HalfDomeRick
11-10-2008, 08:00 PM
Today’s report comes to you from Death Valley. High today was about 82. It’s actually cold at night. I have done some short hikes and can see coming back with more time. If you come, the high points so far are Artist’s Palette and Dante’s View. Badwater is the lowest point in the western hemisphere, but it was kinda underwhelming. Other than saying you were at 282 feet below sea level, you’d not know it. Made me think about altitude sickness. If you get up to 10+ K feet, the air is thinner and you breathe more deliberately. So why at -282 don’t you breathe heavily with the longer column of air above you? Death Valley is the consistently hottest place on earth . I guess the count heat days
I spent the night at Stovepipe wells and was awaken about 6 am by what sounded like a jet flying overhead – or the roar of Harley’s heading out. When I looked out I heard thunder and saw RAIN. This in a place that gets less than 2 inches of rain a year. We musta got ˝ inch. The wind was sandblasting cars and I felt sorry for the poor people in tents. Big crows had trouble holding their own against the gusts. Dark and scary. (And unpredicted – a contrast to the bright sun the day before.) A double rainbow formed with the low angle sunrise. I hoped to make it to Scotty’s Castle up north, but the road was washed out about half way there. Flash floods bring gravel onto the roadway. Snowplow trucks move it off, but the road remained closed for the day. Wise choice to turn back. The rest of the day was drizzly but acceptable. A high point was the 2 mile hike out to a sand dune field. The tallest one rose about 150 feet above the ground. The story of the pioneers heading to the California Gold Rush in 1849 is interesting as is the whole mining history. Borax was the most valuable mineral and was hauled out from 1861-88 by teams of up to 20 mules. This one goes down as a “recommended” trip. The summer shoulder months are advised. :)
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Rick Deutsch-Mr. Half Dome
"One Best Hike: Yosemite’s Half Dome"
http://www.HikeHalfDome.com
I spent the night at Stovepipe wells and was awaken about 6 am by what sounded like a jet flying overhead – or the roar of Harley’s heading out. When I looked out I heard thunder and saw RAIN. This in a place that gets less than 2 inches of rain a year. We musta got ˝ inch. The wind was sandblasting cars and I felt sorry for the poor people in tents. Big crows had trouble holding their own against the gusts. Dark and scary. (And unpredicted – a contrast to the bright sun the day before.) A double rainbow formed with the low angle sunrise. I hoped to make it to Scotty’s Castle up north, but the road was washed out about half way there. Flash floods bring gravel onto the roadway. Snowplow trucks move it off, but the road remained closed for the day. Wise choice to turn back. The rest of the day was drizzly but acceptable. A high point was the 2 mile hike out to a sand dune field. The tallest one rose about 150 feet above the ground. The story of the pioneers heading to the California Gold Rush in 1849 is interesting as is the whole mining history. Borax was the most valuable mineral and was hauled out from 1861-88 by teams of up to 20 mules. This one goes down as a “recommended” trip. The summer shoulder months are advised. :)
--
Rick Deutsch-Mr. Half Dome
"One Best Hike: Yosemite’s Half Dome"
http://www.HikeHalfDome.com