death valley, day two — death valley is the SHIT!

That morning, we got up, and took FOREVER to leave which I was like BLARRGGHHHH about, especially because it became obvious that it was going to rain. Finally, we left.

(Jeanette’s picture.) Right before I was stuffed into this car…

(Jeanette’s picture.) Bye-bye tent!

we headed over to the shop and picked up some supplies. The shop lady told us that we should check with the ranger’s office about road conditions. Luckily, we did go to the ranger’s, and found out that the place I had wanted to go to most — the fucking Playa, where those rocks are that move when no one is watching — is not really accessible unless you have a 4×4 with brand new tires, blahblah. So we couldn’t make it, and the ranger said that since it was kind of raining, it wasn’t a good day to go anyways.

(Jeanette’s picture.) Moving on… first real stop: Devil’s Golf Course!

This scenery is more than words. Ferreal. Never seen anything so freaking crazy. There was also a Devil’s Corn Field, which unfortunately, we didn’t stop by, but it was really kinda cool and well-named, too.

Good ol’ salt and mud and rock!

(Jeanette’s picture.) Next stop: Badwater! Here we are, demonstrating that the water is, indeed, bad.

Cool!

(Jeanette’s picture.) So it was quite cold by this time, and we started walking and walking on this trail that was covered with salt…

We walked and walked and walked and smoked a little weed beforehand, and Matt walked back because he got cold, and Jeanette and I kept walking, but the view never really got all that super exciting, unfortunately. This was the final view. I don’t know if we shoulda kept walking or not, but yeah.

Artist’s Palette, I think. It was a drive-by shooting, this one.

Golden Canyon. Is that asphalt!?!! It sho’ looks like it, sho’ nuff.

(Jeanette’s picture.) So we were walking, and it was cool and all, but finally we see these “trails” that were created by water eroding the rocks, because… well, the rocks were super brittle kinds you can break with your hands. So, we decided to head up the mountain up these “trails”… and it was awesome. Like, a really awesome, strenuous, vertical hike!! Awesome! Matt went up a ways but then stopped, and Jeanette and I went up higher, and then the trail stopped. Because the rock was so brittle, though, there was rubble basically everywhere, and it became quite difficult to go up really high without kicking around rock. but it turned out okay. God forbid a rockslide!

(Jeanette’s picture.) We were lucky — it was raining on and off the whole time, but as we were going on this hike, it stopped!

On the way back down, Matt tried to dig out this big ass rock which was stuck between a bunch of little rocks, and I tried to stop him because that could like kill a person if it went sliding down that whole trail! He wouldn’t stop, though, but then I started walking ahead of him, and then it started raining, and finally he stopped.

After we climbed back down, there was this COOL ASS MUD!!! SO COOL. I stood there photographing it for a long ass time, and Jeanette and Matt went back to the car early and eventually pulled it around to get me. I was obsessed with the mud, really, though. More pics:

Like… seriously. How amazing is that? I’ve never seen something like that. Believe you me. I also poked the hell out of the mud. I poked the hell out of it!!!

Soon, the raindrops were affecting it.

Then we left the park. Without even seeing HALF the park, it was one of the most amazing places I’ve ever seen, with all of these different landscapes I’ve never ever seen before.

The sunshine! A beautiful view on the way back!!!

These are all drive-by shots!

(Jeanette’s picture.) Me sleeping, on the way back home, apparently a lot of the times, with my eyes open.

About halfway through our drive, it had apparently snowed in the mountains. Looks so weird!

Back in city life. Blahblah.

I ended up making this picture for Matt because he wanted a picture where he was with Tay Zonday AND jumping the awesome jump.

THE END OF CALIFORNIA!!!!!!!! I leave the next day, early ass in the morning, and my flight gets delayed like six hours. DEATH. X__X

death valley, day one — sand dunes are the SHIT!

We left the house at 5:30am, and then this was the view at around 6:00am. Matt drove in his ex-Park Ranger Jeep.

We tried to stop by Calico ghost town along the way, but it was a major tourist trap, and it wasn’t even open yet! But it was so touristy you had to pay a $10 entrance fee! WTF!

We drove and then came across this old mine shaft thing or something, and the cool part about this area of the state is that they don’t care where you drive. At all. There are no fencings anywhere. So we decided to try driving up that hill where that mine thing was… but that didn’t work out too well. Ha.

The next stop was at Death Valley Junction, which wasn’t a ghost town, but it might as well have been one, haha.

(Jeanette’s picture.)

Finally, we got to the park. We paid for the daily fee, and then went to pee in an extremely stinky outhouse.

Then… first stop: THE BADLANDS! This is Jeanette and Matt demonstrating that these lands are indeed bad, and need to be punished.

