Early in the morning we headed to what we thought was Badwater but actually was a stretch called Devil's Golf Course. From far it looked like it was a lake. I walked ahead of my parents for a long while to test the ground and bring back the news: what a sight! Is this what they call a mirage?! Part of the Death Valley salt pan, salt had formed into pinnacles which mixed with dirt and water. It was a worthwhile stop to see these from up-close and we were all alone while exploring.
At the visitor's center, we found out that you can walk almost everywhere in the park of Death Valley. Because of the weather, things change in such a degree, that we have little effect in its natural habitat. Still, one needs to respect and we were given a map with directions of areas which you need to leave alone, for example, places where plants in extinction live. It is great though how much one can step upon, touch and enjoy.
We then drove to Salt Creek Nature Trail, a spring-fed Salt Creek full of pupfish and beautiful clear freezing water.
Then it was time to go to the Sand Dunes near Stovepipe Wells.
They were HUGE. I decided to walk ahead and ended up doing a solo hike up the highest dune in the park. From there you could see so much. It was also very hot and I was dying for water once I came down.
After a horrible lunch (we couldn't find any good bread for our sandwiches), we went to Golden Canyon. The hike was amazing and I went to the top of a narrow, steep canyon and enjoyed the view across the valley.
Badwater was a dream come true. The salt flats spread out to about 200 square miles and I got to see some awesome chunks of salt laid out on the flat ground. Fact: Badwater is the lowest point in North America, 282 feet bellow sea level. Sweet.
This night we "upgraded" our stay to Furnace Creek Campground, which is like an oasis in the desert. We slept under evergreen trees, on a bed of needles.
Click here to view more photos of March 15.
