Southwest Trip: Day Seven – From Utah to California
The seventh day of our southwest adventure was a transitional day. The Utah leg of our trip was over and we headed to our next destination—the Sequoia National Park. The 900km drive takes you through Utah, Arizona, and Nevada all the way to the Sierra Mountains of California.
Having driven the route before, I knew what to expect. It is always difficult to adjust to driving six to seven hours on a busy freeway after spending a week navigating small, empty roads where something new and exciting awaits you around every corner.
Related: Big Sur – Top Photography Destination in California
To make the boring drive through the deserts of Nevada more exciting, I plotted a detour through Death Valley National Park. Even though we only had three to four hours to spend there, it was better than nothing. We also needed to replenish our food supply, so we scheduled two stops in Las Vegas at Costco and Walmart.
All in all, it was an uneventful day until we passed Las Vegas and took a less traveled road to Death Valley. I always get excited about the approach to Death Valley because the drive is visually striking as you transition back and forth between valleys below sea level to high mountains again and again.
Although the weather was not very exciting in terms of photography with hazy air and zero clouds, I still managed to take a few interesting shots. Plus, after two years of construction work, Dante’s Peak was open and we visited the new observation point at the top of the mountain.
We ended the day in a tiny motel nestled on the side of the road in the mountains of the Eastern Sierra.
Related: Exploring Utah’s Backcountry: Cottonwood Canyon Road
I excitedly anticipated my first visit to the Sequoia National Park the following day.
