Delving Deeper into Death Valley

Day 2 of our to Death Valley trip was earmarked for Mesquite Dunes, Ubehebe Crater and Salt Creek (to see the endangered pupfish). All these being north of the places we were at the previous day, I thought it might be a good idea to enter the park through another entrance further north on the map. But the maps said it would take longer so we decided to take the same route as that of the first day because we wanted to cover as much as possible before the heat tired us.

(If you haven’t had a chance to read about what the heat did to me the previous day, read Part I – Come, See what Death Valley holds!)

Having entered the park we started for the craters-area, which was our northernmost attraction. (Scotty’s Castle, near there was closed so that was out of question. We might have added that to day-2’s itinerary, otherwise.)

(The previous day we had seen Zabriske Point, Badwater Basin, Artists Drive and Devil’s Golf Course.)

What else to see at Death Valley

To the Craters!

The drive to Ubehebe Crater was a drive along the length of the park. Unlike the parts we had seen on the previous day, there seemed to be very few visitors on the road. I’m sure there’d have been more if Scotty’s Castle was open for the season. But I must say it was a very pleasant drive. The environs on this side were just as fascinating. As we drove up the valley we saw lots of alluvial fans some of them in lovely colors — because of the minerals present, I presume. 

Ubehebe Crater

When we were finally up at the crater, there were a few cars there. And the people who were already there seemed to have gone on the crater-hikes. Ubehebe Crater is the largest one in this once-volcanically-active-area.

Ubehebe Crater is 500 feet deep and half-mile wide. And guess what, you can actually hike to the bottom of the crater or hike along the rim. But you don’t really have to do the rim hike to see it; this crater can be seen from the parking lot itself.

My then third grader and I, however, decided to walk along part of the rim. As this crater is in a hilly area, it was a bit of a climb. Also, since it was in spring that we were in Death Valley, the day seemed to be heating up very fast. Add to that the gravelly path, and the ascent turned out to be a bit strenuous. Halfway up, I wanted to give up and walk back but decided to push myself a bit more. 

More than the grade and the gravel, it was the temperature that was getting to me. Having braved a bit of that, what did I get to see? Another crater to the south of Ubehebe Crater. This was a much smaller one and I thought I had seen the Little Hebe Crater. There were no signs there. And it felt ok that way.

Later on, when I looked at the maps, I found that that was not Little Hebe that I had seen but another one that lay between Ubehebe and Little Hebe. But hey — that was a memorable walk along a part of the Ubehebe Crater. And if not for the heat, I might have climbed further up the hill.

If you decide to do that hike — on a cooler day — you might be able to see a few more smaller craters in the area. 

After we wrapped up the crater visit, we drove down into the valley again and stopped at the ranger station a few miles from there. By then my exhaustion from the hike had wrapped up too so I decided to take the wheel. And because the landscape is so open, driving here does not mean not being able to take in the dry, rocky beauty of Death Valley.  That’s another thing I loved about Death Valley.

Mesquite Dunes

Mesquite Dunes is near the halfway mark of that long drive along the length of Death Valley National Park. On our drive up north, we had seen the sandy area from Highway 190 and it didn’t look like a very big area. It was when we stopped there that hot afternoon that we felt like we were in the sandy deserts of the middle east. There seemed to be so many dunes some small, some large, and some desert shrubs on them, too. 

And how did all this sand end up here in the middle of this rocky desert in Death Valley? 

The information board on the way to the dunes told me the sands in the bosom of the valley is a result of the erosions that take place on the dry mountains around the valley. Strong winds from different sides carry the fine debris and end up depositing them here in the widest part of Death Valley.

Harmony Borax Works

And with the visit to the dunes, we began to feel like we should be done for the day. So Salt Creek was dropped from the list. But on the way, we took a quick look at Harmony Borax Works because it didn’t call for a long walk and I wanted to see the wagon we had heard so much about.

Below, is a picture of the Twenty Mule Team Wagon. It holds a very prominent place in the history of Death Valley and the Borax – mining history of the place. …

Before we left Death Valley National Park, we thought we’d catch the short movie about the area, at the visitor center at Furnace Creek but the show that was to be screened that half-hour was canceled so we left the auditorium feeling disappointed. So then it was just pick-up-a-souvenir and say goodbye to Death Valley. 🙁

Would I go back to Death Valley? I would love to — maybe a few years later to see the rest of the park. There’s so much more to see. One thing I’m sure of though, is that the next time I’d choose to go in winter, look for accommodation within the park. And the way to do it is, think of it much in advance. 😉

I’d also love to do much more walking around there, next time. 

You might also like these:
Treasures called National Parks
Fascinating Geological Sites

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