Death Valley has a lake. It usually doesn’t. A wet winter has turned the Badwater basin into a very large, very shallow body of water, and this is a development we probably won’t see again for a long time. The photo of the lake on the National Park Service website
Awesome. Thanks for that, Chris. A nice reminder amidst all of the hysteria. Get outside. Get your feet wet. Commune with nature whenever you can. You need it more than you think you do.
Back in 1992 I was living in LA, and we had a HELL of an El Niño. A friend and I drive to Vegas, probably about this time of year, and it was spectacular. So many of the “dry lake beds” had turned into lakes, the water reflecting the sky and mountains, and there was greenery everywhere. It was magical.
IIRC the wildflowers will really get going in a month or so. Varies of course. My grand folks used to make the drive from the Bay Area almost every year.
Your first picture reminded me of an insight I had last spring sitting in the Puget Sound. I had started cold plunging, mostly because it absolutely scares me to death. I've likely plunged 160 times since Dec 22, and I'm still frightened every time.
Water defines the Pacific Northwest. I live in a city named Lakewood. I live 80 meters from a lake.
Until I started cold plunging, I was in the water less than 5 times in 20+ years.
Learning to be comfortable with the discomfort of cold has opened a world to me that I have ignored for a very long time. While I was sitting in the cold I saw a few guys launch their kayaks, paddleboards, and small boats. It was all open to me now.
I love the shot with the nose of the kayak--that is a photograph from a doer.
How long do you stay in the cold water? It does sound scary. I was thinking of cold plunging in my swimming pool. The water temperature right now is about 55 degrees.
So, this episode is with Dr Susanna Soberg. She got her PhD studying cold exposure in Denmark. She's the one who coined '11 minutes of cold exposure a week'--and she explains it in detail in this podcast:
Here is my experience/thoughts/advice on the topic. Start small. I have a 100 gallon feed tank (Rubbermaid for $100) in my back yard. I live in Tacoma, WA, so the weather is moderately cold (30s-50s) most of Oct-Mar.
I generally do between 3-5 minutes at a time, 3-5 times a week. The key is learning to catch your breath.
I started by ending my normal showers with cold. SUCKED. Lasted maybe 20 seconds the first time. Woke up my wife by sounding like a fat kid running a 100 meter sprint.
Within a week I realized I needed to be fully immersed in the water (shoulder deep, I keep my hands and head dry most of the time).
I tried a lake on 1 Jan last year. By myself. Lasted 1 minute, which was my goal. A boat launch dock also had a ladder into the water. I death gripped that SOB. The next week I did it with a group, and lasted 11 minutes.
It is all about catching your breath. I can generally breath normally between 20-30 seconds now. When my tank is in the 30s--it takes me a bit longer to catch my breath, maybe 45 seconds.
Here is the crazy part. Until you catch your breath you are THROWN into the sympathetic nervous system response--flight/fight/freeze. There is no way to avoid this--in fact, it is the point. But the moment you can control your breath--like immediately upon your first deep, controlled breath--the experience goes from terror to tranquil. In an instant. At this point, you feel like you can stay in the water indefinitely. Seriously. It is amazing.
If you have an Apple Watch, turn on the breathe app for 2-3 minutes while you're in the water. Start it as you enter. Afterwards, check your health app, look at HRV. Heart Rate Variability is an interesting measurement. Higher is better. Cold exposure generally doubles or triples my HRV. Such a trip.
Lemme know how it goes!! Hit me up at Brian at grit360 dot com
Good luck! I think you'll find it super rewarding!
Great information, sir! I’ve had my pool about a year, and it always looks inviting, although right now the water temp is in the 50’s. I’m going to give this a try!
GREAT! I'm certain that you will love it...after you immediately HATE IT! Just like most things, it takes a minute...
Here are some of the things Huberman and Thomas Seager talk about:
testosterone increase 3-5 fold for 2-3 hours, dopamine increase 3-5 fold for 3-5 hours, increase in epinephrine--BLUF--all sorts of great hormones physiological changes that happen with cold.
50s is a good temp to start. Those podcasts are pretty long. Forgot to add this guy here on Substack: https://seagertp.substack.com
PhD guy in mid 50s. Writes about losing his shit and finding it. Cold exposure was one of the habits that helped him.
He's a good dude. Is a partner in an ice bath business. He advocates for cold that 'terrifies you'...which 50s will do that when you start. If you begin to dig it, there is an entire DIY cottage industry for cold exposure. One of my old Army buddies bought a chest freezer, lined it with 'liquid seal', and his water remains around 37.
We’re huge fans of Death Valley. So much to see there, and all at the margins of the human experience. Can’t wait to see the lake. Were there any flowers?
I’d expect a carpet of them at some point. We saw it maybe 25 years ago, but this year’s moisture is far greater than we saw that year. Glad you brought this up.
Glad you went there. I was there a couple weeks ago, when the lake was blue and were just a few wildflowers here and there. Such a beautiful place, was my first time. Rock formations rock!
Love the phrase "hundreds of our closest temporary friends", love all you write, generally agree with you across the board. Sounds like there's a "But..." on the way. Nope. All great, thx Chris!
