A first-timer’s guide to Death Valley National Park, which is surprisingly full of life

That's not ice -- those are salt formations at Devil's Golf Course, an attraction at Death Valley National Park.

DEATH VALLEY, California – The name Death Valley suggests a foreboding landscape, a lifeless place devoid of beauty.

But look closer, and there are signs of life everywhere – from the early-morning tracks across the towering Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes, to tiny pupfish swimming in Salt Creek, to the yellow and purple wildflowers blooming along the roadways.

Hiking the Golden Canyon Trail at Death Valley National Park.

Death Valley – named by early pioneers who got lost here in their search for gold – is a study in contrasts: barren and rocky in some areas, vibrant and colorful in others.

Strolling the Salt Creek boardwalk at Death Valley National Park. The park has a range of difficult hikes to easy walks.

Named a national monument in 1933 and designated a national park in 1994, Death Valley encompasses more than 3.4 million acres primarily in eastern California, with a small portion in southern Nevada. It’s the largest national park outside of Alaska.

It is also a land of extremes.

On July 10, 1913, Death Valley recorded a temperature of 134 degrees, the hottest reliably measured temperature on Earth.

At 282 feet below sea level, Badwater Basin is the lowest place in North America. And with average rainfall of less than 2 inches per year, the valley is also the driest place in the United States. The mountains surrounding the valley act as “rain shadows,” blocking precipitation and helping to create the stark desert environment.

All of that combines to make Death Valley one intensely fascinating place to explore.

Exploring Death Valley

An easy two-hour drive west of Las Vegas, Death Valley can be experienced in numerous ways – as a day trip from the city or with an overnight at one of several accommodations inside the park.

The view of Badwater Basin -- the lowest place in North America -- from Dante's View.

We visited in late February, when the weather was just about perfect – with daytime highs in the 80s and nighttime lows in the 60s.

Summer is a different story, when temperatures often exceed 110 degrees at midday. One ranger told me that the average visitor spends 45 seconds out of their car at each stop during the heat of the summer. (Not everyone is equally intimidated: The Badwater 135, often called “the world’s toughest foot race,” is a famous 135-mile ultramarathon that takes place every July here.)

Wandering the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes at Death Valley National Park.

To be sure, I am not an endurance racer. Nor am I a fan of extreme heat. My husband and I hiked in the morning and did some car touring and more leisurely walks in the afternoon.

Death Valley, like many of our national parks, can be enjoyed on several levels – from challenging to accessible trails, from backcountry camping to luxury accommodations. We opted for something comfortably in between.

Among the highlights: An early morning hike through the Golden Canyon, a moderately difficult 4 1/2-mile trek through stunning rock formations shaped over millions of years by erosion and earthquakes.

Hiking the Golden Canyon Trail at Death Valley National Park.

Another morning, we scaled the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes, where seemingly unending mounds of sand rise as high as 100 feet above the valley floor. We got there early – a half hour after sunrise — and had the place mostly to ourselves, studying tracks in the sand and trying to figure out what made them. Jack rabbits? Coyotes? The snakes were the easiest to identify with their distinctive winding patterns.

Wildflowers were just starting to bloom during a late February trip to Death Valley National Park in eastern California.

We also strolled the Salt Creek boardwalk, which parallels a shallow stream with water three times saltier than the Pacific Ocean. Somehow, a species of fish, the Salt Creek pupfish, has adapted to survive in these harsh conditions. We watched in amazement as these tiny, two-inch swimmers darted through the water below.

Wandering the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes in late February in Death Valley National Park.

At Badwater Basin – the lowest point in the United States — we shed our shoes and waded into the shallow saltwater. Most of the time, the basin is dry and covered with salt flats. But above average rainfall in recent months has created a shallow, temporary lake, turning the landscape into a reflective sheet of water that felt wonderfully therapeutic to my overworked feet.

Thanks to above-average rainfall, Badwater Basin -- the lowest place in North America, at 282 feet below sea level -- is currently filled with water.

