Marble Canyon Virtual Tour – 38
Marble Canyon is the second hardest place to reach at the Death Valley National Park in California, behind the extremely hard to reach Racetrack Playa (a place we could not visit on this trip due to the access being shut down).
You reach Marble Canyon after an hour of bone-rattling drive on a dirt road totally conditioned by the Washboard effect. No rental car agency will allow this off-road access, which means in addition to your body, your automobile also takes a beating. So you need a dirt roadworthy SUV, preferably one that is so beat up that you no longer care.
The reward for your troubles is worth it – an amazing walk through a canyon that no photograph can do justice to. It does not have the panache of some of the swirling orange rocks at Zion National Park, but the blue walls and rocks of Marble Canyon are unique in their own way.
The best time to visit is in the afternoon, but not so late that you get caught there when it gets dark. Also, it is highly recommended that you travel in a group, with at least two, maybe three cars. That way, if there's any breakdown, you have people who can lend a hand.
For the most part, Marble Canyon is easy walking, but there are a couple of places that require steep climbing. You don't have to be super athletic to manage it, but a certain basic level of fitness is necessary. There are places you will likely need to use your tripod or hiking poles for support, and good hiking boots with superior traction are mandatory.
There is a myriad of things you can photograph here, ranging from the macro to the micro. As we walked through the canyon, I took a lot of photos of whatever caught my fancy. Even after culling my raw shots, I still ended up with some 50+ images.
I don't have a way to condense them down to a half dozen "best photos", so I'm just going to make it a virtual tour and publish them all. That way, anyone considering a visit should have a reasonably good feel for the place.
Don't feel compelled to comment, just enjoy the virtual tour!
D303 7R308718
Marble Canyon Virtual Tour – 38
Marble Canyon is the second hardest place to reach at the Death Valley National Park in California, behind the extremely hard to reach Racetrack Playa (a place we could not visit on this trip due to the access being shut down).
You reach Marble Canyon after an hour of bone-rattling drive on a dirt road totally conditioned by the Washboard effect. No rental car agency will allow this off-road access, which means in addition to your body, your automobile also takes a beating. So you need a dirt roadworthy SUV, preferably one that is so beat up that you no longer care.
The reward for your troubles is worth it – an amazing walk through a canyon that no photograph can do justice to. It does not have the panache of some of the swirling orange rocks at Zion National Park, but the blue walls and rocks of Marble Canyon are unique in their own way.
The best time to visit is in the afternoon, but not so late that you get caught there when it gets dark. Also, it is highly recommended that you travel in a group, with at least two, maybe three cars. That way, if there's any breakdown, you have people who can lend a hand.
For the most part, Marble Canyon is easy walking, but there are a couple of places that require steep climbing. You don't have to be super athletic to manage it, but a certain basic level of fitness is necessary. There are places you will likely need to use your tripod or hiking poles for support, and good hiking boots with superior traction are mandatory.
There is a myriad of things you can photograph here, ranging from the macro to the micro. As we walked through the canyon, I took a lot of photos of whatever caught my fancy. Even after culling my raw shots, I still ended up with some 50+ images.
I don't have a way to condense them down to a half dozen "best photos", so I'm just going to make it a virtual tour and publish them all. That way, anyone considering a visit should have a reasonably good feel for the place.
Don't feel compelled to comment, just enjoy the virtual tour!
D303 7R308718