Before you ask, yes, it was hot. But hey, it was summer time. Death Valley was more than I expected, the most interesting part was the diversity of the park. I thought that it was just a big, hot valley, but not so much. There is actually a lot of diversity to the terrain.
We checked out several different areas including; Zabriskie Point, that reminded us of the Badlands, the Mesquite Flats Sand Dunes, and the Artists Palette.
Did you know that mining of ore began in Death Valley began in the early 1800’s? Fuel and water scarcity as well as transportation challenges made this type of mining difficult. However, ‘one of the earliest successful mining operations in Death Valley was the Harmony Borax Works, which was active from 1883 to 1888. This operation was famous not for its ore deposits, but for the Twenty Mule Team wagons used to transport the partially refined borax. A very memorable advertising campaign used the wagons’ image to promote the company’s Boraxo soap.’ 1
Of course we had to go to the lowest point in North America at 282 Feet below seal level, Badwater Basin.
We also checked out the Furnace Creek golf course. Yes, I said golf course in Death Valley. The course looked like it was in great shape, especially since is is located in the heart of Death Valley. Definitely a winter time activity though.
As we were walking back towards the truck, Cole found a friend, or so we thought. He saw what we initially thought might be a fox. They continued to stare at each other and all of a sudden, the animal barked at Cole! A few minutes later, we were positive that it was a coyote, when he gave his howl to call his coyote friends in!! Look closely at the upper left side of the picture to see the coyote.
Time for us to get out of the heat (hopefully) and head to our next National Park!
After beautiful Bryce Canyon, we headed to the last of the 'mighty five' National Parks in Utah, Zion National Park. This park is a little different from many of the ones that we have been to so far. Most of the parks have a scenic route with various pullouts and parking areas showcasing the beauty of the park. At these stops, there are trails of various lengths taking you closer to the sights....
So we thought we had seen the best that Utah National Parks had to offer, and then we went to Bryce Canyon. I can not even begin to describe the beauty in this National Park. The park has an 18 mile scenic drive, with the first 3 miles of the drive called the Bryce...
We continued our journey through southern Utah over to Capital Reef NP. Looking at the map below, our travels took us north of Arches and Canyonlands up to Interstate 70. We headed south and traveled along the western side of Canyonlands NP.
On our way ov...
Canyonlands National Park is also in the Moab area. Although close in proximity, this park could not be more different from Arches. As towering as many of the rock formations are in Arches, the Canyonlands views are hundred times deeper. The contrast of these lo...
Cole has found some interesting friends on this trip.
What an interesting place! I guess Cole found it so, too!
Wow!
Very cool!!
So many amazing things to see and learn about our country. Enjoy the journey!