My son and I made a trip into Death Valley from Lone Pine, thinking we might return for more serious photography, but the distance and the timing difficulty steered us away from that idea.
Yet it was good to see Badwater Basin with the shallow lake created by the recent heavy rains. It appears that this unusual event attracted others, too. there were lots of people, more than I had seen there in previous visits, in the park.
The road to Devil’s Golf Course was closed, requiring a long walk to see that feature.
Shallow water covers the salt that appears brown and the salt protruding above the water is white.
The salt is showing indications of forming geometrical patterns typical of this salt as it dries. The heavy rains have destroyed or muted such patterns.
We stopped a little short of the turn in the road, which goes by the traditional Devil’s Golf Course, but this rugged salt is what we would expect to see there. The rains have muted some of the sharp features that I recall from previous visits.
Back in Lone Pine, we had Pizza and Beer for dinner. This IPA seemed a fitting choice after our time in Death Valley.
Until next time,
Ken
Great shots, Ken! I’m actually glad I got to see Badwater Basin *before* it became a lake. The hexagonal features were much more defined during my visit, which I thought was really cool.
Yes, Rebecca, I liked those geometric patterns, too. I think that is what makes the salt so interesting and those patterns make such good foreground for photos.