I never thought I'd do it, but I did go to one of the hottest places on earth at the hottest time of the year. Death Valley is infamous for its high 120F (>50C) temperatures during the peak of summer and it certainly didn't cool down for visitors. Death Valley visitor centers have a huge temperature guages hanging over their doorways and that day it read 115F (46C). Thanks to air conditioning, driving through Death Valley without dying is possible. The moment you step out of the car into the sun, it feels like as if you are in a gigantic oven. And with the blowing hot wind sucks out all moisture the body has to offer. They say the heat can kill in thirty minutes out there. Maybe that is true, but five minutes out in the sun is enough torture.




A "killer" poodle sits guard in a truck passing by the Shoshone village (outskirts of Death Valley)




The Crowbar salon. Great food!






Death Valley Superstore!







And thats how houses looked in these parts during the heydays of mining about a century ago.







That's my bank...




























Mining machines







Sunset at the sand dunes of Death Valley







I love the roads in Death Valley







A dry lake bed







Joshua tree







Joshua tree. I love the blue skies of death valley, which looks even more stunning with a polarizing filter and a saturated photograph!