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Introduction. In March 2001, we visited the 2 National Parks (Death Valley and Joshua Tree) and 1 National Preserve (Mojave) in the Southern California desert. It turned out to be a good time to visit -- the wildflowers had started blooming, the temperatures were warm, but the taller mountains were still capped in snow. The highlight of the trip was the three days we spent in Death Valley, but we were also pleasantly surprised by Joshua Tree and Mojave. We were primarily interested in taking photographs of the landscape, and were amazed by the number and diversity of subjects. Here are some of the photographic highlights (pictures: page 1, page 2, page 3 and page 4), along with some notes that might be of interest to any photographers considering a trip to the area. All of the pictures here were taken with a Nikon 990 digital camera, and none have been edited or "digitally altered" in any way. | |||
Death ValleyMore pictures: Page 1, page 2 | |||
 Salt on Death Valley floor |
Three days wasn't really enough to see all the sights...at least, not at the right time of day. The standard advice about early morning or late afternoon being the best time to take landscape photographs seemed particularly true in Death Valley. The geology is the main feature of interest here, and the long shadows of early morning or late afternoon are crucial to accentuate the landscape. Nonetheless, three days was enough to time to hit some of the main attractions. We didn't have enough time (or an appropriate vehicle) to visit "The Racetrack" so a return trip is in order! | ||
 Sunrise at Badwater |
Badwater. This was one of my favorite places in the park. Based on the photos I had seen, I was surprised by just how little water is here. When we arrived it was really just a large salty puddle, no more than a couple of inches deep. But it is beautiful. The rocks scattered in the water cast dark reflections at sunrise and sunset, and the Panamint mountains glow deep red in early morning light. At sunset, wispy clouds catch the last rays of light from the sun, and the Panamint mountains are cast in deep shadow. | ||
 Sunrise at Zabriskie Point |
Zabriskie Point. Another "hotspot" in the park. We arrived about 20 minutes before sunrise (around 5:20am) to find a small crowd already assembled with tripods, cameras and coffee waiting for the "giftshop" postcard picture of the badlands, Manly Beacon (the tallest pointy rock in the foreground), the salt flats in the distant valley, and the Panamint Mountains in the background. The view is good in the late afternoon as well, particularly facing south towards the badlands around Twenty Mule Team Canyon. 10 minutes after I took the picture at left, all the "real photographers" had packed up their gear, climbed back into their vehicles and we were left alone to admire the view. | ||
 Sunrise at Mesquite Flat Dunes |
Mesquite (Stovepipe Wells) Sand Dunes. The sand dunes near Stovepipe Wells village was my favorite place in the park. We arrived just before dawn and started walking out into the dunes. I'd read that the most difficult thing about taking photographs of the dunes is to find areas without footprints -- they were right! Apparently, a windy night can erase all traces of footprints, but when we arrived the air was completely still. The footprints in the dunes can be interesting photographic subjects, but to appreciate the dunes' "unspoiled" nature be prepared to do some walking! It wasn't until we'd walked about an hour from the car when the footprints started to disappear. Walking in the dunes is slow-going and sand seems to get everywhere -- not good for the camera equipment. By about 9:00am the sun had risen high enough that all the interesting shadows had disappeared and the dunes appeared much flatter and less textured. Time to move on. Not to mention the fact that it started getting pretty hot and in our early morning confusion we had left our water bottles back in the car! | ||
 20 Mule Team Canyon |
Twenty Mule Team Canyon. I thought this was an underrated area of the park. Located a couple of miles up the road from Zabrieski Point this short drive (on an unpaved road) travels through the badlands that are visible looking south from Zabrieski Point. Once we reached the highest point on the drive (there is no sign, you'll know you are at the highest point because you start going downhill), we stopped the car and clambered up the side of one of the hills. The 360 degree view was one of the best in the park. Given the scenery, I was surprised that the road wasn't paved with official view points and descriptive signs. | ||
 Lichen near Dante's View |
Dante's View. Maybe we weren't there at the right time, or maybe we were there when the visibility wan't good enough, but this wasn't one of the most interesting sites in the park for me. Still, it is beautiful. Situated about 5,000 feet above Badwater, the views of the salt flats in the valley and the Panamint mountains are unparalleled. On the way up to the view point the temperature drops about 25 degrees (because of the elevation change), and near the top a lot of the rocks are covered with bright green, orange and red lichen. | ||
 Artists Palette |
Artists Drive/Palette. This short drive through the canyons on the east side of the valley is just a few miles north of Badwater. The rocks are the draw here, displaying a wide range of colors and shades as a result of the iron and mineral deposits. This seems to be a big tourist attraction, but I'm not sure I'd rank it as one of the most interesting photographic venues. | ||
 Sunset at Ubehebe Crater |
Ubehebe Crater. The standard advice is to see Ubehebe crater at sunset, which we did. Everyone stands at the top and takes pictures of the crater wall. Maybe I lack imagination, but that didn't interest me too much! I thought the most interesting photographs would be down at the bottom of the crater. So we scrambled/slid down the gravelly crater wall to get a closer look at the muddy pool at the bottom. Late afternoon light was reflecting off the walls of the crater, and the water appeared to be a bright golden orange color. These were some of the best pictures of the trip. There are also some beautiful geometric patterns in the dry muddy earth around the edges of the pool. The real challenge was climbing the 500-600 feet back up the crater -- the loose gravel made climbing difficult and it took us at least 15 minutes of leg burning exercise to get back up to the top again. I wouldn't want to have to carry a lot of equipment up and down here!
