Outside Vegas, A Road Leads to Extremes...

Latitude 36 North is where you'll find Bluegreen Resorts Club 36, a brand new resort just far enough from the strip to give you a retreat from the constant activity and let you enjoy a nice respite from the City That Never Sleeps.  But if you've wondered what goes on outside of Vegas and you're feeling the need for a little side trip to recharge before for your next jaunt to LAX, you can rest your eyes and mind on the zen experience that is Death Valley. 

Meditate on this: 

• In just a three-hour drive away from the strip, you reach Furnace Creek.  Now, that's a name you've got to respect.

• If you're into keeping track of Extremes, this is the lowest, hottest, and driest location in North America.  It's been described as having a brutal beauty.

• 3 million acres of wilderness include sand dunes, mountains topped with snow, and canyons.  Oh, and a castle.

• The park's Badwater Basin is 282 feet below sea level.  Bet you guessed that's the lowest spot next to The Dead Sea.  (Seeing a naming pattern here?)

You may want to consider the time of year when visiting. Death Valley is considered a Winter park.  Summer is too hot for most, and Spring is the most popular.  Any time of year will work depending upon your interest, but remember that it's The Desert.  Can't emphasize enough that you need to bring water and follow the rules laid out by those who've gone and done it already.  You'll find all the precautionary information you need in the link to the visitor's guide (below). 

And if you want to know the best route, Trip Advisor has an excellent post here, but The National Park Service has directions from Vegas broken down by Shortest, Easiest, Ghost Town, and Most Scenic. 

The best part about the park is that you can drive through a lot of it, making it one of the top places on the Indigo Highways' vacation road trip Bucket List.

Have you been to Death Valley and survived?  If you have, leave us some tips on the experience. 

Resources:

Death Valley Visitor Guide   (.pdf)

PBS Link to NATURE: Life in Death Valley

Trip Advisor Post on Best Route to Death Valley

National Park Service Directions From Vegas (.pdf)

Bluegreen Resorts Las Vegas Travel Guide

Club 36 - Bluegreen's Las Vegas Resort

Photo credit:  Eric Moore