Death Valley at 140 mph, Part 5/6

Space

​Regardless of all the fast driving, I had gone to Death Valley for the desolation. And I got that. I got isolation and desolation and solitude and space. I got big blue skies, heat, and stillness, quiet. Every December for many years now, I've undergone this hibernation thing. After experiencing it a bunch of times, it looks like I want to go down, hide out, lie fallow, sleep in a cave for a couple weeks in December. Which isn't all that bad, if I'm prepared for it.

But the obvious parts of the culture insist on gaiety, generosity, parties and festivities, so there's a kind of guilt that goes along with this hibernation urge. And really, I do want to participate in all the holiday stuff, especially now that I have an awesome, fun and sweet girlfriend.

So this trip was in a way an attempt to participate in this urge, not so much to prevent it as to accommodate it. To say, ok, you need this thing, let's go somewhere, somewhere deathly and get on with it, see what happens.

And not much happened. There was a kind of reset there, for me. A little going to ground. Not large. But enough.

Death Valley at 140 mph, Part 4/6

Artists Road (and other uses) I spent a lot of time driving around. I ran the same stretch of road several times in one day, trying to get to certain places at certain times. One place I found was Artists Road - a one lane road that winds through multi-colored canyons. There were green rocks and pink rocks amidst all the brown rocks, but frankly, it was all kind of a blur, especially the second time through.

Dantes View Dantes View is at a peak at the southern end of the valley, and I wanted to be there at sundown. It was further away than I thought, so by the time I started the climb, the sun was quite near the horizon. Unfortunately, there were a Yaris and a Jetta on the road ahead of me, and no turnouts as far as I could see. At a wide turn I roared past them, but now all I could think was that when they got to the top they'd chew me out for passing them.

I got to the top in time for this. Nobody said anything.

The Jet On my way out, I had just descended the mountain on the western side of Death Valley, which empties into a second valley. The road through the mountains is pretty fast, and by the time it gets to the valley, turns straight, and continues straight about five miles until the next mountain. I hit about 140 mph on this straightaway, which was...stimulating. The car got very light feeling. I was coming back down to about 80 when I heard a gigantic noise off to my left, and a huge grey F18 fighter jet screamed by at about 100 feet, and maybe 300 mph. There is always somebody faster.

Death Valley at 140 mph, Part 3/6

Investment There are dunes in Death Valley. I spent the night in the lodge at Stovepipe Wells, so I could get up before dawn, get out to there, and make some photos. My alarm went off and I did not want to go - it was cold and dark. I still didn't want to go by the time I'd driven out to the trailhead. I needed to hike about 15 minutes out to the dunefield. I sat in the car, watching the stars, looking out toward the dunes and seeing mainly blackness, and black shapes in the blackness. I was scared, I realized. What if there are coyotesnakesscorpionvulturetarantulas? I sat in the car and thought about going back to the lodge. The thought that I'd driven 600 miles to be here ocurred to me. The thought that I'd got up in the middle of the night ocurred to me. I had made these investments, and the weight of them pushed me along. I got out the car and hoisted my gear.

The Crow At 20 minutes before dawn out in the middle of the dune field, I got what I hadn't realized I wanted. I noticed a crow flying maybe 75 feet off. I could hear the rush of wind under his wings as he flapped.

Death Valley at 140 mph, Part 2/6

Highway 395 vs Highway 5

I have driven to Southern California via the 5. It's hundreds of miles of four lane road (two in each direction). The scenery is heartland California - lots of farms and nothing else. It's a very practical straight shot. The traffic is always tightly packed groups of cars going 80, with ocassional teeth-gnashers filtering through the packs at 90 plus. It's totally annoying.

My more easterly route put me through Yosemite Valley. I live pretty close to Yosemite, but I'm not much of a camper so I haven't been before. I drove through it pointedly, but it's a beautiful area and I'd like to return to it someday, if only to dispell the minor guilt I feel at driving through it at such a high rate of speed.

I've shot landscapes from time to time and it's always been the same: I take the picture but when I look at it there's nothing there. On this trip I think something's finally starting to show up.

When I came out of Yosemite Valley this is what I saw:

That's Mono Lake. Anyways, back to fake race car driving. I got on Highway 395 for most of the way down south. In contrast to the 5, it's mostly one lane, it's totally out of the way of most everything, there are no packs and at least around me there was only one gnasher. On the 5, it seems like people are all competing and about to go nuts on each other. On the 395, it was super mellow. I would roll up behind somebody going like twice their speed, slow down and maintain a respectful-but-declaritive distance, and as soon as a passing lane appeared they'd move over. No trouble at all. And the nice thing about driving a car with some chutzpah is the passing takes place so quickly there's no stress.

I came down at night, which was pretty cool. The darkness removed everything the headlights could not see.

Death Valley at 140 mph, Part 1/6

The Car Recently, I made a solo getaway, a short trip built around two things: a fast car and desolation.

The Nissan 350Z is a 2-door, convertible rocket. 3500 pounds and 306 horsepower. It does just what you tell it to right when you tell it to. I am having a little love affair with this car. You too can rent one!

I drove from San Francisco, through Yosemite Valley, picked up 395 south. The combination of car, sky, speed, and light traffic made the drive such a joy that I didn't really want to get to my destination.

The Desolation

I think Death Valley is the most desolate place within reach. Hottest, driest, lowest. I'd been wanting to get away from Richest, Smartest, and Fabulousest.