So unfortunately due to operator error* the photographs that I do have of the Death Valley National Park are not very good. But here’s what I can tell you about Death Valley National Park. It’s hot. No really, you think you’ve experienced the hot heat of the desert - Lake Havasu City, Arizona or Las Vegas, Nevada - but no, that’s nothing. The Visitors Center for Death Valley National Park sits at a whopping 190 feet below sea level. We entered the park at about 3,000 feet above sea level and it was already getting quite warm. But when we descended to below sea level it was scorching hot. The scary thing is that there’s very little humidity (less than 10%) so it doesn’t feel hot. But even in the shade it’s still 110 degrees. You have to be very careful - we drank a lot of water and stayed in the shade as much as possible.

Here you can see the Devil’s Corn Field - which stretches for about as far as you can see on the valley floor on both sides of the road. It’s pretty amazing that any vegetation can survive in these incredibly harsh conditions. 

It was 110 degrees and we couldn’t use the air conditioner because of all of the steep hills - we had to drive up and over a nearly 4,000 foot pass to get out of the park. Not a lot of fun. So with the windows down we drove through Death Valley National Park and continued inland - hoping to get out of the desert soon.

*I look back now and realize that I didn’t double check my camera settings before I started shooting because I was so distracted by the intense sun and heat.