It sure was an amazing view over the Racetrack playa. I couldn't have asked for a better night at this unique location!
Death Valley National Park is filled with many wonders and mysteries. One of the most notorious is the infamous "Racetrack" playa, where rocks move across the surface of the playa, leaving tracks in their wake. For years people speculated that it was high winds that moved the rocks around. But, according to an interpretive sign at the parking area, scientists have now figured out how the rocks move.
With enough rainfall, the playa becomes a shallow lake. In winter, cold night temperatures freeze the surface of the lake into a sheet of floating ice, embedding the rocks. The morning sun causes the ice sheets to break up. Steady breezes catch the floating ice sheets, pushing them along with their embedded rocks. Eventually the ice melts and the water evaporates, leaving the rocks in new locations until the next event, perhaps years later, moves them again.
So many cool things to see in Death Valley! On my way out to The Racetrack, I made a quick stop at Ubehebe Crater and was blown away by it. Incredibly fascinating erosion lines and what a great view with the mountains in the background!
Some interesting detail compositions that I found while wandering through the Eureka Dunes in Death Valley National Park.
After a little hiatus from sunny southwest pictures, I'm back to my trip. We had a big snowstorm here in northeast Minnesota and I was out taking pictures of all the beautiful snow after the storm. But I still have photos from my trip I need to go through! When I left off several days ago, I had just arrived at the Eureka Dunes in Death Valley National Park. I got to the dunes about an hour before sunset, spent a little time wandering around the base of the dunes at sunset and dusk then crawled into my sleeping bag early so I could get a good night's sleep and an early start climbing the dunes in the morning.
I woke about an hour before sunrise and started walking toward the dunes in the dark. Before long I was making my way uphill. I quickly realized that this was going to be even more difficult than hiking to the top of the Kelso Dunes in Mojave Preserve. The reason for that was the dunes were much steeper and the sand was much softer. It took me longer than I expected to reach the top but it was oh so worth it. I made photographs along the way up and along the way down. Just like the Kelso Dunes, I was finding interesting compositions everywhere I looked. And, just like many other locations on this trip, I wanted to spend much more time here. The lower dunes to the west looked massively interesting but I didn't have enough time to hike over to them. Something to save for my next trip :-)
