Death Valley is due north of us, between seven and eight hours away. That's hard driving through the desert...going about 75 the whole way. The only city you pass through is Las Vegas...otherwise, you pass a few gas stations and "towns" if you could call them that. Our two favorite "towns" were Wyatt Erp, California (which, according to my dad, the history teacher, is where Wyatt Erp died) and CalNevAri, Nevada...this particular town is located at the very bottom point of Nevada, and if you are good with geography, CalNevAri gets its name because it's located right at the border of three states: California, Nevada, and Arizona. Neither of these qualify as a town in my opinion; both had a gas station, and that was it! The whole drive, just about, is state highway. I must say, Edward and I have driven through a lot of states, and we must congratulate California for having some of the worst roads we've ever driven on...second only to Arkansas. I hate to break it to my father-in-law, James, who is from Arkansas, but James, you have to admit your roads are the worst. Anyways, California had some really bad roads (and with them being out of money right now, we don't think the roads are going to be improved anytime soon), and most of our drive included weaving back and forth amongst Arizona, California, and Nevada. Eight hours in the car was not exactly what my 28+ week pregnant self needed, but we are really glad we got to see Jennifer and Andrew.
The kids and I added a new state to our visit list: Nevada. Edward had already been there before.
Thanks for being great tour guides, guys! We learned a lot about Death Valley, and as we all agreed while we were there, it would have really stunk to be a settler because here, you'd left behind the lucious East for this awfully hot and barren desert.
Edward and his sister, Jennifer...can you tell they are related??
Shortly after we arrived, we had to take the kids to the playground outside of our hotel.
After a long car ride, both kids were glad to have a playground.
Luke's favorite activity right now is playing peek-a-boo.
Madison REALLY enjoyed seeing her Aunt Jennifer.
They held hands while swinging.
Luke, the climbing monkey
The next morning, after breakfast at the inn where Jennifer and Andrew work, they gave us a tour of the grounds.
Here it is, the Furnace Creek Inn. It's a four-star hotel...we stayed at the other hotel on the grounds.
Adjacent to the hotel is a beautiful garden. We walked all through it.
We had a beautiful morning to walk around. Madison had fun hiding in all the palm trees.
The grounds, while in the middle of the desert, are a beautiful lush green. In the distance, you can see the snow-capped mountains. While below sea level at most of Death Valley, Telescope Peak is 11,049 feet.
The "girls"...Madison was very insistent about getting a girl shot.
Here we are
The "three" of us
The pool attached to the inn had a very interesting palm tree display.
Telescope Peak in the distance with the barren valley below.
We drove out to Badwater, and while there, we got a shot of the "Sea Level" sign.
The picture above was the closeup. This is the regular shot from the road. Notice how high the sign is...you can barely see it.
One of our favorite signs...seriously people, if you think it's not hot because of the "dry heat" thing, we welcome your visits this summer to meet Alexander. I think you'll reconsider the "dry heat" when you meet 120+ degrees.
My little buddy...yes, he's got a big mark on his forehead. He fell on the preschool playground on Friday, so he's bruised up right now. And yup, I'm still seven plus months pregnant.
The family...282 feet below sea level, the lowest point. This is Badwater. It was named for a settler traveling through who couldn't even get his mules to drink the salt water here...thus, calling it bad water. The salt flats are crazy and look like snow on the ground.
Luke in the salt flats...our shoes were covered in salt.
Views of Death Valley
Looks like nothing, but there's a Roadrunner in the picture. Edward, with his quick eye, spotted him.
A blooming cactus
We drove up to the top of the mountains, and these are the views of the salt flats we had just visited.
More from the peak
Death Valley all around
"Lots of vegetation!
A quick glance over the side of the mountain
Andrew and Jennifer
After a morning out, Madison took time to go to the pool.
Jennifer and Andrew had fun playing with her.
More fun
The float didn't survive the day.
In addition to having fun with them at the pool, Madison had a blast hanging out with them at their camper. Jennifer described Madison's experience as a "lifesize dollhouse," which was very true!
1 comment:
I am glad you guys had fun. I miss the dry heat. I will take it any day over humidity but that is what I grew up with. :)
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