We are in the town of Shoshone, which is on the outskirts of the south-eastern side of Death Valley
National Park. The town has a permanent population of twenty—not thousand, just twenty souls. We believe
this ranks as the smallest town we have stayed in, at any time. One of the problems we face is that the
park is massive—park is a misnomer—try the size of a small country. To get to a hiking trailhead from
our position requires far too much driving, unfortunately. The summer temperatures reach 120’s, making
it rather ‘warm’. Notwithstanding the unpleasant heat (dry, of course), this is a unique area, a very
attractive place. We were surprised to find it extremely mountainous, a desert of varying colors,
deep valleys, slots and far more than ever envisaged.
We arrived at the unmarked trailhead and faced what looked like hostile mountains, hot weather and
ground covered in loose stones. At first glance a death valley seemed appropriate. We did not know
which direction to take besides following some rough pointers from a book. The ground looked really
tough to negotiate initially. We wondered what we were in fact doing. Ten minutes into the hike, we
seemed to gather our stride and things gained perspective. We hugged the canyon wall, figuratively
that is, for literal hugs, we grab our editor. Talking of that, we were alone in this great wilderness
the whole period. We have to control ourselves when we get the editor to ourselves in a canyon, especially
a slot. After our initial doubts, the change in our perspective and outlook on the desert was nearly
as remarkable as the place itself.
We entered two slots and scaled rock walls, at least a dozen or more. It made the hike interesting, challenging
and added spice. As Jenni mentioned, some of the climbs get the adrenaline flowing briskly. The second slot
took us quite a distance and we came through the ‘roof’, ending on the peak of a lower level mountain. Perhaps
the best of all is the joint efforts we undertake as we help each other climb up and down the walls.
We viewed the basalt flats from our position that, we admit, ranks as most attractive. Yes, standing in a desert
and looking at the varying colors of the desert floor, mountains of interesting form and colors, too added to
the attractiveness. We were knocked out by the desert beauty, tranquility and life. It certainly changed our
thinking about the area considerably. We still intend not visiting during the summer months, dry heat et al.
Cheers,
Jenni and Jeffrey
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