Dantes View

Almost nothing in the park explains itself as quickly as this overlook does. Dantes View sits at 5,475 feet on the crest of the Black Mountains, and the salt of Badwater Basin lies roughly a vertical mile directly below, close enough that the cars parked down there resolve into specks moving on white. Across the valley the Panamints carry Telescope Peak at 11,049 feet. On a clear day the frame holds both the highest and the lowest ground in the contiguous United States at once, Mount Whitney showing faintly over the Panamint crest at 14,505 feet.

The drive in runs thirteen miles south from CA-190 through Greenwater Valley, level at first and then steep, and the last stretch is closed to vehicles longer than twenty-five feet for good reason. There is a turnout partway up where trailers get dropped. Short paths run north and south along the ridge from the parking area and are worth the ten minutes; the one that leads to the brink is the one everyone takes.

Elevation buys comfort here. The overlook runs fifteen to twenty-five degrees cooler than the valley floor, which makes it one of the few places in the park that stays pleasant into the warm months, and the thin dry air and distance from any town make it a serious night-sky vantage after dark. Morning light is the classic choice, with the sun behind you and the whole basin laid out.