As part of our quest to visit all 63 U.S. national parks, we set off on a six week road trip. I…read morehave a personal rule: I only count a national park as "visited" if I actually spend time there, hike or walk through it, and truly experience it. On this trip, we visited 14 national parks, and Death Valley National Park was one of the biggest surprises of the entire journey. Before visiting, I honestly expected Death Valley to be mostly a vast, empty desert. Instead, we discovered a place that was incredibly diverse, dramatic, and surprisingly beautiful. We stayed at The Oasis at Death Valley, which was a wonderful retreat after long days exploring the park. The funny thing about Death Valley is that when you first drive in, the landscape can seem almost endless and barren. You wonder what you are going to find in such a harsh environment. Then, as you turn toward the different areas of the park, the scenery completely changes. The desert opens up into mountains, colorful hills, salt formations, canyons, and landscapes that look almost unreal. One of the highlights was visiting places like Artist's Palette, where the hills are painted with incredible shades of gold, pink, green, and purple created by different minerals in the earth. It truly feels like nature took a paintbrush and created its own masterpiece. We also enjoyed driving the historic Twenty Mule Team Canyon, named after the famous Borax mining operations that helped put Death Valley on the map. In the late 1800s, teams of 20 mules pulled enormous wagons loaded with borax across the desert because there were no practical roads or railways. Learning about those incredible journeys added a whole different dimension to the landscape. It made us imagine the determination and hardship of the people who lived and worked in this extreme environment more than a century ago. We also visited areas where scenes from the Star Wars movies were filmed, which added a fun element to the experience. It was easy to understand why filmmakers chose Death Valley. The landscape looks like another planet. What surprised me the most was discovering that even in one of the hottest and driest places on Earth, there is life. We were amazed to see fish surviving in the waters of Death Valley, a reminder that nature finds a way even in the most extreme environments. Our visit also came with a little adventure of its own. We experienced a powerful dust storm that knocked out electricity for several hours. It was impressive to witness the force of nature, but thankfully we were safe and comfortable. And we were very lucky with the temperatures. When we arrived, it was around 110 degrees, but the following days cooled down to about 97 degrees. We took advantage of the cooler mornings, waking up early to hike and explore before the midday heat arrived. By late morning or noon, we would return to our peaceful retreat and enjoy the comfort of being out of the desert sun. Death Valley is a place of extremes: extreme temperatures, extreme landscapes, and extreme beauty. It is not just a desert. It is a place full of surprises, colors, history, and incredible scenery. I left with a completely different appreciation for this park and would highly recommend it to anyone willing to experience one of America's most unique landscapes. Death Valley truly earned its place as one of the unforgettable stops on our journey.

STEPH JUDGEMENT: A truly amazing place, period…read more You might think the whole place is just sand dunes, but you'd be wrong. There are fantastic sand dunes, yes, and Mesquite sand dunes is a great place for some free form fun (like sand sledding and boarding, and you can just roll down some dunes like my hubby), but there's so much more! Some more highlights: - Ubehebe Crater: mind-boggling crater with a fun hiking trail around its rim. You can hike down to the bottom too, but you gotta come back out, and we opted to just stay at the top. That rim trail was plenty long for us. - Badwater Basin: We decided to walk out about a mile into it, and as the crowds faded away the vast white expanse made it feel like we were in the Arctic--magical. - Zabrieski Point: Took in breathtaking views and sunset. Also did some hiking around the Badlands nearby, which was really cool. - Death Valley Inn: treated ourselves to some great cocktails at their swanky bar after a grueling hike. The bartender didn't bat an eye when we arrived all dusty and gross. I did clean up a bit in the bathroom, but there's only so much you can do. - Artists Palette: Did the drive-thru road and got out along the way for short explorations into its canyons. We were there in late March/early April and lucked out with relatively cool overcast weather. It was also very windy. The last time I was at Death Valley was in the spring of 2009, and it was also very windy, making my decision to tent camp a miserable experience. This time the hubby and I decided to stay at a hotel in Pahrump, NV, about an hour away. Yes, we had to drive into the park every day, but it was totally worth it. We loved our time here and are looking forward to our next visit, hopefully before another 15 years pass!

Super great vibes, everyone is friendly. Easy to find a camp spot etc. Has been around since the…read more60's

Awesome place but I'd only recommend going if you are skilled and Experienced off road driver with…read morethe correct vehicle. I have 8.7 clearance but I would recommend 10. If you do your research and use you're head you'll be okay. I had a great time and I'll definitely be back.

