Death Valley, located in California, USA, is known for its extreme climatic conditions and is one of the hottest places on Earth. Despite this, thousands of tourists seek to visit this unique desert every year, especially in summer, when temperatures reach their peak. What attracts people to such extreme conditions?
In the last 13 months, new temperature records have been systematically set on Earth. They did not bypass the Valley of Death either. Due to its geographical location, located below sea level, the Valley is a real heat trap. Warmer and lighter air tends upward, but the mountains surrounding the valley do not allow it to go outside. As a result, the heat accumulates, raising the mercury column to impressive levels.
A visitor poses next to a thermometer in Death Valley National Park, near Furness Creek, during a heat wave in southern California
Death Valley is a huge desert in the southwestern United States, located on the border of the states of California and Nevada – the lowest, hottest and driest place in North America. People come here for the sake of unearthly landscapes: cracked, salt-crusted land, canyons and sand dunes contrasting with high snow-capped mountains. There are many routes in the national park, both cycling and hiking.
People take pictures of the salt flats in the Badwater basin
The peak tourist season in Death Valley falls during the cold winter months and spring, when the wild vegetation of this region blooms in all its glory. In summer, Death Valley is usually empty, although some European travelers test their strength by coming to the devilishly hot desert.
A sign warns tourists about the extreme heat in the Badwater Pool
In summer, the average daytime temperature reaches 46 °C — suffocating heat, significantly exceeding the seasonal average for most countries of the world. But that’s not all. Death Valley also holds the record for the highest temperature ever recorded on Earth, and this record is controversial. It is believed that in 1913 the temperature on the thermometer reached 56.7 °C. However, this measurement is disputed by some scientists as implausible.
Visitors stroll in the sun at the Badwater Pool
Tourists from France, Spain, England and Switzerland left rented air-conditioned cars to photograph the barren landscape. Foreign tourists travel en masse to the Valley of Death in search of thrills. Americans also visit the region, despite warnings from park officials about the need to comply with security measures.
Fernas Creek is an independent settlement on the territory of Death Valley National Park. There is a visitor center here, where a digital thermometer is on display, which has become a popular tourist attraction in recent days.
The thermometer is not very accurate and shows temperatures from 1 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit higher than more modern instruments stored at the National Weather Service nearby, but it provides impressive readings for photographs. Some tourists even take pictures in fur coats.
A visitor photographs flat mesquite-colored sand dunes in Death Valley National Park
People bring ice packs with them to keep their mobile phones in working order. Most visitors travel only a short distance to any place in the national park at this time of year, and then return to the air-conditioned car.
Visitors gather shortly after sunrise when the temperature is lower
However, the park’s management is already alarmed by the influx of extreme athletes. Due to the temperature, many trails have to be closed — mostly those that go inside the canyons — it’s even hotter there than outside. Most of the park, which positions itself as “the hottest, lowest and driest place on earth,” is generally prohibited from entering after 10 a.m.
English 
Russian 
German 
Polish