Water has been in the news and on our minds a lot, so I thought I'd share a bit about North America's driest spot.
I spent Saturday, Jan. 4 at Death Valley. The family and I, among other things, went to Zabriskie Point. I'm not sure why, but Death Valley is about the only place we can take the kids without a fuss. (Well, that and the donut shop.)
Here I am in a pic my wife took with the happy kids:
My daughters are both Junior Rangers at Death Valley -- with badges! -- so I assume they take extra notice of their surroundings. It's a nice thought, anyhow. Natalie (the older one) saw these interesting formations on the ground.
These are little impact craters from rain drops, but it looks like the Moon's surface. This could be from the monsoon last summer -- or maybe later.
Well, this morning I was looking at our MG's Facebook page and I noticed this interesting post from the National Weather Service in Las Vegas. Apparently on Jan. 4, 1974 there was a snowstorm there. Our visit was on its 40th Anniversary.
This is a picture of accumulated snow at Zabriskie Point. It's not exactly the kind of snow they get in Mammoth, but it was neat to see where we had just been blanketed with snow. Apparently they got several inches of snow in Las Vegas that day.
Obviously the weather was more hospitable for humans this past weekend, but I think we would all welcome some precipitation.
If you go there, be sure to hike around in the badlands below the viewpoint. Most everyone stays up on the overview. It's much quieter below (fewer people) and there are some neat views to be had without a photographer standing in front of you.