Death Valley Diary

Death Valley National Park

April 15th, 2022

Started out for Death Valley after lunch at around 2pm. We took the Civic since the Accord needed servicing. Naru (the narwhale) and Kitty accompanied us. Picked up water and horizon milk for Shonu from Vons on the way. Also dropped off old Spectrum modem at UPS on Tampa avenue. Google maps routed through inner streets. There was a lot of traffic and it was a while before we got on the 14 freeway. It was busy there too and I remarked that it was bizarre that this insignificant freeway had so much traffic. It eased off after a half hour.

It was a drive through hilly terrain. We passed through the town of Lancaster with its scenic lake. It was a non eventful drive through the Mojave desert where we took the 190 towards Death Valley. We did notice an airplane graveyard along the way that I had read about once. We listened to an audio book H.G. Wells’ Time Machine. It wasn’t narrated very well.

Pavan called and chatted for a while about college admissions for Samanvitha. We crossed over the Panamint range, through mountain passes, and were greeted by spectacular views of the valley floor as we descended down the other side into the valley. The temperature fluctuated wildly with the elevation, and near the valley floor it was toasty even though it was late evening. We stopped at one view point and a gas station in Panamint springs and reached furnace creek at 8:22pm.

It was pitch dark in the parking lot. I walked to the front and checked in after waiting in queue for a few minutes. Our room was in building 800. Room 803 on ground floor near entrance to the building. Very convenient. There was a general store in front of where we had parked for check in. We got some ice cream bars and Coke from there. Then drove to the room.

Nice modern room with good quality soap, lotion and shampoo bottles. We had Ching’s noodles with vegan chili and coke. Shonu had math homework due tomorrow, so helped her with that. She was sleepy but managed to finish with some help. Some problems she solved while I was still thinking about the solution. She has good math ability. We were exhausted and hit the sack at around 11:15.

April 16th, 2022

Woke up at 8:45 after a comfortable night’s rest. Had room coffee which was tolerable and cereal for breakfast. Shonu had Aussie bite. Submitted Shonu’s math and Tamil homework, including conversation log, which to her delight was about favorite movie and character. Needless to say, this was Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, and her favorite character was Kutti Anjali. Got ready and headed out to the visitor center, which was a stone’s throw away.

Got maps from there and viewed some exhibits about the park’s geography and history, which were interesting. Death Valley is a long and narrow valley bounded by the Panamint range to the west and the Amargosa range to the east. Four mountain ranges separate the valley from the Pacific Ocean, which is why the valley only receives two inches of rainfall in a year. It is in a rain shadow region. Shonu also picked up the junior ranger worksheet which had many activities to keep her informed and busy. She had to complete at least three to receive her junior ranger badge.

From there we drove to Devil’s golf course, which is a field of jagged salt rocks with unhindered views of both mountain ranges. It was furiously windy and we had to hold on to our hats.

Then we drove to Bad Water basin, the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere at 282 feet below sea level. It was windy here too and Shonu lost her hat. I had to retrieve it from the salt rocks.

Went on a drive called Artist Loop, a twisting drive through hills colored in various hues of green, red, magenta and orange, due to the mineral deposits that the valley is rich in. Went back to the hotel for a nap after exiting.

Woke up at 4:30 after a leisurely nap, had chai, and went to ice cream parlor. It had a funerary look to it, and they didn’t have any eggless ice cream either. Went to the general store and bought toothbrush for Kamini, who had forgotten to bring one, and some Powerade lemon and fruit punch flavors. Sat on the grass underneath the trees in the shade for a while. It felt refreshing.

Visited the Borax museum adjoining the store to pass time. It was a curious place with ancient engines, stage coaches, a steam locomotive, and assorted mining machinery. Felt like a scene from Atlas Shrugged where the protagonists stumble upon the remains of an ancient motor in a factory.

Left for Zabriskie Point at around 6:15. It was a short 10-15 minute drive. It was windy when we got out of the car. We were literally being blown off our feet. We made the ascent to the view point against this stiff breeze. The striated rocks were a sight to behold. The valley floor was obscured by the dust being blow around by the breeze. The strange folds and striations on the rocks were all a result of tectonic activity and floods that washed minerals out, the boards informed us.

Upon descending, Shonu and Kamini started walking towards a trail to the right with red hued layered rocks that looked like a huge stack of pancakes that had toppled. It got so windy that I couldn’t take a photograph without dust blowing into my eyes.

When we headed back to the car, I realized to my horror that I had dropped the car keys somewhere. I frantically went back up to the view point, while Shonu and Kamini went back to the trail to look for the keys. I scanned the ground like a pigeon hunting for seeds, but found nothing. I came back down and found Shonu and Kamini but they hadn’t found it either. I went back on the trail, while they went back to the view point. I made multiple passes, retracing the route we had taken, but drew a blank again. I went back to the car and peered in to make sure the keys weren’t inside. I couldn’t find them there. I headed back up to the view point, and to my profound relief, they had found the keys. Kamini had asked around and a little girl in a green dress had told her that a man with a long beard was asking if someone had lost keys. She was even kind enough to lead her to the man, who was carrying the keys in his pocket, and gave it to Kamini. We thanked the girl and her father profusely, and the mother as well. The keys must have fallen down during a gust of wind which is why I didn’t hear it. It was a heart stopping few minutes, and we were so glad to be back inside the car. Many people view the world through a hostile lens, banding together with people who are like them. If only they were more open, they would realize that the world is full of people just like them. The kindness of strangers drove home this message once again for us. We headed straight back to the hotel, skipping plans to revisit Artist Loop, with the keys securely inside Kamini’s purse.

