Death Valley Fall 2025: Day 1

October 20, 2025

Death Valley Fall 2025: Day 1

The past weekend Minal and Atul had flown over from Dallas. We were on the phone a couple of weeks back casually discussing how to operate the telescope they had gifted me for my birthday and Atul said he would come in person to help with that. Since Aai was to fly out to stay with them for a couple of months we thought it may work out perfectly if Atul’s visit could coincide with Aai’s travel so she could have help. And as we talked the idea came up about doing a short trip within California when he is here. Turned out both Atul and Minal had not visited Death Valley yet. They both jumped at the idea of doing this trip. Their flights were booked. We found a hotel and quickly the plan was made.

Accordingly they flew in Thursday night and early morning Friday while it was still dark outside we were on the road. Aai preferred staying at home. Just past 7 we were in Tehachapi. The fresh bierocks, scone and bagels along with piping tea and coffee were refreshing and set the tone for a fun weekend. We ordered their veggie sandwiches to go so we didn’t need to search for lunch in the national park. Tracing the road I had taken when I visited Death Valley three years ago I went past Mojave, a short distance on state highway 14 to Randburg-Johannesburg Road, passing the ghost town of Garlock, then a small stretch of highway 395 till Trona Road to Highway 178 going east. We stopped on this highway briefly to take pictures of the Trona Pinnacles from a distance, then drove past the Searles Valley Mineral Company and salt flats before arriving in the town of Trona. Got gas at the general store there and picked up water and some snacks. Minal found a souvenir shot glass there. The Trona Wildrose road that descends into the Panamint Valley didn’t fail to impress again like it did the first time. We stopped for pictures at a turn out before carrying on. Next stop was on Panamint Spring Road in front of the big sign welcoming visitors into the Death Valley National Park. Atul was itching to use his drone and did so happily. That would be the only time the drone got used because its use is not permitted inside the park.

We got onto Highway 190 and climbed up the mountain road up to Towne Pass which is at 4956 feet elevation before the descent into Death Valley. Our hotel in StovePipe Wells would not let us check in until 4 pm. It was only 11 am when we had arrived at the place. We decided to carry on into the park.

But before going much further, right across the street was a Ranger station. I stopped to see if it was open despite the federal government shutdown. The office was closed but a Ranger was outside with her truck disposing trash bags into a dumpster. I got down to go talk to her. First things first, I thanked her for the service despite the fact that they were currently not being paid. She confirmed that the ranger station at Furnace Creek ahead was manned and there we could get Park maps that we were looking for. She was visibly happy when I told her again how much we appreciate the fact that they( rangers) were showing up for work despite the government shutdown. Sense of duty, the love for National Parks, and dedication to protect these was at full display here. It wasn’t lip service when I expressed the gratitude. Truly theirs was a class act for me to remember and model after.

At Furnace Creek we collected the maps and also got updates about roads. Bad news was that the road to Badwater Basin which is the lowest point on the Continental US was closed due to earlier floods. Along the same road, the loop to Artists’ Palette, another popular destination, was also closed for the same reason. However some other nice places were open for visitors. We decided to make the best out of these.

Nearest to Furnace Creek was Harmony Borax Works. There are remains of a processing building and vintage 20-Mule Team wagon at the site overlooking a salt basin. The ore was considered white gold in terms of fetching fortune during the nineteenth century. The Harmony company operated here for barely five years from 1883 to 1885.

From this place we headed to Zabriskie Point. A brief hike up the hill to see the view of the rocky hills was slightly marred by the direct sun on us. But considering how hot it gets in this place during summer, a temperature of 70 degrees wasn’t something to complain about. Although the air was cool, it did feel hotter due to radiating heat from the rocks and the sun on us.

Our next destination proved to be the highlight of this visit to Death Valley this time. The ranger had suggested driving to Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, about 45 minutes drive from Furnace Creek. On the way to this place we passed a car that had been stopped by a cop, possibly for speeding. As the policeman was standing outside we saw him shooing away something. It was a handsome coyote. That would be the biggest wildlife in the park we would be seeing.

