Desert Moon Sojourn

At the very spur of the moment, my husband and I decided to get out of town for New Years ( I really love these unplanned getaway's). We gathered our camping gear, tossed it in the back of the truck and headed northeast.





The desert seemed like the best place to go for a quiet reflective way to welcome in January and 2010 and the Blue Moon. On our way to Death Valley, we passed the Mojave and made a short stop here at Red Rock Canyon. Can you see me beneath these spectacular rock formations?



Passing through the Owen's Valley we can see the Sierra Nevada's and Mt. Whitney, the tallest mountain in the contiguous U.S.



After a six hour drive, we've reached our destination, we're here at Death Valley National Park.

We waited here watching the light on the dunes in the distance. And deciding where we'll (hopefully) see the moon rise tonight. We saw groups of people walk out to the sand dunes with picnic baskets and blankets, they had a good idea for New Years.

Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes

As the sun began to set we saw clouds start to fill in the sky, oh dear, would we see the moon after all?

If we didn't, it wouldn't matter, this sunset was worth the drive. It went on and on, we watched the sky with anticipation (and a good amount of awe).

And then, the horizon began to glow, my heart beat faster. It would happen! right in front of us, on New Years Eve, the Blue Moon appeared.

Well, to say this was a thrill would be a serious understatement. It was an incredible sight, if you saw it too, you know what I mean. The sky was so clear, I could see the markings on the moon. We took several photos (I hope my film pics turn out) if not, I'm happy with these from my little digital.

With the moon now in the sky, it was time to find a campsite. Unfortunately while we were busy sky watching, all the campsites at Stovepipe Wells were taken. We arrived just as the last site was claimed.

Plan b: get a room. It seemed we got the last one of those too. We forgot that we would not be the only ones to decide to escape to the desert for the holiday. Luckily we didn't forget the champagne!

One for you and one for me. Happy New Year honey! then, because there was a sign in our room that said " No cooking in room" (not that we would have!) we went out to eat, where we had a beautiful trout dinner with steamed veggies and a delicious salad. Maybe missing out on the campsite was a good thing? :)

Up at dark, I mean dawn, we want to be in a good position for photos before the sun makes it's appearance. Here is my sweet husband making me a mug of hot tea. It is very very cold this morning.

We are all alone at this surreal landscape.

Looks like the moon. Death Valley is an amazing place. You really ought to go.

We took a lot of photos.

And walked all over the salt spires which are as sharp as a coral reef. it's okay, you can do that here. The guide book says "there is no official hiking trail, visitors can tromp through this strange and rugged terrain for a closer look at the spectacular formations."

Now, here I am at the lowest point in North America, Badwater. It looks like I'm about to step into water, but it's only salt. You do not want to be here in the summer. Temperatures regularly reach 120 degrees. Though now, it is very cold. I don't know how cold, but I take back what I said about wanting snow. I would probably die. This was cold enough. I know I'm a baby. I'm sorry.

On one of the unpaved roads we pulled over to make breakfast. I watched from inside the truck as my husband went to work. He enjoys cooking on our little camp stove.

Here is his kitchen, the tailgate of our truck. He made us cooked oats with blueberries, bananas and honey. ♥

Here in Death Valley an American Indian tribe lives and thrives. The Timbisha Shoshone reside on 40 acres of land near Furnace Creek. As we passed by we noticed a sign that looked interesting. We'll come back to check it out in the afternoon.

Next is Zabriskie Point. Another badland that will guarantee gasps. The earth must have thrown quite a party to have created this. The land is wildly eroded and vibrantly colored. I imagined one wrong step and you'd fall in and never be found again.

My husband felt the need to stand right next to the edge for his photos. Perspective is hard to show here, but the drop off is significant.

I like mine, where I am far enough back for photos and peace of mind. (I tried not to look at my husband).

Photos safely taken, now we're at Golden Canyon for a short hike.

The guide book said it is an easy two mile hike. I think we turned it into ten, (only a slight exaggeration.) :)

We went off the trail, wandering through colorful rock formations,

squeezing through twisting narrows,

climbing over big rocks and boulders (showing off),

and getting stuck. Oh, not to worry though, I made it through. I like this photo even if I can't understand what is going on with my pants. I may have just brought unnecessary attention there, forget I said anything. heehee.

There are beautiful colors in the rocks and earth. Nature continually amazes.

We came up this way, now we have to get back down. These photos do not show how narrow and steep it was. And that is probably good as well, because I wouldn't want to upset my mom.

We made it out fine, now we're off to explore that sign I mentioned earlier. See it? the Indian Taco's? I was so looking forward to going on the reservation, meeting the Timbisha Shoshone people, and eating their taco's. So we turned down the road.

We found the tribal office. And then we found the note, Closed New Years Day. :(

We'll have to come back, you don't often find an invitation to come on to Indian homeland.
I do hope it's okay to take these photos, there is a beautiful dignity among American Indian people, and you have to ask permission for most things.

While waiting patiently for a late afternoon shot it became apparent that the sun would not come out. Clouds had been filling in all day and now the sun had set somewhere behind it all. Making the best of the situation we found a lovely place to take in the last of the sunset.

I should have probably shown just one or two photos, but it was so pretty, I had a hard time stopping and so there are six. We wished each other Happy New Year again and agreed we'd had a fantastic day, this first day of 2010.

Heading out we decided to have dinner in Panamint Springs before the long trek back home.

It's fun to talk about all the things we'd seen and done, always rating the latest adventure as number one, always thinking it's the best yet. We'd found the full moon we'd hoped for, and the solitude too. We'd even caught a glimpse of a coyote and one raven. But the thing I liked the best is this glass of wine right here. After seven months of an undiagosed African illness, I think i'm back. I feel so good. I kept saying all along that when I order a glass of wine, then I know i'll be okay.

I did, and it was delicious.

♥ lori