Death Valley National Park, California: Greetings from 198 feet below sea level! We had a long day of driving... not too many miles, but over rougher terrain than we usual traverse. My Driver handled the narrow, winding and steep ups-and-downs with skill. He is awesome.
We both ran this morning before heading east on 58 over a very foggy Tehachapi Pass. As soon as we crossed the summit, we saw the sun and enjoyed sunny skies for the rest of the day. Our route took a left, north on Highway 14, then into Ridgecrest, through Trona and finally into the Panamint Valley, over the Panamint Mountains and into Death Valley National Park on Highway 190.
I took many photos and we are operating on solar/battery power, so this evening I will post many photos, with long captions... instead of my usual chatty column. Many of the photos were snapped through the windscreen again today - no place to pull over on these narrow roads.
Enjoy!




After happily passing through Trona, we climbed up a steep pass into the Panamint Valley. Again, a very interesting road.



At the bottom of the Panamint Valley, we stopped for lunch at a road-side turn-out.


But after lunch... we had to climb from 1500 feet elevation, over the mountains, to reach Death Valley:





We went right to our reserved campsite at Furnace Creek Campground and called it a day. DT figures from leaving Bakersfield and climbing up and down all the passes, we traversed 18,000 feet up and down today. He is tired.
Camping here is actually "camping". No hook-ups, no electricity. No treadmill for miles. Just us, our 3000 watt generator, roof-top solar panels, battery-bank, satellite HD television and satellite internet system. I cannot use my washer/dryer, nor the dishwasher while we are here, so it is basically "roughing it" as far as I am concerned. No cell service either!


RV Park: Furnace Creek Campground. Large back-in site. No hook-ups. Fresh water and a dump station available. Flush toilets and hot showers. Store, visitor center and restaurants within walking distance. Golf course. $18 per night, plus reservation fee and park entrance fee.