I’ve flown over that spot dozens of times at 500’ / 500kts in an F-16. Always looked like the surface of the moon! Very different to see water there. Can’t remember where but there was some place along that low level I thought I saw some flamingos.
'I’ve flown over that spot dozens of times at 500’ / 500kts in an F-16'
JEALOUS!!!! OH SO JEALOUS.
My experience at the NTC was a PV2 on LP/OP or Radio watch. Nearly stepped on a rattle snake after I was awoken at Zero Dark Thirty...
"DISMOUNTS IN THE AREA!!! 100% ON THE PERIMETER!!!"
I was so damn tired, probably about week 2 inside the box. One Soldier in our battalion was medivacked out because of a snake bite...
...so PV2 Nelson walks toward the rattle thinking he found his way home...
Previously that week, had an itch in my fart sack, ended up scratching a FREAKING SCORPION THAT WAS ON MY BACK!! I miraculously spun this little demon across my entire back to chest without getting stung. Saw what I had done, and jumped up freaking out.
"Shut up Nelson. Get back to sleep." was the response to my terror.
BUT, BUT, BUT--there was one battle when I had LP/OP on a ridge looking down into a valley where the tank battle ensued. To see what an A10 Warthog or an F16 can do to an armored battalion...simply breathtaking.
I've waved to "dogfighting" fighter planes from the hot springs in Panamint Valley. Nobody ever waved back! Looked like something in the neighborhood of 500' / 500kts from the ground, the effect of which is...pretty dramatic.
Did you ever fly Star Wars Canyon? I was surprised by the apparently permanent closure to military aviation.
Beautiful photographs, Chris. Thank you for sharing.
Awesome. Thanks for that, Chris. A nice reminder amidst all of the hysteria. Get outside. Get your feet wet. Commune with nature whenever you can. You need it more than you think you do.
Back in 1992 I was living in LA, and we had a HELL of an El Niño. A friend and I drive to Vegas, probably about this time of year, and it was spectacular. So many of the “dry lake beds” had turned into lakes, the water reflecting the sky and mountains, and there was greenery everywhere. It was magical.
Is the desert flowering?
It is! A lot of yellow flowers. Didn't get pictures.
IIRC the wildflowers will really get going in a month or so. Varies of course. My grand folks used to make the drive from the Bay Area almost every year.
Anza- Borrego Area will be beautiful in late March / April !! 💜
https://tchester.org/bd/blooms/2024.html
thanks so much for the link! Great info and pix
The desert is so beautiful. It is a rough beauty.
Your first picture reminded me of an insight I had last spring sitting in the Puget Sound. I had started cold plunging, mostly because it absolutely scares me to death. I've likely plunged 160 times since Dec 22, and I'm still frightened every time.
Water defines the Pacific Northwest. I live in a city named Lakewood. I live 80 meters from a lake.
Until I started cold plunging, I was in the water less than 5 times in 20+ years.
Learning to be comfortable with the discomfort of cold has opened a world to me that I have ignored for a very long time. While I was sitting in the cold I saw a few guys launch their kayaks, paddleboards, and small boats. It was all open to me now.
I love the shot with the nose of the kayak--that is a photograph from a doer.
bsn
How long do you stay in the cold water? It does sound scary. I was thinking of cold plunging in my swimming pool. The water temperature right now is about 55 degrees.
Brian,
Great question. First here are some pretty good podcasts/newsletters from the Huberman Lab podcast:
https://www.hubermanlab.com/episode/using-deliberate-cold-exposure-for-health-and-performance
https://www.hubermanlab.com/newsletter/the-science-and-use-of-cold-exposure-for-health-and-performance
So, this episode is with Dr Susanna Soberg. She got her PhD studying cold exposure in Denmark. She's the one who coined '11 minutes of cold exposure a week'--and she explains it in detail in this podcast:
https://www.hubermanlab.com/episode/dr-susanna-soberg-how-to-use-cold-and-heat-exposure-to-improve-your-health
Here is my experience/thoughts/advice on the topic. Start small. I have a 100 gallon feed tank (Rubbermaid for $100) in my back yard. I live in Tacoma, WA, so the weather is moderately cold (30s-50s) most of Oct-Mar.
I generally do between 3-5 minutes at a time, 3-5 times a week. The key is learning to catch your breath.
I started by ending my normal showers with cold. SUCKED. Lasted maybe 20 seconds the first time. Woke up my wife by sounding like a fat kid running a 100 meter sprint.
Within a week I realized I needed to be fully immersed in the water (shoulder deep, I keep my hands and head dry most of the time).
I tried a lake on 1 Jan last year. By myself. Lasted 1 minute, which was my goal. A boat launch dock also had a ladder into the water. I death gripped that SOB. The next week I did it with a group, and lasted 11 minutes.
It is all about catching your breath. I can generally breath normally between 20-30 seconds now. When my tank is in the 30s--it takes me a bit longer to catch my breath, maybe 45 seconds.
