Death Valley National Park

Photo tour of a rare rainstorm in Death Valley and a wildflower bloom 3 months later.

Badwater salt flats

Badwater Salt Flats after rain, Death Valley National Park — Here you’ll stand at the lowest place in North America at -282ft. It’s normally dry with hexagonal mounds like honeycomb, but the season’s rains have washed them away.

Badwater Salt Flats after rain, Death Valley National Park

Devil’s Golf Course

It’s the Devil’s Golf Course since only the devil could play on such terrain. It’s about 1-2ft hard salt mounds with pointy tips that you can walk on. Just don’t fall! That’d sting!

Ubehebe Crater

washed out road death valley national park after rain — Roads washed out on the way

Ubehebe crater in fog — Ubehebe Crater? Can’t even see it in the fog and rain!

Ubehebe crater death valley national park — Ubehebe crater 3 months later in Spring

Zabriskie Point

zabriskie point, death valley national park

zabriskie point, death valley national park

Titus Canyon

titus canyon, death valley national park

Devil’s Cornfield

devil's cornfield, death valley national park

Artist’s Palette

artist's palette, death valley national park

The 5-mile Golden Canyon-Gower Gulch-Zabriskie point loop

Golden Canyon-Gower Gulch-Zabriskie point loop in Death Valley — Mud wash out from recent storms

Golden Canyon-Gower Gulch-Zabriskie point loop in Death Valley

Golden Canyon-Gower Gulch-Zabriskie point loop in Death Valley

huge walls of rock in Death Valley

Dante’s Peak

Dante's Peak after rain, Death Valley National Park — View of the salt flat and Devil’s Golf Course from Dante’s Peak

Dante's Peak after rain, Death Valley National Park — You can even see light reflecting off of the temporary rivers of water!

Wildflower Bloom

3 months later, in the Spring of 2015, we went back to Death Valley for the wildflower bloom after all that rain.

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, portrait

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, field of yellow — This bloom we saw was “a shadow of its former self” due to a 60mph windstorm that blew through a few days before, but there were still vast fields of flowers.

Death Valley Wildflowers hunting — From far away, you’d almost think there weren’t any flowers, but the floor was just blooming. It was nearly impossible to walk without trampling small flowers. Just get out of the car and start walking.

Death Valley Wildflowers gravel ghost — Brown-eyed Evening Primrose

Death Valley Wildflowers Gravel Ghost — Brown-eyed Evening Primrose

Death Valley Wildflowers, Desert gold poppy — Desert Gold Poppy

Death Valley Wildflowers, broad-leaved gilia — Broad-Leaved Gilia

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, beavertail cactus — Beavertail Cactus

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, desert chicory — Desert Chicory

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, desert chicory — Desert Chicory

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, — Unknown

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, desert five-spot — Desert Five-Spot

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, creosote bush — Creosote Bush

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, desert paintbrush — Desert Paintbrush

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, fremont phacelia — Fremont Phacelia

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, notch-leaf phacelia — Notch-Leaf Phacelia

Death Valley Wildflower bloom, desert evening primrose — Desert Evening Primrose

The best resource for recent wildflower updates is DesertUSA, which compiles both the official NPS wildflower reports and user-submitted reports. The lower elevation flowers bloom first, followed by mid- and high-elevation flowers.

Locations we saw flowers:

Desert Gold fields between mile markers 23 and 28 on Badwater Road, south of the salt flats.
More Desert Gold fields with Gravel Ghost in the Beatty Cutoff-Daylight Pass Road-190 triangle (this is a beautiful drive itself).
Desert Five Spot and others at the exit to the 20 Mule Team road on 190.
Purple Mat all over Ubehebe Crater.
The most varied flowers along the roadside of the Mesquite Spring Campground entrance, and around Jayhawker Canyon area off of Emigrant Canyon Road.
Desert Paintbrush around mile 16 of Emigrant Canyon Road.

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