Lake Manly, a temporary lake in the Badwater Basin which initially formed in late August last year, is disappearing. What is going on?
Death Valley has become famous for its temperature records. However, following the passage of Hurricane Hilary which had brought heavy rain to the region, a mysterious lake was disappearing just a few months ago. Last month, however, there was a notable and unexpected turning point.
A particular defined meteorological phenomenon atmospheric river, it dumped 38 millimeters of rain to Death Valley in just three days. To get an idea of what this means, consider that normally only 50 occur in an entire year.
From this sudden phenomenon, the waters of the lake were deep enough to allow visitors to kayak there. Boating a lake in Death Valley? A dream. Unfortunately, however, things are about to change.
“Intense winds from February 29 to March 2 blew the lake northward, widening it, resulting in a drop in water levels. The lake is now too shallow and too far from the road to transport and launch boats without damaging the landscape. Therefore, it is now closed to navigation“, reads a statement from Death Valley National Park Service.
Depending on whether or not other more significant meteorological events occur in Death Valley, as can also be seen from the conditions of the lake in the images at the following link, park rangers predict that the remains of the lake will be visible until Aprilmonth in which it will probably disappear completely.
However, even without being able to cycle inside a lake, visitors are encouraged to stick to the established routes, as walking in the muddy salt flats would leave the landscape full of footprints that will remain visible until the next filling of the basin.
“Most of us thought the lake would disappear by October. We were shocked to see him still here after almost six months” said Abby Wines, Death Valley National Park ranger.