Here is the crazy part. Until you catch your breath you are THROWN into the sympathetic nervous system response--flight/fight/freeze. There is no way to avoid this--in fact, it is the point. But the moment you can control your breath--like immediately upon your first deep, controlled breath--the experience goes from terror to tranquil. In an instant. At this point, you feel like you can stay in the water indefinitely. Seriously. It is amazing.
If you have an Apple Watch, turn on the breathe app for 2-3 minutes while you're in the water. Start it as you enter. Afterwards, check your health app, look at HRV. Heart Rate Variability is an interesting measurement. Higher is better. Cold exposure generally doubles or triples my HRV. Such a trip.
Lemme know how it goes!! Hit me up at Brian at grit360 dot com
Good luck! I think you'll find it super rewarding!
bsn
Great information, sir! I’ve had my pool about a year, and it always looks inviting, although right now the water temp is in the 50’s. I’m going to give this a try!
GREAT! I'm certain that you will love it...after you immediately HATE IT! Just like most things, it takes a minute...
Here are some of the things Huberman and Thomas Seager talk about:
testosterone increase 3-5 fold for 2-3 hours, dopamine increase 3-5 fold for 3-5 hours, increase in epinephrine--BLUF--all sorts of great hormones physiological changes that happen with cold.
50s is a good temp to start. Those podcasts are pretty long. Forgot to add this guy here on Substack: https://seagertp.substack.com
PhD guy in mid 50s. Writes about losing his shit and finding it. Cold exposure was one of the habits that helped him.
He's a good dude. Is a partner in an ice bath business. He advocates for cold that 'terrifies you'...which 50s will do that when you start. If you begin to dig it, there is an entire DIY cottage industry for cold exposure. One of my old Army buddies bought a chest freezer, lined it with 'liquid seal', and his water remains around 37.
Good luck!! Lemme know how it goes!
bsn
We’re huge fans of Death Valley. So much to see there, and all at the margins of the human experience. Can’t wait to see the lake. Were there any flowers?
A few. Bright yellow flowers -- I'm hearing that there should be more in a few weeks.
I’d expect a carpet of them at some point. We saw it maybe 25 years ago, but this year’s moisture is far greater than we saw that year. Glad you brought this up.
Hey Chris, is Scotty’s Castle still there?
Death Valley NP turned out to be the most unexpectedly wonderful area we've ever visited. Of all the Natl parks, Death Valley is the best.
So many cool things to see , thanks Chris .
Glad you went there. I was there a couple weeks ago, when the lake was blue and were just a few wildflowers here and there. Such a beautiful place, was my first time. Rock formations rock!
The Park Service says "A lake at Badwater Basin is a rare event; we don't know how long it will be there, but possibly through late March."
Obviously caused by Antarctic melting ice caps making their way to the desert.
Quick, find me some Renaissance artwork to destroy!
GET THIS MAN A CAN OF SOUP
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2024-02-01/climate-change-activism-mona-lisa-artwork
Love the phrase "hundreds of our closest temporary friends", love all you write, generally agree with you across the board. Sounds like there's a "But..." on the way. Nope. All great, thx Chris!
I’ve flown over that spot dozens of times at 500’ / 500kts in an F-16. Always looked like the surface of the moon! Very different to see water there. Can’t remember where but there was some place along that low level I thought I saw some flamingos.
'I’ve flown over that spot dozens of times at 500’ / 500kts in an F-16'
JEALOUS!!!! OH SO JEALOUS.
My experience at the NTC was a PV2 on LP/OP or Radio watch. Nearly stepped on a rattle snake after I was awoken at Zero Dark Thirty...
"DISMOUNTS IN THE AREA!!! 100% ON THE PERIMETER!!!"
I was so damn tired, probably about week 2 inside the box. One Soldier in our battalion was medivacked out because of a snake bite...
...so PV2 Nelson walks toward the rattle thinking he found his way home...
Previously that week, had an itch in my fart sack, ended up scratching a FREAKING SCORPION THAT WAS ON MY BACK!! I miraculously spun this little demon across my entire back to chest without getting stung. Saw what I had done, and jumped up freaking out.
"Shut up Nelson. Get back to sleep." was the response to my terror.
BUT, BUT, BUT--there was one battle when I had LP/OP on a ridge looking down into a valley where the tank battle ensued. To see what an A10 Warthog or an F16 can do to an armored battalion...simply breathtaking.
What a freaking cool job you have (had).
bsn
I've waved to "dogfighting" fighter planes from the hot springs in Panamint Valley. Nobody ever waved back! Looked like something in the neighborhood of 500' / 500kts from the ground, the effect of which is...pretty dramatic.
Did you ever fly Star Wars Canyon? I was surprised by the apparently permanent closure to military aviation.
The one thing the crazies haven’t been able to fuck up completely yet is the beauty of the natural world. The Balm of Gilead!
Though they’re trying their hardest with the crap coming out of their chemtrails.
Yes!! (Deep breath) Sanity. It’s a nice place to be.
Thank you Chris!😀💕💐👍
Makes me think of the movie 'Tremors'.
"Broke into the wrong rec room, didn't you?!"