Today Marc Ricketts presents a stunning photographic essay on California’s Death Valley, the lowest, hottest and driest area in North America. Marc posits that Death Valley likely inspired Disney Imagineers on many of their projects throughout the years. Death Valley does play an important part in Mickey Mouse comic strips from the early 1930’s as you will see at the end of the article. ~~Rick

Living the Low Life in Death Valley
by Marc Ricketts

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Like most of the Micechat community, my travel destinations often include theme parks. But for me, theme parks are only part of the equation, for I also feel the pull of the natural world, and it is so often within our country’s National Parks that I find myself reestablishing that connection with the forces and sheer grandeur of life itself. From the Jungle Cruise to the Cadillac Range, the artists that create the best environments of fantasy and wonder turn to landscapes around the globe to find their inspiration. And it is truly astounding to see what Mother Nature can accomplish, often with little more than some earth and water (and maybe a few million years).

And just as California has a large collection of a variety of theme parks, there are also a wide variety of National Parks. And from time to time I’m going to step out of the Greater San Francisco Bay Area, and we’ll go explore some of these national treasures. Now as the days grow shorter and colder, and the trees have shed most of their leaves, many people put away their outdoor ambitions until warmth returns. Those that don’t will likely think that the answer is to swap their hiking boots for ski boots, and that is a good response to the circumstances. But it is also at this time that the California deserts find relief from the oppressive heat of summer, where campgrounds are opening for the season instead of closing, and where stark beauty can be savored. It is at this time that one of the most appealing places in the state has, perhaps, the least appealing name: Death Valley.

Only slightly more hospitable than the bottom of the sea or the surface of Neptune, the valley received its name as an early party of westward travelers remembered as the 49ers (no, not those 49ers, even the new Levi Stadium doesn’t get this hot), on a shortcut no less (or so they thought) finally escaped its grasp after many harsh weeks that included using wagon wood for fire to cook the oxen they had to kill in order to survive. “Goodbye, Death Valley”, one of them stated as they struggled over the mountains to the west. Just take a moment to mull over the situation. You’re spending weeks getting across half a continent, some Bozo convinces you that he knows a great shortcut, and, ultimately, you are confronted with this.

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Nothing edible. Nothing drinkable. No shade. Few plants. And a giant mountain range on the other side of it all. If the best word to describe Yosemite, California’s other famous valley, is spectacular; the best word to Describe Death Valley is vast. At least the 49ers passed through in the winter; the highest temperature ever recorded on Earth was 134 in Death Valley July 10, 1913. And those mountains to the west are the fourth range that weather from the Pacific Ocean must cross before reaching the Valley, meaning the clouds are all but bone dry by the time they arrive.

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Fortunately, we don’t have to rely on horses and oxen to reach Death Valley; and unless you’re tooling around in a ’72 Vega, you’re unlikely to find yourself needing to eat an automobile for sustenance. We are also fortunate to have pavement to drive upon. Consider the Devil’s Golf Course:

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There is a seemingly endless vista of terrain like that above, but it’s even more extreme than first appearances, because that is salt mes amis. So if one stumbles, it isn’t just a rock slicing into your skin, but a jagged, crusty salt crystal, macheteing its way through veins and nerves while the salt itself amplifies the pain leading to…….in short: Don’t Fall!

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And when you do find water, it isn’t much better.

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The name says it all: Badwater. At 282 feet below sea level, Badwater Basin is the lowest point in North America. The salt is hard packed where countless feet have trodden over the flats, but this is not a walk to be attempted in the peak of summer unless you prefer your own skin crispy.

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Of course, most people don’t think of finding any water in the desert, good or bad. They often do think of sand dunes, though, and here in Death Valley one can experience the Dunes of Mesquite Flat after a mere stroll from the parking area.

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However, like most National Parks, the Death Valley experience is much richer if you go a little farther away from the paved roads. One way to accomplish this here is to drive one of the many unpaved roads that cross the valley floor and lead into the numerous side canyons. While SUVs can seem a bit of overkill for a trip to pilates class, here they are in their element. It doesn’t take much to find some of the loneliest places on the planet. But even in these places life can somehow still push on, and it doesn’t take much to find inspiration in a plant of all things. But a plant that can manage to survive this environment is a true testament to the persistence of existence.

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But getting your feet moving is usually the best way to really find the spirit of a National Park. Here in Death Valley, the heat and dryness means it is even more important to be prepared with water, sunscreen, proper clothing and footwear. If exploring the side canyons, one should know if any rain is forecast in the vicinity that could create a flash flood. Starting early or late in the day is a good way to avoid the full heat of the day. Visiting outside of summer is certainly the way to go in the dream world inhabited by your humble narrator, but there are some that actually want to feel the most extreme temperatures. On my most recent visit we set out one morning for the hike through Golden Canyon which ultimately led us to what is perhaps the park’s most well known view at Zabriske Point.

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It takes but a few steps to see clearly why sci-fi flicks so love the desert to represent alien worlds. All around us the land was shoved and folded onto itself with bands of color throughout the rock like a Seuessean fantasy. In the distance the Park’s high point, Telescope Peak, often carries a dusting of snow into the summer with its altitude of 11, 049 feet.

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Zabriske Point is just over two miles from the lot on the valley floor, and it wasn’t long before we were just below the walls of the viewing area. It was readily obvious that the European visitors to the USA continue to be fascinated by the deserts of the southwest. I identified at least three languages beyond English within minutes of joining those that had gathered to take in the vista (I understand many of them are the ones that want to experience the hottest of days; probably best that we keep an ocean between us). It doesn’t take much to understand why people from a continent that has been heavily populated for centuries would find so much empty space appealing. And, really, no matter where you live, it’s unlikely that it looks anything like the view of the Manly Beacon from Zabriske Point. In fact, even that very view is probably going to be completely different just 30 minutes later.

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For more information: www.nps.gov/deva

What’s the connection between Mickey Mouse and Death Valley, you ask? Apparently an early Mickey Mouse daily comic series written and drawn by Floyd Gottfredson featured Mickey’s adventures in Death Valley. The series was titled Race to Death Valley and is reprinted in the first book in a series of books featuring Gottfredson’s comic strips.

WaltDisneysMickeyMouseByFloydGottfredsonFantagraphicsVolume1

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Marc Ricketts
Marc Ricketts is a writer/photographer who has not yet outgrown roller coasters, and provides news and information about San Francisco Bay Area destinations. Mark's columns can frequently be found on MiceChat in our Weekend Updates.