Where to Buy Gear

I’m in the Las Vegas area, so this post is based on that, but you can substitute the local spots for whatever you have around you. Local places are usually better, as you’re able to try things on and get help without having to ship things and wait. Wherever you get it, make sure you get what you want, and most importantly, make sure it fits.

Death Valley National Park

Ah, Death Valley! It’s a famous park, and for good reason. It has amazing views, some great landmarks, and holds a couple records. It’s 282 feet below sea level at Badwater Basin, which is the lowest point in North America. What makes that even more incredible is that it’s less than 100 miles from the highest point in the contiguous United States, Mount Whitney! It also certainly lives up to it’s name; Death Valley holds the record for the highest ambient air temperature ever recorded on Earth at 134*F back in 1913, it holds the record for the highest surface temperature ever recorded on Earth at 201*F in 1972, and it also averages only 2.36 inches of rain per year. On top of that, the night skies are incredible, as this is one of the darkest places you can visit. The Milky Way Galaxy is visible to the naked eye, and if you’ve never seen space at a place as dark as this park is, the first time you see it will be unbelievable. There is some good camping here, just don’t go camping during the summer. As I said in my SeKi post, I really believe that the US National Park system is a great achievement, and this is just another example of just how good it is.

Sequoia and King’s Canyon National Parks

Before I get into this, there are three different parks I’ll be talking about: Sequoia National Forest, King’s Canyon National Park, and Sequoia National Park. You should know the locations, differences, and general info about the three. Also, I realize it’s not super local to Las Vegas. It’s a good 7 hours or more just to get to the start of the two parks, and then possibly a whole other day to ride through it and enjoy it. I suggest this be a 3-day trip, though I didn’t ride part of the route through Sequoia National Forest that I’ll describe later, I only went through Sequoia and King’s Canyon National Parks (referred to as SeKi together). I’ll describe both farther down. Regardless, I highly recommend making the trip, it’s super worth it. The United States’ National Park system is one of the US’s greatest achievements, and this park is a fantastic example of that.