California National Parks Road Trip: A 9-Day Fall Adventure (Part 2): Death Valley
This is the second chapter of our 9-day California National Parks road trip. If you're just joining us, check out Part 1 (Sequoia National Park and Yosemite National Park) for the complete adventure. For those continuing from Yosemite, welcome to the most unexpected and otherworldly landscape of our journey.
A bloom of wildflowers after the desert rain
Days 7-9: Death Valley National Park - A Desert Transformed
Given the extended 10-hour drive from Yosemite due to road closures, we seriously considered scrapping Death Valley in favor of California's coastal redwoods. However, two factors convinced us to stick with our original plan: an amazing Airbnb we'd booked, and word of mouth that Death Valley was experiencing something extraordinary:
The daily long, but beautiful drive into the park
Hurricane Hilary in August 2023 had flooded Badwater Basin, creating a rare phenomenon—an ephemeral mirror lake in one of Earth's most arid places. This temporary transformation of America's driest landscape into a reflective desert oasis was too unique to miss.
Our Accommodation Strategy
While Death Valley offers lodging within the park at Furnace Creek and Stovepipe Wells, we opted to stay in Pahrump, Nevada, 1.5 hours away by car. This decision provided better value accommodation and more dining options, though it meant longer daily drives into the park.
The silver lining: The vast, uninhabited landscapes surrounding Death Valley revealed their magic during our pre-dawn and after-dark drives through the blue hour. More than once we stopped to marvel at the Milky Way blazing across unpolluted desert skies.
Sunrise at Dante's View
Our Death Valley adventure began with a pre-dawn drive to catch sunrise at Dante's View, set 5,475 feet (1800m) above sea level. This elevated overlook provides imposing views over Badwater Basin and the surrounding desert, offering a dramatic introduction to Death Valley's scale and beauty.
We watched the sun illuminate the Panamint Mountains while shadows retreated across the salt flats below. The play of light across this ancient landscape created one of those travel moments that photographs simply cannot capture.
Sunrise from Dante’s View: Death Valley below, with the Panamint mountains in the background.
Zabriskie Point - A Martian Landscape
Our next stop was the famous Zabriskie Point, where water carving through Death Valley's sedimentary layers create an alien landscape of golden badlands, with Death Valley in the background. The viewpoint offers stunning photo opportunities, especially during golden hour, and a short walk through the small canyon reveals the intricate geological formations up close.
The layered rock formations tell the story of ancient lakes and seas that once covered this region, their sediments now twisted and sculpted by millions of years of geological forces.
The otherworldly landscape at Zabriskie Point
Badwater Basin and the Ephemeral Mirror Lake
The highlight of our Death Valley experience awaited at Badwater Basin, the lowest point in North America at 282 feet (85m) below sea level. This endorheic basin—a water body with no exit point—is normally a vast salt flat formed by streams of water carrying sediment from surrounding mountains and evaporating in the extreme heat.
When we visited, however, Badwater had been transformed. Following Hurricane Hilary, a shallow lake several kilometers across had filled the low-lying salt flat, and somehow persisted for several months, creating sublime reflections of the surrounding Panamint Mountains—truly a photographer's dream come true.
The hexagonal salt formations across the basin are created by harsh temperature fluctuations in the desert climate, with melting and freezing cycles causing salt and sediment to be deposited in these distinctive geometric patterns. Walking across these formations while they were partially submerged felt like exploring an alien world.
Understanding Death Valley's Hydrology
Badwater's temporary lakes are ephemeral by nature—the 1.9 inches of average annual rainfall is overwhelmed by 150 inches of annual evaporation, creating the greatest evaporation potential in the United States. This means even substantial flooding typically lasts only months, making our timing incredibly fortunate.
Exploring Death Valley's Hidden Gems
Beyond the famous viewpoints, Death Valley revealed numerous other treasures during our stay:
Mosaic Canyon
Mosaic Canyon became our favorite Death Valley hike. This narrow canyon offers respite from the harsh desert sun while you venture an hour into its depths, surrounded by walls containing intricate textures and patterns carved by flash floods and geological forces. The polished marble walls create a natural art gallery unlike anywhere else on Earth.
The canyons offered a respite from the sun.
Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes provided a perfect venue to catch sunset. While slightly crowded compared to other Death Valley locations, the experience of watching golden rays play across shifting sand, while the mountains beyond turned purple and orange, made it worthwhile.
Artist's Palette showcases Death Valley's mineral diversity through a rainbow of coloured rock formations. The colours are relatively mild, but a short drive through this geological wonderland feels like touring a natural paint box.
Devil's Golf Course features some of the most unusual salt crystal formations on the planet. The dried salt deposits create sharp, jagged sculptures that stretch to the horizon, earning its apt name.
The Devil’s Golf Course
The Beauty in Desert Details
What fascinated me most about Death Valley wasn't the scale of the landscape—though certainly impressive—but the incredible variety of textures and features carved by natural forces. Marble and stone layers slice diagonally across valley walls, salt crystal formations at Devil's Golf Course create otherworldly sculptures and patterns, and the mirror lake at Badwater Basin blends white salt deposits with beige sediments like brushstrokes on an enormous canvas.
One of the many textures
Time constraints prevented us from exploring Death Valley's northern sections, which remain less visited and offer additional hiking and sightseeing opportunities. The park's immense size means even a week wouldn't be enough to see everything thoroughly.
We cannot emphasise enough to visit Death Valley in shoulder season or winter, unless you want to experience the extreme summer heat. The temperature was very comfortable while we explored the desert in November, though the sunlight was still very intense.
A warning for the uninitiated
Wrapping Up the Adventure
Our California national parks road trip concluded with a drive toward San Francisco or Los Angeles (depending on your departure airport) for some final shopping and a quick city break before flying home. The transition from Death Valley's pristine wilderness to urban sprawl provided a strong juxtaposition.
What We Left Behind
This itinerary merely scratched the surface of California's natural wonders. Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon beckoned from nearby, while Joshua Tree National Park in the south, San Diego's coastline, and the famous Pacific Coast Highway with Redwood National Park all remained unexplored. This 9-day adventure could easily expand to two or three weeks while remaining packed with incredible experiences.
Final Thoughts: Why This Trip?
Our 9-day journey through Sequoia, Yosemite, and Death Valley reinforced why America's national parks represent some of the world's most important protected landscapes. From ancient sequoias that have witnessed over 3,000 years of history to granite cathedrals carved by glaciers to desert landscapes that challenge every assumption about beauty and life, these parks preserve irreplaceable natural heritage. Whether you're seeking a respite from urban life, or simply want to witness the planet's most spectacular landscapes, California's national parks deliver. The physical challenges, natural beauty, and sense of scale reset your perspective on what matters most.
Ready to plan your own California national parks adventure? Singapore Airlines offers competitively priced flights with convenient timings to both Los Angeles and San Francisco. Start with securing your vehicle rental, checking seasonal road closures, and booking accommodations well in advance. The landscapes are waiting—what are you waiting for?
This concludes our 9-day California National Parks road trip series. For more detailed planning information and current park conditions, visit the National Park Service websites for Sequoia & Kings Canyon, Yosemite, and Death ValleyNational Parks.