We went to the restaurant on the premises, but they didn’t have any worthwhile vegetarian options, so we headed to the store to get ice cream. Shonu got Twix ice cream bar, I got an ice cream sandwich, and Kamini got a small box of mint chocolate ice cream.

We had ice cream back at the room, sitting in the rocking chairs on the porch. Then we had Mac and cheese with chips, which felt so warm and comforting after the harrowing episode with the keys a short while ago. We sat on the porch for a while, looking at the moon and stars. Orion was visible to the west and the moon to the east. Shonu and Kamini practiced Raag Jaijaiwanti.

Then we went inside and had another round of ice cream to help finish the mint chocolate ice cream before it melted. The ice cream had to be finished since the fridge didn’t have a freezer.

Shonu then printed photos she took and pasted on her scrap book while I wrote my journal. A most eventful day.

April 17th, 2022

Waiting 2 hours for coffee. Feeling grumpy. Finally went and got coffee myself from a cleaning lady who was next door. Got ready and left at 10:45.

Drove to Dante’s View which is about 35 minutes along highway 190 past Zabriskie point. The road turns right along a smaller road and winds uphill till it reaches a plateau. Then it straightens for a while before narrowing and winding upwards again. The last stretch goes up a steep 15% slope before flattening out onto a parking area with panoramic views of the valley floor and the Panamint range on the other side. It is refreshing up here at around 60 degrees compared to 90 degrees at the valley floor.

Took some photos and went for a small hike up a sinuous ridge starting from the parking lot. More spectacular views could be had from every peak on the trail. A gecko with what appeared to be sideburns scurried away. Beautiful red and magenta flowers hid among the rocks. We could see Furnace creek and our hotel as a green patch in the far distance. Bad Water basin was right below us. Visibility was around 10 miles. There was a bit of a haze but for which it would have been even better.

Had a half bar and started back down. Had sandwich with cheese, salsa and chips for lunch on the grass beneath the trees. Retired to our room for a nap.

Woke up at 4:30. Had room coffee and set out for Mesquite sand dunes. Arrived after 30 minute drive. Walked out towards the tallest dunes which were close to 100 feet high. It was hot initially and we took refuge in the shade of mesquite trees. It cooled down after some time, and we proceeded towards the tall dunes. Along the way we ran down some tall dunes, which was childish fun. Some dunes were very steep – 45 degrees or more, and it required a great effort to climb up the slippery slope without sliding back. When we reached the tallest dune, the sun was setting over the mountains in the distance. We sat down to enjoy the sunset. It was very quiet except for the wind, and the sunset painted the surrounding mountains in delicate strokes of magenta. After a final run down the tall dune, we plodded our way back to the car, stopping to rest along the way once.

We drove up the road to a small village called Stovepipe Wells for dinner. There was a restaurant there with a black bean burger on the menu. We were seated shortly and a portly and jovial server named Roy took our order. The restaurant had a nice rustic ambience with movie posters on the walls Star Wars etc. Shonu ordered a coke and I got an apple juice. The coke was served in a normal size glass but the apple juice was served in the smallest glass I have seen in this country. Kamini shared the coke with Shonu. The burgers and fries arrived after a while. The burger was enormous and the fries were crisp and fresh. We were quite hungry after the sand dune workout and the food was tasty and we ended up finishing most of the food.

It was dark when we left the restaurant and we decided to go back to the sand dunes to view the night sky from the parking lot. It was really dark despite the full moon and we were able to see many stars and some constellations including the Big Dipper and Orion. Sirius burned brightly near the west sky. It was quite an awe inspiring sight. Some people were actually watching from the dunes since we could see flashlights in the distance. We headed back to the hotel after a while. It was pitch dark and we saw a tiny kit fox trotting on the side of the road. Midway I got a tire pressure warning and drove cautiously on pins and needles till we reached the hotel safely.

We washed our dirty feet and I edited photos. We saw photos from all the phones and called it a night.

April 18th, 2022

Woke up at 8:45 today. Got ready and checked out by 10:45. Went to gas station next door to fill air in tires. While we were filling air, another car with 3 young people from another country also stopped to fill air. They didn’t know how to do it, so I helped them out, paying forward the kindness we had been recipients of from the people who helped find our keys. Returned to the hotel to have Twix ice cream bar, sitting on a bench in the central garden of the hotel. It was hot but the ice cream transported us to a chilly place.

We stopped at the Visitor center next door to submit the junior ranger activity sheet so that Shonu could get her junior ranger badge. The ranger who helped was a nice lady and she took a lot of time to explain various things to Shonu such as why the creosote leaves are so small (to avoid water loss through evaporation), and many other things. She gave Shonu an oath where she had to promise to protect the environment wherever she was, pick up trash, conserve energy, etc. Following this, we set out on the return journey.

We stopped after a few minutes to get a closer look at salt flats. We had to walk a long distance through a rock strewn field with water gullies to get there. We saw rocks in different colors and with different patterns, including marble, and some microscopic flowers. The salt flats were a lot further out than we had imagined, and it was hot, so we turned back.

We resumed our journey stopping at Panamint Springs to fill gas, clean the windshield and have a fresh pizza for lunch. It was delicious but loaded with cheese. The rest of the journey was uneventful, except for a section where we spotted a massive snow capped mountain range that had to be the Sierra Nevada. It was a glorious sight. We could see clouds on the other side of the mountains, but very little on our side, the rain shadow zone. At around the same time, there was a minor sand storm from sand along both sides of the road. It was surreal to see snow and sand storm side by side. There were also some very strange cloud formations overhead, shaped like spirals, almost like alien ships. We returned back by 5pm, and did laundry. Kamini cooked sambar, rasam and cabbage curry, which was a welcome change from the bread and pasta fare. Watched the finale of Season 1 of Away, a science fiction series on Netflix about the first human landing on Mars.