A Mississippi man compares walking around the extreme temperatures of Death Valley, California to walking around on another planet.
Drew Belt of Tupelo, Mississippi, made a detour to visit Death Valley on his way to climb Mt. Whitney in California, the highest peak in the lower 48 states.
Death Valley is also known as the lowest point in the US, at about 280 feet (86 meters) below sea level.
“I was excited that it was going to be so hot,” Belt said. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It’s kind of like walking on Mars.”
Belt posted a photo of himself pretending to play a round of golf in the heart of Death Valley, where temperatures have soared to over 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
Drew Belt, from Tupelo, Mississippi, went out of his way to stop in Death Valley to experience the heat. He said it was like being on Mars
Visitors walk past a “Stop Extreme Heat Danger” sign at Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes in Death Valley National Park, California
On Thursday, he finally reached Mt. Whitney, 14,505 feet above sea level. “What an adventure!” Belt wrote.
Hundreds of Europeans exploring the American West and adventurers from across the US are drawn to Death Valley National Park. This desolate area, known as one of the hottest places on Earth, is being hit by a dangerous heat wave.
French, Spanish, English and Swiss tourists left their rental cars and air-conditioned campers behind to take pictures of the barren landscape, a far cry from the snow-capped mountains and rolling green hills they know at home.
American adventurers enjoyed the novelty, even though California park authorities warned visitors to be careful.
Park manager Mike Reynolds warned visitors in a statement that “high temperatures like these can pose a real danger to your health.”
Belt eventually reached Mt. Whitney in California, the highest mountain peak in the lower 48 states, at about 14,505 feet above sea level
Hundreds of tourists flock to California’s Death Valley during a heat wave, despite extreme temperatures blamed for the death of a motorcyclist last weekend
A long-exposure photo shows the recorded temperature on a thermostat at the Furnace Creek Visitors Center after 10 p.m. earlier this week in Death Valley National Park, California.
In the sweltering desert of eastern California, a high temperature of 128 F (53.3 C) was recorded in Death Valley, where a visitor, who was not identified, died Saturday from the heat. Another person was hospitalized, officials said.
They were among six motorcyclists who were riding through the Badwater Basin area in the scorching weather, park officials said. The other four were treated at the scene.
Officials said emergency medical helicopters were unable to reach the scene because the planes generally cannot fly safely in temperatures above 120 F (48.8 C).
Death Valley is the largest national park outside of Alaska and is considered one of the most extreme environments in the world.
The highest temperature ever officially recorded on Earth was 134 F (56.67 C) in July 1913 in Death Valley. However, some experts dispute this measurement, saying the real record was 130 F (54.4 C), recorded in July 2021.
Visitors to Death Valley National Park have been warned to ‘be prepared to survive’ as temperatures approach record highs
A visitor rests at Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes shortly after sunrise, when temperatures are cooler.
A vehicle drives as heat waves sparkle on the asphalt. Death Valley is the hottest and driest place in the United States
Tracy Housley from Manchester, England, decided to drive from her hotel in Las Vegas to Death Valley after hearing on the radio that temperatures were set to reach record highs.
“We just thought, let’s be there,” Housley said. “Let’s go for the experience.”
“It’s impressive,” said Thomas Mrzliek of Basel, Switzerland, of the triple-digit heat. “It’s like a wave hitting you when you get out of the car, but it’s a very dry heat. So it’s not like in Europe.”
Across the desert in Nevada, Las Vegas reached a record high of 120 degrees Fahrenheit on Sunday.
Death Valley still holds the record for the highest air temperature ever recorded, at 134F (56°C), set in July 1913. Pictured are the salt flats of Badwater Basin
Tourists pose next to an unofficial thermometer in the afternoon heat at the Furnace Creek Visitor Center
Despite the warnings, tourists still come to experience the scorching temperatures
A sign reading “Heat Kills!” is seen during a prolonged heat wave that is hitting much of California
People brave the heat before sunset in Death Valley National Park, California
Extreme heat and a prolonged drought in the West have also dried out vegetation that can fuel wildfires
Dozens of locations in the western and northwestern Pacific Ocean last week equaled or broke previous heat records, and are expected to continue to do so.
The early heat wave in the U.S. came as global temperatures reached record highs in June for the 13th straight month. It was the 12th month in a row that the Earth was 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than in pre-industrial times, according to the European climate service Copernicus.