Viaggio California – 11

Badwater Basin is a trail on Death Valley that goes through white table salt at 282 feet below sea level. This is the lowest point in North America.

2000 to 4000 years ago the basin was the site of a 30-foot deep lake that evaporated and left from 1 to 5 feet of salt in it wake. In the winter it can contain water that is 4 times saltier than any ocean.

One of the problems with the scale of this place is the almost impossible task of trying to photograph the scene. The white stuff above is salt, just like our table salt – really! I tasted it.

This is the path the the puddle that represents or perhaps IS the last water this year. Take good look at the dots on the distance. It took me 45 minutes to walk out there on this salt/mud path.

If you look directly up from the red car half way up the mountain you might see a wooden sign that says “sea level”. I hope it shows.

The boardwalk takes a person to part of an old pool, however it does not exist today. Maybe after soon rain….

Amazing!