We had been keeping track of Dave and Barb through email since we last saw them in May in Las Vegas. We were hoping to overlap a couple days at Death Valley National Park and ended up coming in the same day, December 8th. We drove in from Las Vegas via Beatty since the standard route was closed due to flash flood damage. We stopped at the Furnace Creek Visitors Center and could see them already camped at Furnace Creek Campground, just behind the visitors center. We camped next to them after a driving 172 miles, some on very narrow road. Here is our campsite the next morning:
We are parked door to door with Dave and Barb, each of us with plenty of room. But we were close enough to visit and Evita would charm them when we were all outdoors.
It is a nice setting:
We each had independently signed up for four nights of camping and later on each of us added two nights without the other knowing it. We were on the same wavelength and stayed six nights. It was too short a time to see everything in Death Valley.
December 9th afternoon explorations of the Borax Works and Salt Creek
December 10th we explored Titus Canyon in the morning
December 10th afternoon we went to Scotty's Castle Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
After Scotty's Castle we went to Ubehebe Crater
December 11th we explored Golden Canyon
Later on December 11th we went to Badwater for a photography "class"
December 12th we are on our own and took these pictures
Natural Bridge Canyon on December 13
December 13 Afternoon at Ashford Mills
Dave's web pages on our time in Death Valley start here http://www.etcetera4.net/January_3,_2005_-_Indio,_CA.htm . He and Barb took many pictures we wish we had taken, including Glenn, our tour guide at Scotty's Castle.
We had a great time with Dave and Barb. We also enjoyed being close to the visitors center so we could attend the ranger talks each night. The ranger talks were very informative and worth going to.
We also had great weather, the days were sunny and in the low 70s.