Day 8

We started early today – woke up at 6 am, and went down to Mono Lake to watch the sunrise. It was cold, but worth it. Look at the photos and see for yourself.

Next, we drove north, to a ghost town called Bodie, which used to be an infamous, lawless mining town. In its heyday there was a gold mine there, and about 8000 residents – mostly miners and whores. It's preserved in a state of "arrested deterioration", which makes it look like the setting for a Hollywood western, only more realistic.

After an hour's stroll in Bodie's streets, we started our way south, towards Death Valley.
On our way we made an unplanned detour, to a town called Mammoth. In winter it's a ski resort, but we came for a nearby geological phenomenon: Devil's Postpile. Apparently the result of some ancient volcanic outburst, where the lava cooled from both ends (there used to be an iceberg above, or below it – we can't quite recall), and cracked in a series of 120 degrees fractures. The photos speak louder than words.

Finally, we set off for Death Valley. It boasts the highest recorded temperature in North America, but also gets freezing cold at times. The place got its name because some people died here in 1849 when they tried to make their way west.
The landscape gradually grew more and more arid – from the green pines of the Sierra Nevada to Cacti. We landed in our inn for tonight: the Panamint Springs Resort. The name makes it sound like it's a place where you sit and drink Margaritas by the pool. Not! It's pretty run-down actually, not too clean, with a bed that sags, and the owner has a pet pig called "Pork Chops". However, Noa insists that the place has its charm, and she likes it.
No internet of course (and no phone in the room, the payphone's out of order, and no cellular coverage) so we'll have to post this later sometime.
Welcome to the REAL desert!