Really nice and easy lookout spot. Can get crowded so plan accordingly with parking. We went…read moretowards the end of sunset so some people were already heading out. It's a short walk to the lookout point once you park. Breathtaking views with cascading and layered rocks and the setting sun made it that much more beautiful. An easy must stop if at Death Valley NP!

We enjoyed a beautiful sunset here this week. It's a beautiful view at any time, but the colors on…read morethe unique rocks at sunset are really stunning. There's a large parking lot with a restroom here. There's a bit of an uphill climb to the top, but it is well worth the effort to walk up there.

Nice little interpretive trail with interesting history and description of how the borax was…read moreprocessed.

There was so much history at Death Valley! Harmony Borax Works is now registered a National…read moreHistoric Landmark. Harmony Borax Works was the central feature in the opening of Death Valley and the subsequent popularity of the Furnace Creek area. The plant and associated townsite played an important role in Death Valley history. After borax was found near Furnace Creek Ranch in 1881, William T. Coleman built the Harmony plant and began to process ore in late 1883 or early 1884. When in full operation, the Harmony Borax Works employed 40 men who produced three tons of borax daily. During the summer months, when the weather was so hot that processing water would not cool enough to permit the suspended borax to crystallize, Coleman moved his work force to the Amargosa Borax Plant near present day Tecopa, California. Getting the finished product to market from the heart of Death Valley was a difficult task, and an efficient method had to be devised. The Harmony operation became famous through the use of large mule teams and double wagons which hauled borax the long overland route to Mojave. The romantic image of the "20-mule team" persists to this day and has become the symbol of the borax industry in this country. The Harmony plant went out of operation in 1888, after only five years of production, when Coleman's financial empire collapsed. Aquired by Francis Marion Smith, the works never resumed the boiling of cottonball borate ore, and in time became part of the borax reserves of the Pacific Coast Borax Company and it successors. Harmony Borax Works was the central feature in the opening of Death Valley and the subsequent popularity of the Furnace Creek area. Come to visit this fascinating landmark in Death Valley!

The farthest point I think in the park and we got to see it with a little water which created this…read moreincredible reflection. Good amount of parking and you can walk as far as you'd like on the basin. Peep the sea level sign on top of the mountain to really grasp how 'low' you are!

We decided to take a little day trip out to Death Valley to view the wildflower bloom, hike a bit…read moreand visit Lake Manly (otherwise known as Badwater Basin). I really wanted to walk in the glorious saltwater. We were there on a Thursday and this place was hopping with people. I had forgot that spring breaks have begun. We eventually found a place to park and made our way out to the water via the boardwalk that heads out. We all know that Badwater Basin is the lowest point in the USA. It is 282 feet below sea level and it sure was pretty. The basin normally does not have water, but with all the rain California received this winter the water was almost up to my shins. The saltwater flats cover over 200 miles. The basin includes sodium chloride, gypsum, borax, and calcite. The best part of the visit was that by the time I stepped out of all that saltwater, my feet were so soft. It was truly a natural exfoliation for the feet. Be respectful and leave your pets at home as they are only allowed on designated dirt roads. Most of all LEAVE NO TRACE and Happy Adventuring.

This is one of the best hikes in Death Valley. So amazing to see a waterfall in this dry and…read morepatched desert. There are 2 parking lots, one close to the road and one at the trailhead. You will need a high suspension vehicle to make it to the trailhead parking lot, which I highly recommend, as the hike from the road is quite long. There isn't a set trail to the waterfall, you'll have to make your way there going through water, bushes and scrambling over rocks. But it is a fun hike and you can see the effects of water as the area grows in vegetation the closer you get. Even saw some butterflies, which isn't something I associate with deserts. The waterfall is such a delight to see. It is cool water, and a welcome rest place before heading back. We visited mid- February, the trees had leaf buds. A few more weeks and everything would be very green.

It's gone. Sadly last year's floods and continual flooding since has destroyed the road leading to…read morethe trail. What used to be a 2 mile out and back trail to the falls is now 6 miles thru a recently washed out area. The falls are still amazing but without the road, I'm not sure it's worth it when considering the time. It was a long, loose footing, sandy hike. Plus it started raining so there's that. Disappointed this time but it's still amazing to see when you think about where you are.

