Vegas and Death Valley

4. Oktober 2015 - gesus - Lesezeit: 4 - 5 min.

english fotografie gedanken natur reisen urbanes usa

Early in the morning we start our next part of the trip at the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park and drive back to “civilization”. Our route takes us back to Las Vegas, where we have two nights at a hotel. Usually I am not a gambler but how would it be having spent nights in that city without gambling? After I lost a couple of dollars my wife Parisa did it and won about $350 :-D We had a nice evening.

usa-2015-3512-Pano.jpg

After two nights in Vegas we set off again towards California. Our plan is to spend a few days in Yosemite National Park before dropping off the RV in San Francisco. The last time we were on that route we decided to drive the roads around Death Valley National Park, because we weren’t allowed to go there. The rental company of our RV told us that no insurance will be valid in this region and that we have to go on our own risk.

usa-2015-3498.jpg

This time we decided to visit Death Valley on our own risk and it was definitely no mistake. The air is burning at above 115° F (about 46° C) and the first miles in the National Park feel a bit strange. I always look at the gauge to verify that the engine is not overheating. Although the air conditioning is on the highest load it is hot in the car.

"Breadth", Death Valley, California

Incredible that there are living animals and people here. A short stop at the visitor center shows us that “Death Valley” is everything but dead. I remember a very expressive quote of an indigene woman who was interviewed within the presentation movie of the park. She was asked: “Why are you living here under those hostile conditions?”. And she just answered: “What should I answer? It is my homeland!”

usa-2015-3613.jpg

We leave the visitor center which tells you a lot about the geological and biological history and enjoy driving through a surprisingly alternating scenery.

usa-2015-3769.jpg

The engine of our RV survives even the steepest ascend of the route towards the western exit of the park without overheating (although there are traffic signs encouraging to switch of ac to conserve the engine). We end our trip at Lone Pine at that day. Tomorrow we will continue to the last National Park on our route, Yosemite National Park.

usa-2015-3575-Pano.jpg