Other highlights: Dante’s View, 5,000 feet above Badwater Basin, with sweeping views across the valley floor toward Telescope Peak; Zabriskie Point, another dramatic overlook named for Christian Zabriskie, a former executive of Pacific Coast Borax Company; and 9-mile Artists Drive, a one-way scenic route that culminates in a formation called Artists Palette, where minerals in the rock have created a stunning mosaic of greens, golds and reds.

Along the way, we saw bursts of yellow and purple flowers, the beginning of what has since been labeled a superbloom season for desert wildflowers, triggered by above-average rainfall last fall. The colorful show is expected to continue through June.

Amid all the natural wonders, there is also plenty of human history to explore.

Before the area became a park, Death Valley was a major mining site for borax — “white gold of the desert” — a mineral with myriad uses, including as a cleaning agent and a component in glassmaking.

The view from Zabriskie Point, one of several dramatic overlooks within Death Valley National Park.

The short, half-mile Harmony Borax Works Trail, just north of the main park visitors center, offers an overview of the industry, including the famous 20-mule teams used to transport borax out of Death Valley to the closest rail line in Mojave.

A small museum on the campus of the Ranch at Death Valley, housed in a 1880s-era former miner’s cabin, offers additional details about the industry and the people who worked here.

By the early 1900s, mining in the region had largely ended. In 1927, the Pacific Coast Borax Company opened the Furnace Creek Inn – now the AAA four-diamond Inn at Death Valley – in an effort to transform the region from an industrial outpost into a tourist destination.

And the effort has worked. The park welcomed 1.4 million visitors in 2024, making it the 21st most visited national park in the United States.

Today, several small commercial centers operate within the park, including Furnace Creek, Stovepipe Wells and Panamint Springs. The largest and most centrally located is Furnace Creek, where the sprawling Ranch at Death Valley offers 224 rooms and cabins, along with four restaurants, a general store, swimming pool, golf course and other amenities. Both the Ranch and the nearby Inn at Death Valley are operated by Xanterra and marketed as the Oasis at Death Valley.

Farther north, near the sand dunes, is Stovepipe Wells, with an 83-room hotel, store, gas station and restaurant, where we had lunch after hiking the Mosaic Canyon Trail. On the western edge of the park is Panamint Springs, with a small hotel, campground and restaurant.

Alas, we didn’t make it that far.

Regrettably, we also didn’t make it to the area known as the Racetrack, famous for its mysterious “sailing stones,” rocks that slowly move across the dry lakebed, leaving long tracks behind them.

A ranger told us it was a three-hour drive each way on a notoriously rough road. “We recommend two spare tires,” he advised.

We decided not to risk it in our rental car.

Instead, we spent our last afternoon meandering through the rest of Death Valley’s surreal landscapes, on the lookout for signs of life.

If you go: Death Valley National Park

What: At more than 3.4 million acres, Death Valley is the largest national park in the contiguous United States. Most of the park lies in eastern California, with a small section extending into southern Nevada.

Closest city: Death Valley is about two hours west of Las Vegas and roughly five hours northeast of Los Angeles.

Where to stay: We stayed inside the park, at the Ranch at Death Valley, for easy access to park attractions. Our one-bedroom cabin cost about $450 per night – pricey, but the location was hard to beat. Other options in the park include the Inn at Death Valley, the Stovepipe Wells Village Hotel, Panamint Springs Resort and numerous campgrounds. The closest town to Death Valley is Beatty, Nevada, about 45 minutes from the Furnace Creek area.

Best time to visit: The park is open year-round, but is most popular October through April. Summers can be dangerously hot, with average daytime highs in July reaching 115 degrees.

Dark sky: Death Valley is one of the best places in the country for stargazing and has been designated a Gold Tier site by the International Dark-Sky Association. We spent an hour one evening looking at the sky, but a bright moon limited the show.

Admission: $30 for a seven-day vehicle pass. An annual National Park pass is $80.

More information: The Furnace Creek Visitor Center is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, with maps, exhibits, restrooms and a gift shop. For information: nps.gov/deva

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