Greetings from Death Valley National Park

I had to travel to California for work and my husband came along, we only had three days, snow and rain changed our plans and we ended up at Death Valley National Park. The name gives it an unforgiving feeling. It is a long drive through desert, to a new desert, to another desert. Green was a color that seemed removed from the palet. Blue only existed in the sky. We didnt see animals, we barely saw people. We had a jeep and were able to camp on a ridge off the gravel road to Hole-in-the-Wall. It was amazing how climbing up 200 feet entered us into a whole new world. The sun left the sky and gave way to the brightness of night. The stars lite up our time camp on the ridge. We drank tea, watched the sky, and I realized that in this place of death I found my life again. Maybe it is getting away, getting into nature, adventure, living in the moment. Maybe it is finally being understood in a place I have never been 2,287 miles from my house I finally felt at home.

Sincerely,
Katie

Death Valley National Park

A world of extremes, Death Valley is the nation's driest, hottest and lowest place, but also features mountains over 11,000 feet high that experience below-zero weather and snow, as well as colorful badlands, sand dunes and canyons. Its dramatic mountains, valleys and dunes are world renowned for their complex and diverse geology. The park also contains a wealth of well-preserved archaeological sites and petroglyphs.

State(s): California Nevada,

Established: 1933

“Nature has a way of bringing people together, forming a connection that is not linked to any one place. It is a feeling of finally being understood. It is a feeling that lives in us, a feeling that if we harbor it can save ourselves, as it did for me in this moment.”

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