Day 4 of 2024 Thanksgiving Trip to Las Vegas, Death Valley

The fourth day of my 2024 Thanksgiving trip to Las Vegas. Today I would wrap up my visit to Death Valley, checking out Mosaic Canyon in the morning and Artist Drive in the afternoon, before catching the sunset and starry skies from Dante’s View.

During my two-night stay in Death Valley, I camped at Furnace Creek Campground. I had heard stories about dust storms ruining the camping experience in the area, so I chose this campground because, of the three nearby options, it was the most wooded and seemed to offer the best protection. My first night passed in delightful tranquility, but the second night was a different story. Strong winds blew against my tent all night long. While my tent admirably withstood the conditions, packing it up this morning was the real challenge amid the inclement conditions of a dust storm. (Well, "dust storm" was certainly an exaggeration, but the combination of wind and dust was genuinely annoying.) The swirling dust rendered it quite impossible to maintain the cleanliness and orderliness of my tent, standards I considered essential to civilized outdoor living.

Mosaic Canyon

The first stop of my day was Mosaic Canyon, known for its smooth, polished marble walls and the mosaic-like breccia formations. To me, it felt like Mosaic Canyon featured a little bit of everything: narrow passages, wide-open spaces, and rock formations exhibiting both silken smoothness and rugged textures in a captivating array of hues, unlike the rather monochromatic experiences I had in the other canyons the previous day. The trail was 5.6km long with 300m of elevation gain, comparable in length and exertion to my canyon hikes the previous day.

Here's GPS tracking:

Personally, I was most fond of the winding polished marble walls, featured heavily towards the beginning of the hike. Their mesmerizingly sinuous curves were reminiscent of the undulating patterns of a river. In comparison, the breccia formations felt a bit underwhelming to me, like some crudely maintained construction site.

About a quarter of the way into the hike, Mosaic Canyon widened dramatically, offering a refreshing contrast to the narrow, confined passages that preceded and followed it.

About halfway into the hike, Mosaic Canyon narrowed back down. Then it was a typical canyon experience till its very end.

The trail in Mosaic Canyon ended at the foot of a dryfall.

After returning from the hike of Mosaic Canyon, I drove to the nearby Stovepipe Wells, where I topped up my fuel tank and had lunch. (I was in no hurry to finish the lunch as I was also using the restaurant's outlet to charge up my phone, a small inconvenience from spending the night in a tent.)

Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes

On my way back from Mosaic Canyon, I made a stop at Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes. The sand dunes extended for a long distance, with the most impressive dunes located at the far end. I didn't want sand to get into my shoes so I stayed close to the parking lot.

Frankly, I didn't find the sand dunes near the parking lot that impressive. In comparison, I stopped at the nearby "Devil's Cornfield" and found the field of arrowweed (which didn't look at corn at all) much more interesting.

Harmony Borax Works

On my way back to Furnace Creek, I made an impromptu stop at Harmony Borax Works, a decision partly inspired by the desire to avoid being stuck behind a slow driver. This was a short-lived borax mining site, famous for using mule caravan to transport borax to the nearest railroad station. Despite that, the remoteness of Death Valley meant the mining operation wasn't profitable, leading to its abandonment. Nowadays, a short interpretive trail leads around the site.

Devil's Golf Course

Next, I checked out Devil's Golf Course, a remarkable salt flat characterized by its jagged crystalline formations. Its parking lot was connected to the main road via a 2km (1.2mi) unpaved road, which was a bit bumpy but manageable. The parking area sat at the fascinating juncture where smooth salt plains (p3-4 below) meet their rugged counterpart (p1-2 below), the latter sculpted over time by the patient artistry of rain and wind into sharp, intricate crystal formations.
Frankly, I didn't think even devils could play golf here.

Artist Drive

On my way to Dante's View, I checked out Artist Drive, a scenic one-way loop road that wound through the colorful hills of the Black Mountains. Shortly after entering the one-way loop, I stopped at a viewpoint (Artist Dr Hill) with views overlooking the valley below and the surrounding Black Mountains, a palette of vibrant hues that belied their somber name.

Then it's "Artist Palette", featuring colorful hills from rich volcanic deposits. My experience here echoed yesterday's visit to the Red Cathedral area, both featured networks of unofficial trails inviting exploration. Once again, I ventured along some of these paths and made unsuccessful attempts to scale several prominent rock formations. While I certainly appreciated the variety of colors visible on a small section of the hills, the afternoon sunlight, much like yesterday, bathed the majority of the landscape in an overwhelming orange glow. I guessed Artist Palette only revealed its true glory during the gentle light of twilight.

At the Artist Palette area, I spent a bit longer than I anticipated in trying to climb some rock formation, so I only left at 3:45pm. After that, I made a frantic drive towards Dante's View, hoping to catch the sunset in 45 minutes.

Dante's View

Arguably the best vista point in Death Valley National Park, Dante's View towers about 1700m (5600ft) above the vastness of Death Valley floor. From this lofty perch, visitors are treated to an almost aerial perspective of the park, with unobstructed views directly overlooking Badwater Basin, the lowest point in North America. It's located a bit out of the way from the other attractions of the park, so I decided to visit it on my way back to Las Vegas.
Unfortunately, my procrastination at Artist Palette some slow traffic along the way meant I arrived at Dante's View 2 minutes after sunset. The views were nonetheless still remained stunning.

From the parking lot of Dante's View, a trail led north following the ridge of Black Mountains, all the way to Mount Perry. I followed the trail for a short distance for a better view to the north, towards the direction of Furnace Creek.

With little light pollution in Death Valley, I stayed at Dante's View for the night to fall and the stars to shine, figuring this was a prime spot for stargazing. However, the considerable elevation and persistent wind (think of last's night "sand storm" outside my tent) rendered the night air bitingly cold. I managed to take a few sets of photos before my hands succumbed to the chill.

After that, I made the 2-hour drive back to Las Vegas. (This was another case where the sudden enhancement in road quality served as a subtle yet unmistakable indication that I had crossed from California into Nevada.)
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