4/30/2025 - 5/1/2025
Photo Highlights!:
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| Sand Dunes |
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| Dante's View |
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| Colorful Mountains (#nofilter) |
We’re not really “desert people” but there’s something about the red/rainbow rocks, sand dunes, heat waves, and barren landscape that draws you in. Sarah thinks the desert is dirty - I think it’s clean. The valley of death gathers all the spectacular parts about the desert and throws them down on a 5270 square mile area - the largest national park in the US.
After a quick stop to see family in Las Vegas (shout out Allison and Nelson - thanks for making memories with us!), we were on the road to the notorious park. It's not much at first...much like driving south from Salt Lake to St. George. On our first night of the camper's maiden voyage, we stopped at Zabriskie point to get a view of all the borax - super unique. More memorable was cooking our first meal outside a smelly park bathroom - luxury! Thankfully we compare camper living to tent camping, we really do like the amenities. To further prove the truck, we guzzled up to Dante's view...and white-knuckled back down. The view was stunning, I would highly recommend, not much of a hike - but a great view, especially right at dusk. We took a moment to just stand there and be present - couldn't think much past all the bugs chirping, but it brought a sense of calm - definitely something I've been looking for.
 | | Zabriskie Point |
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Look at all that borax! |
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Sarah where she belongs in the kitchen
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| We saw an ostrich on our drive? This is the last thing I was expecting to see lol! |
For the night we stayed at the pads, successfully took a cold outside shower, and worked away the next day. The views outside the park aren't much to write about, but it was more about the feeling of being there working. We've been planning/preparing to live this type of lifestyle for some time now - getting to this point felt like a huge milestone. While I could have prepared to christen that experience a bit better with a better view, I was happy to watch the Cruise America RVs come and go as they please from my little perch in the back of our truck.
After a full day work (which can be surprising - more on that later) we headed out to do our first exploring. We generally approach our adventures with great urgency and this first day was no different, there's a lot of world out there to see and we want to see it. We struck off to the Badwater basin, the lowest point in the park.
 | | Passengar princesses view |
|  | | Our drive down to the basin |
|  | | Heat waves! |
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...4 paragraphs in and this is already sounding like a daily itinerary, that wasn't really my intent. As a disclaimer to whoever is reading this (assuming you've gotten this far), this blog is mostly for me (Ethan). I've had an itch to keep track of this experience. I'm hoping the next 5 months (maybe longer...maybe shorter) is a formative experience - I want to grow, and this is part of it. I want to remember what it felt like to live as a nomad. I'm not certain what purpose this remembrance will serve. Maybe it will be to ensure I never forget the value of a warm shower or maybe it will be to realize that all you need to get by is food, water, and shelter - either way, I want the lessons these memories will provide.
Anyways, that's my disclaimer.Beyond the vastness of the badwater basin or the forceful wind at artists canyon - I was awestruck by the beauty of the Death Valley Sand Dunes. Crossing the basin didn't seem to have much to offer, I drove on and Sarah eventually drifted off to sleep. Gradually as I drove I started to see small hills of sand emerge in what I can only describe as a marage. They seemed so out of place I thought it must be a dust storm (completely forgetting that this had been on the itinerary Sarah so kindly put together). I know this sounds hippy dippy...using all the "flowery words" I can summon from my 3rd grade english essay, but I was really stunned. The setting for these dunes is spectacular. Some have perfect ridges, others roll more gently, but they all have an impressive flowing rocky mountain background which gives it a sureal vibe.
Artists Canyon
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 | | So windy |
|  | | Ethan might blow away! |
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The Sand Dunes
 | | ok, I think this is my fav pic Ive ever taken |
|  | | a little artsy fartsy moment |
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 | | we hiked for miles to get this shot! |
|  | | pretty mountains in the background |
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At this point I started to question the pace of our trip. I don't want to miss anything like these incredible dunes. Slowing down seems like the only option...I can't risk missing something special. However, slowing down too much could easily turn into a vice. We will almost certainly miss something, the weather won't cooperate, or we will spend too much time in an area that is inferior (in our opinion) to another park. Sarah and I are still discussing what approach we want to take, but more importantly we want to enjoy this time and take great advantage of it. I'm working on being content, and I'm starting to see glimpses of progress. As we sat at the Dunes (and Dantes View), I felt a slice of it...just feeling content, happy to be right where I was - not chasing something, or thinking about the next thing - being present.
I couldn't be more excited that the adventure has started - death valley was a surprisingly great opener! Big shoutout to Christian for hyping the desert up, wish we had spent a little more time, but it was a fantastic kickoff to the summer of 2025!
Here are some additional photos from our journey!
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| A rest stop leaving death valley |
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| you take pic of me, I take pic of you! |
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| crazy hair! (artists canyon) |
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| ethans forehead doesnt actually look like this |
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| he's so light he's going to blow away! |
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tuna sandwich (the dunes)
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almost fell off! dunes are not for walking.
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this one is in focus! (bad water basin)
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| The shot behind the shot |
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| Devils hole in Ash Meadows (between Vegas and DVNP) |
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| This is what the devils hole looks like. Cool little fact- there are underground rivers that run all throughout death valley. This is one of the last prehistoric rivers and it has little prehistoric fishes (pupfish)! The river is the only place these fish live in the whole world! Kinda cool! |
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| This is actually what we do all day |
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| The rig |
See you in Saquioa NP!
- Words by Ethan, Photos by Sarah (and Ethan)
