Now, honestly, what would it have taken for the road construction crew to run a road grader back and forth a few times before they laid down the asphalt? This stretch reminds me of a roller coaster.
Nice view, and eventually the road does flatten out.
Once in the park, it is still 30 miles to Furnace Creek. There really is a creek here, but no water in it right now. Surprisingly, Death Valley is not completely dry because if you know where to look in canyons, there are springs and water. My GPS is off by a couple of feet, but here is the elevation as I get close to Furnace Creek.
This is really a very nice campground, with very long campsites and pavement in good condition. Also, nice is that there are full-hookups, meaning electric, water, and sewer hookups. Only problem is VERY weak cell service, so internet will be a problem for me. I am hooking up to Verizon's "extended" 3G service, which means it is using someone else's cell tower and that cell tower is quite a ways away.
The campground is really more full than it looks in this photo. A lot of campers do not arrive until later in the day.
Only about a quarter of the campsites have full hookups, so many of the campers have to fill tanks with wastewater if they are in RVs. And of course, tenters have to wash dishes outside--never allowed in bathrooms. This is one of the nicest dish-washing stations I have ever seen.
As is usual, I took the first day at a location off, meaning I just stayed at home and relaxed. But, I did take some time for a short walk over to the visitor's center next door.
Nice, big map at the entrance.
Wish I could see some of these guys, but bighorn sheep hang out in the mountains and canyons.
Back home in the late afternoon, as you can tell from the shadows. It is hard to adjust to the sun setting at 4:00 pm because of the mountains and season. Am looking forward to longer days after the solstice that is coming soon.
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