Death Valley hot hot hot 118f hotest yet!!

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Monday 4th August
We headed out early this morning determined to beat the heat, but no such luck as it was still 98 degrees when we stepped out at 8am. We travelled north into Death Valley to Scotty's Castle which was fine and luxurious castle built in the 1920's by a con man Scotty and his friend Johnson. It was fantastic to look round as its all still working and has been kept in its original form. It even had a working organ with sounds that filled a whole room, a door bell chimes that could be changed to suit each guests taste and a fine example of Spanish and Italian décor that would not have looked out of place in the heart of Europe, but in Death Valley it stood out as a wealthy retreat built for entertaining the rich.
Next we headed to furnace Creek visitor centre to cool down in their air conditioning!! Then on to devils golf course and finally to Badwater. Highlight was seeing a coyote at Scotty's castle. Not so good was driving through the Valley praying we didn't break down or get a flat!! It's hard to describe Death Valley as it's just so barren, but at the same time beautiful, harsh and extreme.
After finding a very reasonable motel in Barstow ($40 or £20 bargain!!) we went for dinner at another cheap and cheerful diner. We finally had chance to get an internet connection and I was able to eventually download some pics with a little help from Dad at 2am!!

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