March 17, 2017

At the Furnace Creek Hotel...

P1120425

... take a look at both sides.

P1120426

Those are 2 photos I took from the same vantage point on March 5th. I highly recommend the hotel, which is inside Death Valley National Park. Our room was right next to that terrace you see there, and it was fun to walk down that steep staircase and out onto the gravelly path to look around.

Feel free to talk about anything in the comments, and please consider doing whatever shopping you were going to do anyway through The Althouse Amazon Portal.

24 comments:

Quaestor said...

Imagine a cloudless sky, and that second pic cropped to the 1/3 on the lower right. Could pass for Mars, no?

Fernandinande said...

Bernie Sanders' economics:

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/venezuela-arrests-brownie-croissant-bakers-bread-war-024355524.html

"CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela this week arrested four bakers making illegal brownies and other pastries as President Nicolas Maduro's socialist government threatens to take over bakeries in Caracas as part of a new "bread war".
...
The ruling Socialist Party says pro-opposition businessmen are sabotaging the OPEC nation's economy by hoarding products and hiking prices.
...
During this week's inspections, two men were arrested as their bakery was using too much wheat in sweet bread, ham-filled croissants and other products, the state Superintendency of Fair Prices said in a statement sent to media on Thursday."

Ficta said...

I've really been enjoying the Utah and Death Valley pix. Some of my favorite places on Earth.

When I was last there, the Furnace Creek Inn had rattlesnake fritters on the menu, so I got to check off that box on the bucket list.

Utah Chris said...

I delivered bags and blocks of ice to Billie Mine and Amargosa Springs from 1978 to 1985 through my High School and college years. It was always a pleasant trip in the Spring and Fall, but Summers were almost too much for my truck to handle. Imagine no AC in your truck in the depth of summer but us Desert boys handled it just fine. It was how we did things.

Utah Chris said...

I should have said I had to drive past there a few dozen times every summer.

lgv said...

I took a photo workshop there. Due to cancellations, there was only one other student in the workshop. We did our lessons on the property when not out shooting. Did you go to the racetrack? I found it quite interesting. I heard that many of the rocks have now been stolen. You drive out on this dirt road for a very long time. All the signs say, "high clearance" vehicles only. I was in a 4 wheel drive Jeep. I am carefully driving this road when I see a cloud of dust approaching. As I moved to the side, an old Bonneville convertible with three young dudes flies by, one riding on the hood, all holding a beer. Oh, well.

hoyden said...

Me and a friend are staying there for a week in April. It'll be my first visit. I look forward to exploring some of the sights you highlighted.

rcocean said...

I wonder how much business they do in August? Anyway, it looks like a great Hotel.

KellyM said...

"rcocean said...
I wonder how much business they do in August? Anyway, it looks like a great Hotel."

It is. One of the old classics.

The Inn is only open from Columbus Day to Mother's Day. It just becomes too difficult to keep the place cool. I've been there at the end of October when the days were still in triple digits and the rooms were a bit on the warm side even with A/C. This past October was an unusually cool spell (cloudy and in the 70s) with Santa Ana winds that made the coyotes bark and yip and everything you touched gave you a static shock.

One thing folks don't realize is that a good portion of the Valley sits on a giant aquifer. The entire Furnace Creek complex gets its water from a giant spring that is gushing incredible amounts per minute. The pools at the Inn and Ranch are supplied with spring fed 85 degree water moving through constantly. I think it then gets used to irrigate the golf course.

@Igv: the boys in the Bonneville were unbelievably lucky. The road out to the Racetrack is renowned for eating tires. If the Park Service would just not insist on grading the road it would be much better. It drags all the pointy rocks up into the road and causes washboarding. The secret to dealing with that is to put the pedal to the metal, pick your line and just go. If you keep your speeds at 30 - 40 MPH you will go fast enough to "float" over the rocks and washboard. But it does a number on your nerves, not to mention your rig.


rcocean said...

"The Inn is only open from Columbus Day to Mother's Day."

Thanks for info! I didn't know about the giant aquifer either.

And BTW, the entire Hotel can be purchased on Amazon using the Althouse Portal!

Maybe.

JPS said...

I once flew a light plane into Furnace Creek. It was pretty cool watching the altimeter unwind below 0'.

tim in vermont said...

Court room artist fun.

http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/edmonton/accused-in-road-rage-crowbar-attack-appears-in-edmonton-court-1.4026042

Paco Wové said...

"pro-opposition businessmen are sabotaging the ... nation's economy by hoarding products and hiking prices."

Damn wreckers. They just never give up.

kentuckyliz said...

Yesterday morning, my sweet queen Softie was doing so poorly. I took her to the vet and she was in kidney failure, weighed only 3 pounds. We decided to euthanize her and I held her while she was sedated and euthanized. I loved her so much. She was the best kitty ever. Such a cuddler! A blessing to me every day. Now the apartment seems so empty without her. I am feeling her absence. She came to me in 2004 so she had a good long life. I am trusting God that we will get our beloved pets back in heaven and/or the new creation. I wish I could stop crying because my face hurts.

FullMoon said...

kentuckyliz said...

Yesterday morning, my sweet queen Softie was doing so poorly. I took her to the vet and she was in kidney failure, weighed only 3 pounds. We decided to euthanize her and I held her while she was sedated and euthanized. I loved her so much. She was the best kitty ever. Such a cuddler! A blessing to me every day. Now the apartment seems so empty without her. I am feeling her absence. She came to me in 2004 so she had a good long life. I am trusting God that we will get our beloved pets back in heaven and/or the new creation. I wish I could stop crying because my face hurts.

Exactly why I do not get another dog.
You will get better, one long day at a time

Etienne said...

Where do they get the water for the trees? Where do they get the electricity? It looks like they might be getting subsidies. I had to pay $500 for 900 feet of electric line to my barn from the street.

Just as a comparison...

Meade said...

"Where do they get the water for the trees?"

It truly is an oasis. It developed at that site because of the natural warm springs there. They have an elaborate filtration system for potable water and irrigation. And the swimming pool stays at around 80F with warm spring water constantly flowing through it.

"Where do they get the electricity?"

Southern California Edison’s power grid.

Meade said...

kentuckyliz,
I'm sorry for your loss.

David Baker said...

Go fly a kite:

According to FOX NEWS this morning, Trump is going to ignore judge's order. Finally.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Nice. Sky looks like a Doug West painting.

kentuckyliz said...

Thank you for your condolences. I cried this morning because it was the first time I ate a bowl of cereal and didn't share the leftover milk with her. There is no one to drink my cereal milk.

Meade said...

I know. Those little things.

David Baker said...

Very sorry about Softie, Liz. It sounds like she had a happy life. I grew up with a cat, a real tough guy, wouldn't step aside for anyone. Taught me how to deal with bullies, and eat pork chops. That was 60 years ago, and I still think of him.

Bad Lieutenant said...

K-Liz, I'm sure all our hearts go out to you.