I came for the sun – so what do I do?

I think I have squinty, little mole eyes from living in the Northwest so long

The sun coming in the back window of the trailer is downright painful – and the mini-blinds don't really shut out all the light. I brought along a roll of Reflectix, thinking that I might need to insulate the windows against the cold. But, I thought it would block out the sun just as well! It was pretty easy to measure and cut the panels, although I wish I had had scissors instead of a box cutter. I taped the panels so that they can be collapsed accordian style and stowed in an under-seat cabinet. They fit easily into the window channel.

Now, a better pair of sunglasses and a hat – I should be all set.

Only in Death Valley!

One of the stranger signs that I've seen in a long time – in all the restrooms here, there is a small, color-coded poster showing how to monitor your level of dehydration by the color of your pee. The accompanying legend allows you to see how close to death you might be at any given time.

Paying attention to intuition results in a surprise visit

I had planned to leave Death Valley yesterday, but found myself strangely reluctant to do so.

So, I re-upped for a couple more days and as I returned from the visitor center with my new site tag, I spotted a 13' Scamp at the far end of the campground . . . hmmmm . . . .

and it was being towed by a dark colored pickup . . . hmmmm . . .

the appearance of a bearded man settled it – Byron and Anne had arrived!!

They left Oregon just after Christmas and had been traveling around and although I knew they usually spend a few weeks in Death Valley every year, I had no idea of their time frame. We had a nice visit and Anne graciously marked up my maps with the locations of some of their favorite camping spots and hikes. Unfortunately, they also waxed eloquent on the many things I probably won't have time this trip to see in Death Valley. Next year I'll definitely budget more time here!