Death Valley National Park (Visit #1)

I took advantage of being so close to Death Valley in Pahrump and made a short trip over. I stayed at an abandoned campground just outside the park that is well-known to boondockers. It still conveniently has the level concrete slabs from each site. I wasn’t sure about security, so I opted to take my trailer with me into the Park. That turned out to be a poor choice for Death Valley, as I found the western route through the Park that I took at one point involves an extreme descent which heavily taxed my brakes. I actually had to return without reaching the bottom of the descent, as I was afraid my brakes would go out. (I’m still not sure if leaving a rig at the “slabs site” is safe, but I will probably risk it next time. I did notice others leaving their trailers/fifth wheels behind.)
Death Valley is definitely a unique place – lowest land point in the Western Hemisphere, extreme heat, sand dunes, “sailing stones”, etc. I went to the lowest point and to the sand dunes but went during a cooler season and did not drive to see the traveling stones, since I had my trailer. Next visit. Another fact I was surprised to learn is Death Valley is the largest national park in the whole system after four Alaska Parks. I had no idea! It will take multiple trips to cover this one.