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Mojave National PreserveMore pictures | |||
 Desert Primrose in Mojave |
We only had one day in Mojave National Preserve, so we didn't get to see much of what the Preserve has to offer. Perhaps because it is less well known than the National Parks to its immediate north and south (Death Valley and Joshua Tree), Mojave National Preserve seemed deserted. I almost wondered if area residents wanted to keep it a secret? It seems strange that Baker, the small town at the north entrance to the Preserve, proclaims itself to be the "Gateway to Death Valley", when Badwater is about 100 miles away by vehicle. Or maybe the Preserve is so new (created in 1994) that Baker hasn't reconsidered its marketing strategy yet. Nonetheless, Mojave is definitely worth a visit. And, if you visit Baker, you can see the world's tallest thermometer (134 feet), and the intriguingly named "Bun Boy" restaurant and motel. | ||
 Kelso Sand Dunes |
Kelso Sand Dunes. The main attraction for us was the Kelso Sand Dunes. The Dunes cover a larger area (25 sq. miles), and are much taller (600 feet) than those near Stovepipe Wells in Death Valley. They are also considerably less travelled. It took us well over an hour to climb to the peak of one of the tallest dunes, although we did stop to take some photos along the way. As we got closer to the peak, the number of footprints decreased. By the time we were half way up, almost all the footprints had disappeared and it was easy to believe that no-one had ever been there before. The view at the top was magnificent. It is said that the dunes "sing" or "groan" if sand is pushed down the side. I didn't hear anything. Maybe they weren't feeling vocal the morning we were there. The Kelso dunes are home to a lot more plant life than the Stovepipe Wells dunes, but the vegetation becomes sparser closer to the peaks of the dunes. | ||
 Joshua Tree at Sunrise in Mojave |
Joshua Trees near Cima Dome. We expected to see some Joshua trees in the preserve, but were surprised to find such a densely packed forest of Joshua trees on the Cima dome. We didn't see a denser congregation of trees even in Joshua Tree National Park. Apparently, the "dome" itself rises 1500 feet above the valley floor and is best viewed from a distance. We didn't find a good distant viewing spot, but the trees themselves are just as picturesque close up! | ||
Joshua Tree National ParkMore pictures | |||
 Sunset in Joshua Tree Nat. Park |
Our first thought upon arriving at Twenty Nine Palms, the north entrance to Joshua Tree National Park, was "where are all the Joshua trees?" Joshua trees only grow at higher elevations within the park, and it took us a few miles of driving uphill before we saw any. Our second thought was "look at all these rocks!" The park straddles the junction of the Mojave and the Sonoran (aka Colorado) desert. Joshua trees and rock formations are the predominant features in the Mojave desert, located in the north-western half of the park. The lower altitude Sonoran desert is more barren, but we arrived in time to see the wildflowers and cacti in bloom -- Spring is probably one of the best times to visit.
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 Rocks in Joshua Tree Nat. Park |
Mojave Desert. The area near the north and west entrances to the park is part of the Mojave desert. There are a number of "official" points of interest, but the geology is similar -- Joshua trees and large bolders. I hadn't expected to see the rocks, but thought that they made the landscape considerably more interesting. If you want to see Joshua trees alone, you could just as well visit the Mojave National Preserve. | ||
 Wildflowers in Joshua Tree Nat. Park |
Sonoran Desert. The area near the south entrance to the park is part of the Sonoran desert. The transition between the Sonoran and Mojave desert is amazingly rapid -- drive a few miles and all the Joshua trees and rocks that characterize the western half of the park are completely absent. In their place we found a large variety of cacti and wilflowers. The two most interesting plant species were the Cholla, an astonishingly prickly and adhesive cactus, and the Ocotillo, an "inverted, funnel-shaped desert plant with several woody, spiny, whip-like, straight branches angling outward from the base and rising as high as 20 feet." (The DesertUSA website has a great description of the plantlife in this area.) |
© 2001. All images on this site are copyrighted by Max Lyons and may not be used for any purpose without explicit written permission. |
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