Andy and I left very late/early (depending on how you look at it) on Wednesday the 11th/Thursday the 12th. My father, who is an avid Death Valley hiker (see below), instructed us to fly into Las Vegas (through Seattle), as the drive to Death Valley National Park was only about a two hour drive from Las Vegas (directions can be found here). After waiting at the Fairbanks airport, which felt like forever, we finally got on the plane. We had some beautiful views from the plane on the way down to Seattle and Las Vegas.
 |
| Waiting in the airport |
 |
| Don is very safety-conscious |
 |
| Don and Donna were very excited |
 |
We finally made it to Las Vegas and made our way to the rental car area. We had originally reserved a truck, as we felt that would be the safest and most appropriate car for our adventure in the desert. When we arrived, however, the last individual to use the truck had not returned at the agreed-upon time. The manager said to us, “See that line of SUV’s back there? Pick any one you want.” Jackpot. We picked what I dubbed the “Secret Service Mobile.” It was a Chevrolet Suburban, which apparently is the car driven by the Secret Service. It was pretty awesome.
We piled our stuff in our Secret Service Mobile and headed towards the Las Vegas strip. Our very good friends, Joe and Vanessa, happened to be in Vegas at the same time. Vanessa is a Kindergarten teacher (a fabulous one at that!), and was in Vegas for a School District conference. It was a nice stroke of luck as we were able to meet them for lunch at the Bellagio. Andy and I found a parking space at the back of the Paris Hotel and made our way to the Bellagio.
 |
| Paris Hotel from the Bellagio. |
Andy and I got to the restaurant early, so we waited at the bar for Joe and Vanessa. Andy had found a really posh and beautiful restaurant in the Bellagio called Olives. The bar was beautiful – long and elegant with gorgeous lighting and plenty of seating. I ordered a drink called “Life is Fresh,” and Andy got a beer.
 |
| Entrance to Olives |
 |
| Olives Bar |
 |
| Olives dining room |
 |
| The menu was on an IPad! |
 |
| “Life is Fresh” drink |
Joe and Vanessa arrived shortly thereafter and we got a beautiful table outside on a porch area overlooking the famous Bellagio fountain. During lunch we were treated to a gorgeous fountain show.
 |
| Joe & Vanessa |
It was a beautiful fountain show. I had heard of the famous Bellagio fountain before but I didn’t know what a spectacular show it would be. The water danced through the sky and made gorgeous shapes and designs. It was so much fun to watch.
After our wonderful lunch with our wonderful friends, we hopped in our Secret Service Mobile and made our way to Death Valley National Park!
Explaining the beauty and magnificence of Death Valley to some people can be hard. The name conjures up ideas of a barren, unrelenting wasteland just waiting to consume you with its unforgiving heat. Death Valley is by no means Disneyland 2.0, but it does carry with it its own sense of grace and perfection, a sort of hidden beauty that takes a little bit more work to see. But, once you find it, it’s an amazing experience.
I grew up with a father who loved the desert and had no issues or hesitations in recognizing its beauty. He took me on many backpacking and camping trips throughout my childhood. We took many family trips with my mother and sister as well. Our trips to the desert together remain some of my most favorite moments with my father. We have had more adventures than we can count in Death Valley.
My father has been hiking through Death Valley for decades and has dedicated numerous years to its preservation and enjoyment. He is an avid member of the Death Valley Hikers Association, and proudly led the DVHA hikes for over 10 years. He has mapped out a number of routes across Death Valley, including the “Desert Trail” route, of which he wrote a book.
Death Valley National Park was proclaimed as a national monument by President Herbert Hoover on February 11, 1933, and later re-designated as a National Park on October 31, 1994, thanks to Congress’s passage of the California Desert Protection Act. It is the largest National Park in the lower-48, and the second largest in the United States, second only to Wrangell St. Elias in Alaska. It straddles both California and Nevada, with a majority of the park lying in California, between the Great Basin and Mojave Deserts. Despite what its name may cause you to picture, the valley is versatile and unpredictable, with sprawling deserts, canyons, mountains, sand dunes, and badlands. It boats the lowest elevation point in the Western Hemisphere at 282 feet below sea level as well as Telescope Peak at 11,331 feet above sea level.
Death Valley received its name by a group of settlers during the California Gold Rush. In 1849, two groups of settlers (the Bennett-Arcane Party), bound for the supposedly gold-rich mountains of California, set out with approximately 100 wagons on what they believed to be a shortcut off the Old Spanish Trail. Instead, they found themselves in Death Valley. They were trapped in the valley’s high mountains and never-ending canyons without water for weeks. They eventually abandoned their wagons and walked out of Death Valley. A woman from the settler’s party stopped as they were leaving, and turned and said “Goodbye Death Valley,” giving the valley the name we know today.
In 1881, borax was discovered in Death Valley by Rosie and Aaron Winters. Later the Eagle Borax Works was established as the first commercial borax operation. Harmony Borax Works was later established in 1883 and ended in 1888, making famous the 20-Mule Team. Keane Wonder Mine was later established in 1903 when two men looking for silver accidentally stumbled upon gold. It led to the short lived mining operations and boom towns throughout the early 1900’s.
Tourism began in 1927 with the initial creation of the Furnace Creek Inn. Knowledge and protection of Death Valley grew at that point, ultimately resulting in the Park’s creation in 1994.
We arrived in Death Valley National Park about 4:00 pm that day and met my parents at the campsite , which they had already staked out. They had an awesome set up and did a fantastic job of making sure Andy and I were comfortable and prepared when we arrived. They had the tent set up with sleeping pads. My mother, the most prepared and thoughtful person I know, had towels, soap, toiletries and shampoos and conditioners all organized for us. She had placed a little candle and lantern in the tent for us to see by and had already set up the sun showers (more on that later!)
My father had all the meals planned out and ready to go. He had gone to a lot of extra effort to pick food and meals that Andy would like. He even bought bacon! If you know my father, that’s a huge step! Each campsite had a picnic table, and my father had the camp stove and assorted kitchen items on the table ready to go for a nice dinner that night.
 |
| Our campsite |
 |
| View down to our campsite. You can see the Secret Service Mobile in the middle. |
We stayed at Texas Springs Campground, near Furnace Creek Ranch. It was a perfect camping area. It had the right amount of privacy but you weren’t too far from other people if you needed help. The campground had bathrooms in the middle and an area to wash dishes. It also had gorgeous views of both the sunset and sunrise.
We had a very tasty meal that evening of steaks, potatoes, green beans, and wine. My parents had a wonderful spread for us. It was so nice to see them and spend time with them. We ate up as the next day was a long hike through Fall Canyon!