The Ash Meadows is a really interesting place and yet possibly the least visited site in the park. It is the largest oasis in the Mojave Desert. The water in the natural springs here is sourced from fossils underground. Death Valley used to be a lake 10,000 years ago. It was named Lake Manly. Five different species of pupfishes originating from that period have managed to adapt to changing environments of heat, oxygen and salt composition and survive in the waters of this place. The area of this oasis seems huge but these are dirt roads and the ride is bumpy and very dusty. Despite this, one marvels at the dense flora in the area, the pristine maintenance and the creativity gone into the boardwalks and interactive trails on site. The Salt Creek Interactive Trail was closed for repairs and the Devils Hole site seemed a bit discouraging to hike because of the sun. But we ran into a ranger who gave us some tips regarding where to see the pupfish. On her suggestion we drove to Point Rock Boardwalk. This place was really impressive. The boardwalk created to and around the small pond which housed the fish was designed with such artistic flair without disturbing the vibe of the natural landscape that you couldn’t help but admire the team that designed this place for their eye for details. It was pure joy to see the tiny fish moving swiftly in the crystal clear waters of the pond encircled by wild grasses of the meadows. The blue sky provided a canopy on the top. A small bench placed near the pond was perfect to sit and just allow the bliss of the place to sink into your being. It felt like you are in the now but that “now” was connected to over 10,000 years of history through the presence of the pupfish. A very unique experience it was, hard to convey fully in words. Besides the fishes there was an occasional bunny seen hopping around and several small lizards making an appearance on the walkway in and out of the grasses. The boardwalk had a couple of wooden bridges within its loopy trail and the floor was highlighted intermittently with carved out images of birds, animals and flowers of the area on metal plates. A little covered patio was created near the parking area where there were picnic tables for visitors to sit down and eat. The porta-potty restrooms on site were, without exaggeration, the cleanest I have seen in my life so far. They were stocked with toilet paper as well as hand sanitizer. The totality of the experience was so great that I couldn’t resist giving it a 10/10 as we were leaving the place. An entirely unexpected and memorably beautiful and unique experience it was.

From the Ash Meadows we headed back, through Death Valley junction, where Highway 127 and Highway 190 meet, into the interiors of the National Park. Our next destination was Dante’s View. This is a good 15 miles winding drive off of the highway 190 with steep incline in its last stretch. Once you are at the top, the panoramic views of the valley and particularly of the Badwater Basin below are simply breathtaking. One stands there awestruck wondering which direction to look. We took our time taking in the views. Sunset was still a good 45 minutes later and supposed to be a beautiful view from here. But the traffic was going to be heavy at the end of it and the drive through the winding curves possibly in dark after sunset. We decided not to wait. By the time we got close to Zabriskie Point the sun was already beyond the mountain tops. We decided not to keep going to our dinner destination at the Inn in Death Valley. A beautiful post-sunset view of the mountains on one side and part of the Badwater Basin on another from the patio of the Inn, while enjoying a yummy Italian dinner, was a perfect finale to the day. Or was it?

It was dark as we left the restaurant and headed back to our hotel in Stovepipe Wells. It was nearly 8:30 pm by the time we got there. We got our room, unloaded our bags. Then got in the car again to try using the new telescope. The hotel surroundings had lights. We decided to drive to a darker area for better night sky viewing. Mesquite Dunes was nearby. We drove to the parking lot there. Already other cars were parked there. Possibly for the same reason as us, night sky viewing. It was the waxing phase of the moon and moon rise wouldn’t be until early hours of the morning. There was pitch darkness everywhere. One look upwards and it was filled with wonder. The Milky Way spanned the entire center of the sky from one end to the other. I could spot the Pleiades constellation in the eastern sky with the naked eyes. The phone app indicated that Pluto, Neptune, Uranus and Saturn were visible at the time. Alas. Despite all our attempts we couldn’t see a thing through the telescope. I had no regrets. Just the view of the sky with a million stars strewn across had filled my heart and soul and at that moment nothing could erase the sense of completeness. We packed our telescope equipment and returned to retire in our room.