Drove by so many times never got there, I didn't know this place exists,…read moreBeautiful, check it out, easy access and lots of parking.

Majestic falls accessible to all. If you're in Lone Pine, just take Whitney Portal Road 'til it…read moreends in a campsite (which is also the trailhead if you plan to hike Mount Whitney) and there's the waterfall to the right. We parked in one of the many available spots and were able to just walk up along the waterfall to get a closer look. It was really beautiful, surrounded by tall evergreens. Just needed a bear fishing, off to the side, to complete the National Geographic cover. Seemed like the trees along the water had cement to resemble bark, which I noticed while trying to steady myself standing on one of the boulders taking pictures. I've seen pictures of the falls frozen over in the winter, so hopefully I can make it up here again before the close off the road near the end of the year.

This hidden site feels like it's from another planet. The fact that endangered pupfish live here…read moremakes it even more remarkable. Just awe-inspiring. short exploration but also very far to get to .

An easy day trip from Las Vegas, Devil's Hole is located in Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge,…read moreabout an hour and a half drive. This was meant to be a stop on a road trip to Death Valley but I later realized that you could spend a couple of hours in the refuge. The way to get here is all dirt roads and there was at least one river crossing. If it recently rained or is raining, I don't think a regular sedan could make its way out here. The main area is pretty close to the parking lot, less than a 5 minute walk. Because it is protected and could actually be dangerous, the hole is completely fenced off. I brought a pair of binoculars to hopefully see some endangered pupfish but we were too far. It would be a much cooler experience if we could get up to the water's edge but being so far away, it's anticlimactic.

This campground is great because it never fills up, does not require reservation, and our group can…read morepark next to each other without issue. There's potable water, dump station, dish washing stations, and flush toilet bathrooms. It's five minute walking distance to the Ranch at Death Valley and a couple more minutes walk to the visitor center. That said, it is essentially a big gravel parking lot. But it's inexpensive and if you don't want generator noise, there's Texas Springs campground. If you have a trailer or RV fill your water tank at the potable water hose by the dump station (north east corner of the campground). Don't try to fill it at the dish washing station and risk damaging the station structure and your rig. There are no showers at Sunset. You can get a shower pass ($14) from the Ranch at Death Valley by going to the registration desk (Town Hall bldg). It's good for the day (8 am to 11 pm), which includes use of the pool. FYI, there are no electrical outlets in the shower/bathroom.

This space was great when we couldn't make a reservation at Furnace Creek. I was worried about…read moredriving all that way when it was first come, first serve but as everyone else said - it's huge. Lots of spots but it really did fill up by Saturday morning. It's nice for groups to all be close to each other and the bathrooms were real clean when needed. Only issues: the row letters, traffic arrows, and site numbers are super hard to see at night and honestly even during the day. And the pay kiosks are terrible, super shotty and need replacing but after a few attempts they got the job done. Overall, the campground fit our needs, people were respectful of the quiet hours, and it's the perfect location.

This is such a cool stop if you're passing through Nevada! The historic town of Rhyolite is only 10…read moreminutes from the town of Beatty and about 1hr 40min from Vegas. I love history like this so I was super excited. I came here for the Tom Kelly Glass House. When you first walk up, there is a sign explaining the history of the house. Next to it, there is a sign in sheet so you can see where people have travelled from to checkout the house. I was amazed by how many people had recently been there! It's a short stop, just walk up and take a few pictures of the house. Look inside. Take in the history. I would definitely recommend adding this stop to your trip if you're passing through! Ohhh also, the Goldwell Museum is only a minute drive from the Tom Kelly Bottle House. Check out that place too and be respectful of the artwork!

Great stop on our way to Death Valley National Park. I always look for ghost towns whenever we…read morevisit a new place, and Rhyolite is one of the best preserved I've seen. Really interesting history here - Rhyolite was a gold rush town and is a perfect example of "Boom to Bust". One of the town's multi-story buildings cost $90,000 to build back in the early 1900's, so you can imagine how magnificent it must have been. Unfortunately, the town of Rhyolite only lasted 15 years before it was completely abandoned. I really liked viewing the buildings and reading the signs accompanying each one. The Tom Kelly bottle house was particularly fascinating. Wish it was open to go inside, but I did peek in the windows. Keep in mind that all of the buildings are fenced off s you can just view them from the outside, but Rhyolite is worth 5 stars as the buildings are mostly still standing and it is definitely a good stop while in the area.