Life and Desolation at Death Valley

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The wind will not stop. Gusts of sand swirl before me,
stinging my face.
But there is still too much to see and marvel at, the world very much alive in the bright light and wind,
exultant with the fever of spring, the delight of morning.
Strolling on, it seems to me that the strangeness and wonder of existence are emphasized here,
in the desert, by the comparative sparsity of the flora and fauna:
life not crowded upon life as in other places but scattered abroad
in spareness and simplicity, with a generous gift of space for each herb and bush and tree, each stem of grass,
so that the living organism stands out bold and brave and vivid against the lifeless sand and barren rock.
The extreme clarity of the desert light is equaled by the extreme individuation of desert life forms.
Love flowers best in openness and freedom.

Edward Abbey, Desert Solitaire

Hottest, Driest, Lowest: A superlative desert of streaming sand dunes, snow-capped mountains, multicolored rock layers, water-fluted canyons and three million acres of stone wilderness.

I took my chances to hike along the canyons, explore the badlands and climb the high sand dunes. The harsh environment seems to try and keep me away, blowing wind on my eyes, making me thirsty and uncomfortable... but it fails for the precise reason that it captivates me with its sheer wild beauty. Then it tempts me to stay. It makes me want to go on, further than I possibly could without any water. The crumbling cliff edges call me. Birds lure me into canyons' labyrinths. I feel the strange urge to stay, to disregard my needs, to let myself perish; to let the substance of my body be reunited to the substance of the earth...

Of all places and dangers I've been through, this is the one place where I felt compelled to be the safest I possibly could, to be prepared to fight death and to dodge the devil with all the strength I could possibly gather!

I've survived.

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Photos

Twenty Mule Team Canyon
Tan is parked on the right hand side