A trip to Death Valley

Ashish Bhatia

Level 2 Member
DEATH VALLEY IN 3 DAYS
We did this trip over three days in the month of December, even then Death Valley National Park was warm during the day and cold at night. Therefore, I would warn against going there in summer where it could be unbearably hot.

Day 1
We entered from the west side and started our trip with Darwin Falls. The falls are not huge but given that they are surrounded by the desert, it is a site worth visiting. We only did the first falls, those will 4 wheel drive can drive 2 miles to the second falls.


Darwin Falls

From there, we headed to Mosaic Canyons and hiked there.


Mosaic Canyons

We camped at the Furnace Creek campground. Away from the light pollution, the night was starry and serene.


Starry night at Death Valley

Day 2
On the second day, we started early morning and headed to Corkscrew Peak. It’s a strenuous 9.5 miles but views from the top make it worth it. And since it’s mostly gravel, the chance of losing the trail is pretty high. Never lose tracks of grottos (man-made stone piles of stones on top of each other).




Corkscrew Peak


A view from the top of Corkscrew Peak

We were done with Corkscrew Peak by the middle of the day and post-lunch, we first headed to Dante’s View followed by the Badwater Basin which for a long while was the lowest point on the planet.


Badwater Basin

Day 3
We started the day with sunrise at Zabriskie Point, highly recommended.


Zabriskie Point

Nature Bridge road is nearby and if you are into casual rock climbing, then carry gloves. The hike otherwise is relatively uneventful.


Nature’s Bridge


Nature’s Bridge

Next, we headed to the Devil’s Golf Course which wasn’t that good and I would recommend skipping it if you are running short on time.


Devil’s Golf course – so called because of the rock formations which look like golf balls

Afterward, we drove through the artist’s drive, it was a bit late in the evening. If you are in Death Valley you might as well do it but nothing outstanding about it.


Artist’s Drive

Overall, it’s a highly recommended experience for the nature lovers.

Note:

  1. Do carry a lot of water, sometimes you would be hours away from water and even in the month of December getting a heat stroke is not impossible in Death Valley.
  2. There were few things which we couldn’t do, Harmony Borax Works, Borax Museum, and The racetrack due to the lack of four-wheel drive and being short on time.
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