Winter rains turn Death Valley National Park into fields of golden blooms

Death Valley National Park is exactly what the name implies. It is one of the driest, hottest and most desolate areas in the world, with summer temperatures in the desert region reaching well into triple digits for days and sometimes weeks.

The national park, which straddles the California-Nevada border, is one of the lowest in elevation, of all the parks, according to the National Park Service website, and is a “land of extremes.” The steady drought and record summer heat lead to that.