Devils Golf Course Death Valley – A Barren Landscape

Death Valley National Park has so many places that seem to be unreal if you just hear about them and don’t see them with your eyes. Devils Golf Course Death Valley is also one such place located in California, United States. It is a 20 minutes drive from Death Valley and is located between Furnace Creek and Badwater.

Devil Golf Course in Death Valley, California

Devil Golf Course in Death Valley, California

On the surface of the vast Death Valley lies another barren landscape named the “Devil’s Golf Course”. A completely barren land, with a surface so uneven that it might be difficult for you to stand up without getting hurt if you fall in there. This is because the salt slabs stick straight up and are jagged, making them difficult to walk on.

The place is simply a home to destroyed soil formations for as far as your eyes can see. Or you can say, the wind and rain have eroded a vast area of rock salt into jagged spires. You can get your vehicles parked on the plain land when you reach the place and then walk through, exploring the beauty of the place.

BEST TIME TO VISIT – As the place has no trees or plants that you’ll see, so it remains very hot throughout the year. The Temperature sometimes exceeds 90 degrees in the month of March. So, you can imagine how hot it would be during the actual summer months. Also, the place is pretty much dry so visiting the Devil Golf Course either during the sunrise or the sunset would be a great idea.

For the time of sunrise, you’ll be able to see the stunning views of the sun emerging from behind the mountains, spreading its sharp and bright rays across the entire land.

For the sunset, when the sun goes down, the colors of nature dim a bit and the shadows form. This time definitely provides some prime opportunities to capture the unreal beauty of the place.

Some Facts About the Devils Golf Course Death Valley

Some Facts About the Devil’s Golf Course

Spectacular Beauty

The fact that the place is totally barren with no other view than a vast uneven land with mountains around and the sky up still does not lessen the spectacular views of this place.

Extremely Deep Salt Slabs

Approximately, the salt and gravel beds have been found 1,000 feet (300 meters) deep on the Devil’s Golf Course. Further studies suggest that the depth can reach 2700 meters (9000 feet) in some places.

Pop and Ping Sounds

As you listen to while walking on this patchy and rocky land, you’ll hear popping and pinging sounds like billions of tiny salt crystals expanding and contracting in the heat.

Intricate Shapes of Salt Pieces

There are studies that show as the lake evaporated, the minerals in the lake water dissolved and were left behind in the Badwater basin, forming the Devil’s Golf Course salt. Badwater’s Devil’s Golf Course is elevated several feet above the valley floor, which allows weathering processes to work the salt into intricate shapes. This has resulted in the complicated shapes of salt pieces on this vast area of land.

Why is it called Devil’s golf course?

Why is it called Devil's golf course

On the floor of Death Valley lies the Devil’s Golf Course, a large salt pan. The name came from a National Park Service guidebook for Death Valley National Monument from 1934 that stated the only person who may play golf on its surface would be “the devil.”

It was said because of the rough texture of the land which is caused by the formation of large halite salt crystals.

The exact words stated in the book were: “Only the devil could play golf on its surface”.

How was the Devil’s Golf Course formed?

The history begins from a time when a lake covered a part of Death Valley National Park. However, the water from this lake evaporated about 2,000 years ago and left behind a 1000-foot-thick layer of salt and minerals. The Devil’s Golf Course emerged from a vast saltpan over a period of several decades as water periodically reshaped its formation.

Stalagmites, mounds, and large stalagmites are what remained behind when water evaporated in the scorching heat, forming this huge area of barren land: Devil’s Golf Course.

Is Death Valley a wetland?

Death Valley receives an average annual rainfall of fewer than two inches. Despite being the driest, hottest and lowest place in North America, Death Valley is home to a thriving oasis with an area of wetlands – the Oasis at Death Valley. Hence, Death Valley entirely isn’t a wetland, but it definitely holds an area of wetlands.

Devils Golf Course Death Valley – Final Words

Devil’s Golf Course is a place worth visiting if you’re a tourist and are passionate about exploring new places every other day. The unseen slabs of soil with an unrealistic rocky land, so vast that it’s the only thing your eyes can see; Devil’s Golf Course is definitely one the best places in the entire United States.

The place might not seem much interesting and enjoyable to the people who like to be in places surrounded by greenery and flowers. But, to the people who know that beauty lies in every single place, may it be a dry land or land covered with greenery, they would definitely love this place.

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