Surf's up in Death Valley: Paddle boards float on submerged desert
A massive oasis has transformed the desert into the beach, and visitors are swarming to go for a swim the California park known for its extreme weather.
A larger annual rainfall in the Death Valley area has created a 6-mile-long lake at the national park, in which parkgoers are kayaking and enjoying.
Swimming in a desert sounds impossible, but that is the new reality in Death Valley National Park after the driest and hottest spot in North America was submerged by feet of water.
Paddle boards, kayaks and inflatable toys have been seen floating on the temporary lake, called Lake Manley, which measures 6 miles long and 3 miles across. Hundreds of visitors have flocked to the California desert to jump into the lake while it lasts.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to kayak Lake Manley,” Heather Gang told The Associated Press.
"The last time it was deep enough to kayak in was 19 years ago, so this is a very rare opportunity," Abby Wines, a park ranger at Death Valley National Park, told AccuWeather.
People hoping to jump into the lake will need to act fast, as the clock is ticking before Death Valley returns to a parched landscape.
"We think it will be deep enough to kayak for a week or two more," Wines said.
The lake first formed last August after Hilary drenched the Southwest. It has since been recharged after 2.25 inches of rain fell in Death Valley from Jan. 1 through Feb. 26 -- more rain than what falls in the arid landscape in an entire year. The historical average rainfall for Death Valley is 2.22 inches.
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