Lively Death Valley

With flush toilets, running water, a fire pit, and picnic benches available, this campsite was pure camping luxurious.

I'd never been to the desert before and was expecting to be too wiped out by the heat to do any walking. But with a wide-brimmed hat and plenty of water, I was able to enjoy myself.

We chose a good hike. It's breathtaking really. The mountain formations are amazing. At points, they look like a giant took various colored sands and poured mounds against a backdrop of a massive red-hued rock "mountain." At points we were walking with other hikers, but I'd say most of the time we were alone, which made the hike all the more awe-inspiring.

The landscape varied from the "sand sculpture" mountains to vivid green rock formations. The sky was the most vivid blue and clear the moon was even out all day. It followed us on our hike.

At one point we came upon old mines. We were tempted to go in, but the signs did their job and kept us out.

We never bored of the hike and never tired.

Marta Beckett found herself in Death Valley in the 1960s and decided to stay. She wanted to fulfill her dream of owning an opera house and dancing for an audience.

In the opera house, she's painted murals on every wall depicting people attending the opera -- quite interesting to look at, but then the show started. It's a series of skits. She uses large dolls to play many of the roles. Yes, at 80-something, she still dances, although not well. She tries to get on pointe. Basically she just hopes around and spins once in a while. She does wear a tutu in one skit.

It's worth a look, if only for the kitsch value.