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Travel // California Parks

Woman spends night lost in Death Valley National Park after looking at stars

She had set out to capture shots in Badwater Basin before she was reported missing

Olivia Harden, SFGATE
Badwater Basin is the perfect location to take photos at night — at 283 feet below sea level. It’s also located in Death Valley National Park, an internationally recognized Dark Sky Park.

Badwater Basin is the perfect location to take photos at night — at 283 feet below sea level. It’s also located in Death Valley National Park, an internationally recognized Dark Sky Park.

Jon Hicks/Getty Images

A woman unintentionally spent the night in Death Valley National Park after her travel group reported her missing. 

The 61-year-old woman from Austin, Texas, was headed to Badwater Basin to capture photos of the stars, according to a news release. She left her group to retrieve something from the parking lot. When she didn’t return, the group drove to Furnace Creek to call 911. 

Park rangers were dispatched at 2:30 a.m. and traveled on foot, according to officials. They also flashed bright vehicle lights in hopes the missing photographer would spot the parking lot, according to Henry Hungerland, an eyewitness, who recounted the event on Facebook. 

“A common thread in many cases of lost hikers is that they started out with a group and then separated from their group. We don’t get many calls for lost solo hikers,” Abby Wines, management analyst at Death Valley National Park, told SFGATE. “People following a friend or family member on a route may not be paying as much attention to their surroundings.”

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Additional park employees began to assist with the search at daybreak. Park rangers also requested help from a California Highway Patrol helicopter, but the woman was found before the helicopter arrived.

The woman was spotted about 2 miles past the Badwater Basin parking lot, according to Hungerland’s post. Badwater Basin is the perfect location to take photos at night — at 283 feet below sea level. But it’s also located in Death Valley National Park, an internationally recognized Dark Sky Park.

Once the woman realized she could not see landmarks in the dark, she waited till the sun rose to walk to a main road just north of Badwater Basin, and hitchhiked back to the parking lot, arriving at about 8:20 a.m., the statement said. 

“I definitely wouldn’t describe getting lost as ‘common’ — It happens occasionally. We get calls for separated hikers once or twice a month, but most of the time, they get resolved quickly,” Wines told SFGATE. “So, tip: If you’re hiking as part of a group, stay together.” 

Written By
Olivia Harden
Olivia Harden is a travel reporter at SFGATE. She was born, raised, and has lived in different parts of Southern California her whole life. Olivia graduated from Chapman University with a B.A. in English and journalism. Her work has been featured in Buzzfeed, PBS' Rewire, Mic, and more. Her most recent role was as a staff writer at Matador Network, a leading travel publication. When she's not on the clock, you can find her trying new restaurants, binge-watching Netflix, or catching a flight somewhere.