The Badlands are BEAUTIFUL. It’s hard to choose what is the best part of the park, because it’s all so damn cool. This is one of my favorite parts of the park, but they pretty much all are equally awesome.

(Jeanette’s picture.)

(Jeanette’s picture. I LORV IT.)

(Jeanette’s picture.) There was this idea to do symmetrical poses for a while…

Matt doing some crazy jumping, grabbing shit.

(Jeanette’s picture.) Oh yes, symmetrical pose. The best one of all, I’d say.

OH WHAT’S THIS?! WHAT’S THIS?! SUZYOTA IS LIKE TOYOTA AND SUZUKI ALL IN ONE!

They got hungry, so they decided to buy some lunch at the local lunch place. Me? I decided to bring my leftovers from the previous night’s Valentine’s Day dinner, because that was an expensive meal, and bringing it would be my only chance to eat my dill rice and tomato-y dish.

Matt signed Jeanette’s “lame” name.

(Jeanette’s picture.) First, we drove to the campsite. It wasn’t originally the campsite we’d wanted, but it wasn’t the MOST touristy one, either. We set up our tent, which was really freaking amazing and was set-uppable in like ten minutes. RIDONKULOUS!!! I want one of those super tents!

The owner posing with his tent!

When we first got there, we started stacking rocks.

And then!! A ROADRUNNER!!

He’s running!

So we get our tent set up, and then we drive and drive and drive. We pull over so Jeanette can switch with Matt driving, and then Matt does this awesomeness. His last name is Meeks, so it makes sense! Hah!

Then Jeanette starts driving like a grandma.

The first stop was Salt Creek, so we decided to get out, but then it was a really long walk to nowhere, really. So, we didn’t walk all the way before overhearing someone who had just gone there that it wasn’t anything much. So we headed back. But man, there were SO MANY ROCKS! And I picked up two rocks to keep for home, and Jeanette got about a zillion of them haha. I don’t think she ever got them out of Matt’s trunk, where they were put after she picked them up……………….. the walk took FOREVER though because seriously, Jeanette was picking up like every other rock, and there were SO MANY ROCKS! It was so weird that they were all out there, and all different… not sure what geologically caused so many different kinds of rocks to appear in one place…

Next stop: Sand Dunes!

Now, I’d never been to sand dunes before, but damn, they were fun!! We walked and walked and walked and walked up and down hills, up and down… being slightly careful of not getting bitten by scorpions, but not too worried…

There were these interesting clay-like areas that could be lifted up and stacked. Pretty neato.

Stacked!

STACKED!

While climbing up the sand dunes, the sand makes interesting little footstep marks! A lot of the hills hadn’t been treaded on at all, actually.

Pretty layer of black sand, which was notably harder and coarser than the fine sand!

(Jeanette’s picture.) Close-up!

(Jeanette’s picture.) Look at this!

Sand dunes are weird. But awesome.

(Jeanette’s picture.) Mmm, my disgusting feet.

(Jeanette’s picture.) Matt jumping down hills!

(Jeanette’s picture.) This was our end goal: the tallest sand dune. It was so godamn far away, though…

(Jeanette’s picture.) This doesn’t look that tall, but it really is.

(Jeanette’s picture.) We are waking towards the apex!

(Jeanette’s picture.) There was quiiiiite a linnnnne.

So, we got to the highest point, and then ran down. It was pretty fun actually. A lot less scary than I thought it would be, and it was a pretty steep hill. Jeanette was scared at first but got over that too, I thinks.

On our way back, Jeanette is walking like an old woman with a walking stick. The conversation back was quite funny, although I don’t remember details, unfortunately.

Next stop: Mosaic Canyon.

All these stones were marble. SoOo smooth… sOoO amazing. These pictures don’t do it justice WHATSOEVER. It was really nice, and really quiet, and there were barely any other people around. We climbed up, and then I would throw rocks down and hear how they clanked and echoed in the silence. It was awesome, because marble clanks and clacks so very well.

These need some color correction. Godamn.

(Jeanette’s picture.) My superhero picture!!!! BOO-YAH!

(Jeanette’s picture.) The rock’s detail!!!

(Jeanette’s picture.) GROUP PIC!

(Jeanette’s picture.) Matt posing!

(Jeanette’s picture.) Me posing!

When we were done with Mosaic Canyon, it was dark enough, and it was time to head back.

That night, we sat around and made ramen for dinner. Bloorg!

Then it was fun with lights time with Jeanette! We decided she’d write something.

She decided on “love.” “Write it backwards, though,” I said, and she said, “I did,” and then I showed her the picture, and she’s like… ha… (at herself).

Oh, there we go!!!

Then sleep. And blindness and being led around by Jeanette when my contacts were out.