The Adventures of Sock Monkey Season 2 Episode 1: Hotel California...sort of...ish...not really... Day 2

   Hello, people  of earth and intergalactic space! I am back once again! Enough time wasted, forwards and onwards with the adventures!

   We left our hotel pretty early in the morning and started driving off to Death Valley, while eating breakfast in the car. It was very good. The drive was 124 miles from Vegas to Death Valley, or approximately 2 hrs, or basically a lot of repeats of my favorite albums on my mP3. After arriving at Death Valley, we stopped by the visitor center to cool off and get the Junior Ranger booklet. I'll include some of the questions at the end of this post to make it educational in a sense. But I digress. I got my Junior Ranger after finishing my Junior Ranger booklet interviewing the ranger. My three questions: (1) Why did you choose to work at Death Valley NP? (2) What's your favorite thing about the park? (3) What's your favorite ice cream flavor? If you have a favorite National Park or even a favorite place in general, you can answer those three questions below in the comment board, but change "work" to "visit". And please do. Sorry. Slightly off topic. Shall I continue? After getting my Junior Ranger badge, we headed off for a scenic drive to the highest place in Death Valley and the lowest place in the continental US. See below for some scenic pictures.

Sea level without the 'sea'. Just level. And hot. Very hot.

Very scenic and colorful. I guess there was a reason its called Artist's Palette... 

Sock Monkey at Zabriskie Point

Is it me, or does that mountain look like its got chocolate on it?

The road goes ever on and on...

Uh-oh. Wile E. Coyote is here. Gotta meep-meep!

First, we drove to Dante's Point, which is the highest (or close to the highest) point in Death Valley, topping off at 5476 ft (or 1669 m, whichever you prefer). See below for pictures.

From very high...

After our photo opt out there, we drove all the way back down to Badwater Basin, which, true to its name, has bad water. And it is VERY HOT!!! It is also the lowest point in the continental US, bottoming out at -282 ft, or 282 ft below sea level, or 86 m below sea level. If I remember correctly, the lowest point on Earth (above water) is the shores of the Dead Sea, the elevation being 1371 ft, or 418 m, below sea level. Ok. Enough trivia. See below for pictures.

...to very low. (P.S. I don't recommend drinking that water...)

And that is all salt. The ground is, at least

We pretty much went back to the hotel, called Furnace Creek Ranch (inside of the national park), and chilled after that. But I still have pictures! See below.

Hot! Very hot!

Souvenirs, anyone?

Well, that concludes Day 2 of The Adventures of Sock Monkey Season 2! Please comment on the comment board if you have anything to say to me or anyone else. Other than that, stay tuned for Day 3! Thanks for reading! Until next time...




And now, for the educational part...

Which of the terms below best describe these desert animals' activity?

Nocturnal - animals are most active during the night, usually staying in burrows during the day to stay out of the heat
Diurnal - animals are most active during the day, though most of them find a shady place to rest when the sun is hottest


Zebra-tailed Lizards warm up their bodies by basking in the morning sun. To avoid heat, they run as fast as 18 mph (29 kph) to shady areas. 
Nocturnal or diurnal? __________

Desert tortoise live in underground burrows. If they come out during the hottest part of the year, it is in the morning and late afternoon.
Nocturnal or diurnal? __________

Scorpions hide from the light under rocks and bark. Their eight tiny eyes are so sensitive they can see by starlight. They hunt their prey by feeling vibrations. 
Nocturnal or diurnal? __________

Kangaroo rats have large eyes to help search for seeds in the dark. When the moon is bright, they stay in their burrows to avoid predators.
Nocturnal or diurnal? __________

Coyotes hunt small animals in the moonlight, drink from desert springs during the day, and can be heard singing anytime in a 24-hour period. 
Nocturnal or diurnal? __________

*Borrowed from the Death Valley National Park Junior Ranger Booklet*