Death Valley during winter

These are some of the pics on my trip to death valley on 26th December 2011.

Zabriskie Point : These magnificent landscape we see today is the result of violent action of water and earthquakes. This was a flat land before 3 to 5 millions years ago. There were layers of clay, sandstone and siltstone.These layers were tilted by the seismic activities which folded the flat lands. As the layers were uplifted and exposed, periodic rainstorms eroded the soft rocks into the chaotic yet strangely beautiful we witness today.

The view just after sunset.

Bad Water Basin : This is the lowest point in North America (282 ft or 85.5 m) below sea level. It has a small pool and accumulated salt which makes this water undrinkable. So it must have got its name "Bad Water". But it still has some plant and animal life in it.

When the region was less dry, streams from the nearby mountains must have filled the valley to 3ft.Some minerals dissolved to create this salty solution. As the climate warmed and rainfall declined, the water started evaporation and mineral concentration increased forming the salty pool.

Salts began to crystallize, coating the surface with a thick crust from 3 to 60 in (8 to 152 cm).

Furnace Creek Resort : The resort and the information center for the death valley.

Mesquite Flat Dunes: Only less than one percent of the desert is covered with dunes. Yet there are sufficient dunes to entice us. Sand from the eroded canyons and washes which got blown away by the strong wind got trapped in between the mountains. The highest dune is only around 100 ft. It has crescent, linear, and star shaped dunes. Climbing them is always a great fun.