I am in the saddle at California’s Death Valley National Park. Comprising 3.4 million acres, it is the largest national park in the contiguous U.S. Death Valley is also the hottest place on Earth and the lowest point in North America. In 1913, a temperature of 134 degrees Fahrenheit was recorded at the park. Click the above image to enlarge, click to view my high-resolution photo gallery, or click to read my feature article “Out West: The Fight to Protect Our Federal Public Lands.”