Death Valley is the deepest basin in the West's
Basin and Range Province, which is characterized by alternating narrow valleys between long mountain ranges. Leaving Death Valley heading westward on Hwy 190 we climb up into the
Panamint Range and stop at
Padre Crowley Point to admire the vistas of Death Valley below, then down again into the next valley. The road is a roller coaster of uphills and downgrades.
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| Up to Towne Pass |
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| View into Death Valley from Padre Crowley Point |
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| Downgrade |
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| Uphill |
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We turn northward on Hwy 136 towards
Lone Pine and the
Alabama Hills. Many Hollywood western movies have been filmed in this area due to both the dramatic scenery and relatively close distance to Los Angeles. Lone Pine itself is a down home ranching community that also caters to visiting sports enthusiasts and occasionally to movie crews.
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| Downtown Lone Pine |
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| Ranch lands |
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To scope out the Alabama Hills for future camping & hiking, we take Whitney Portal Road from the center of Lone Pine towards the Sierras. The rocky landscapes are a stunning contrast to the Sierras. It's easy to see why this area is a popular movie location. It's not surprising to discover a crossroad named "Movie Flat Road." Looks like a great place for camping and exploring on another trip.
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| Whitney Portal Road |
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| Love this landscape |
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| Great rocks and sky |
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For the first time our new AAA Government Campgrounds Map has let us down. We check out
Diaz Lake Campground, but it does have showers as listed on the map. Fortunately the
RVparky app finds the nearby
Boulder Creek RV Park. After a few days dry camping in Death Valley we are in definite need of cleaning up. It's a very nice clean park offering full hook-ups and good facilities for a reasonable price.
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| RV Park sign |
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| Store & Registration |
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| Our campsite |
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The next day is absolutely gorgeous and as much as we would like to stick around, David needs us to return home so he can visit his daughter in Colorado.
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| Peter checking the news on his iPad |
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| View of Sierras from Boulder Creek RV Park |
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From Lone Pine we travel south on Hwy 396 to
Red Rock Canyon State Park. We had originally planned to stay here a few days, but it'll have to wait for another trip as we are out of time. Instead we satisfy ourselves with a cruise through the campground.
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| Amazing colors in the rock walls |
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| Looks like a great place to explore |
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| Interesting formations |
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| Hey - there's a good campsite |
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| Tall red cliffs |
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| with Joshua trees dotting the landscape |
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We'll be back!
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| Red Rock Canyon California State Park |
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