Through the Valley of Death

Day 14: July 10, 2009 – Sequoia National Forest, CA to Indio, CA
We Can’t Beat the Heat

Waking this morning, the air was cool, fresh and full of promises for an adventuresome day. Mike readjusted the bike rack so as to prevent any more Warnings from Law Enforcement that our license plate was not visible. So, with our license plate shining brightly for the entire world to see we made our way toward Death Valley National Park.

With each passing mile we were able to feel death in the air, or perhaps we were just feeling the increasing heat. Either way, we continually gave our thanks when the air conditioning was at it’s best and rolled the windows down when it too, needed a break. We enjoyed hot water and the beauty of the desert. We dropped from 7,000 feet in the morning to -282 feet in the afternoon. We were thrilled to stand in the lowest elevation point of the United States, although we may have been wise to make the stop in December or January.

We made our way through Death Valley followed by the Mojave Nature Preserve and Joshua Tree National Park. Mike thoroughly enjoyed the desert landscape, Melissa was a bit more finicky and preferred the desert when the air conditioning was at it's fullest power.

Having experienced a day in the desert we made our way to the equally hot town of Indio, CA where we were to meet our third CouchSurfing hosts of the trip. This host was actually 5, a family of five: Andres, Patricia, Eric, Owen and Diego - they were fabulous!

We were welcomed into their home and immediately bedazzled with the magic tricks of Diego, a very entertaining 7 year old. They gave us a cold glass of water and then made great conversation with us regarding: economy, living for adventure regardless of life situation, saying no to TV, education, learning to dance and places to go. They gave us some great tips regarding Date shakes and other date products and the semi-famous destination - Slab City. We made a few adjustments to our travel plans so that these travel tips could be accomodated for and after showering, made our way onto an incredibly comfortable bed fora peaceful night's sleep.