Neal and Mom and the girls drove to Death Valley from Las Vegas. They stopped at the visitor’s center near Furnace Creek and watched the film, checked out the displays. After a picnic lunch, they went to the Devil’s Golf course and visited Badwater Basin, which at -282 ft in elevation, it’s the lowest point in the US. From there you can usually see the highest point in the continental US – Mt. Whitney summit, but that day it was too cloudy.
Then they drove along Artists Drive and stopped to hike in Golden Canyon. I remember how beautiful it was during our last visit to the park in 1989. From there, they skipped Scotty’s Castle (not enough time) and headed to the Sand Dunes. They were a big hit with the kids, who scrambled all over them. Everyone got lots of sand in their shoes, too.
The drive out of the park on the western side isn’t easy with the sun setting in your face, but Neal managed to get them safely to Lone Pine for the night.
