not a real desert as such (in opposite to the sahara, e.g.) this is the right place to lose your self and be found again.
this picture is taken at the deepest level of the valley, where it's so hot that in the night you can hear stones crack as soon as they cool off from the heat of the day.
and exactly this is where all the sand comes from: stones cracked and broken again and again and again.

dry county here - you see why we needed all the water?
if the water comes, however, for it sometimes it does rain in the valley, the floods are quite devastating, as the water can't seep away fast enough, so it causes instant torrents that can wash away anything that is in their way, even cars.
...not that there is too much that they could wash away - only some tourists in their tents or going around taking silly pictures...

in this picture take a close look at my feet. see anything? I'm wearing sandals in the middle of the desert... not very clever, I know. not only had I to literally jump over some sand scorpions and snakes, I also had to move quickly from one tiny bit of shade to the next, because the sand was so incredibly hot that I thought I would get blisters on my feet! and shade is scarce, believe me...
this place, by the way, is called "sand dunes". very original, I know.

if you have ever been to a desert, you know how indescribable the feeling and the atmosphere there is. so we decided to top our death valley experience by moving on to joshua tree state park.

again we took a little "shortcut" and visited the californian oil fields with their never resting pumps nodding their heavy metal heads to make the contrast really lasting.

click here to go on