Artists Palette is a technicolor, kaleidoscopic display of multicolored rock in Death Valley National Park that must be seen to be believed. Located near the hub of Furnace Creek, Artists Palette is one of the most photographed spots in Death Valley.
What Makes Artists Palette Colorful?
The vibrant colors of the Artist’s Palette are caused by the oxidation of different metals in the rock. Iron oxides produce reds, pinks, and yellows, while manganese minerals create lavender and purple hues. The decomposition of tuff-derived mica adds green tones to the palette. This unique combination of colors creates a mesmerizing and otherworldly landscape.
Location & Accessibility
The Artist’s Palette is located off Badwater Road, north of Devil’s Golf Course and south of Furnace Creek. It’s accessible via a one-way, 9-mile scenic drive called Artist’s Drive. The drive itself is worth the trip, winding through colorful canyons and offering stunning views of the Black Mountains.
RELATED: 16 STUNNING Things to Do in Death Valley National Park
Visiting Artists Palette Death Valley
Best Time to Visit Artists Palette
The best time to visit Artists Palette is in the evening when temperatures are cooler and the sun hits the rocks just so to really make their color pop. Harsh midday sun mutes the vivid colors and should be avoided if possible. Cloudy days make for great photos in Artists Palette.
RELATED: Comprehensive Death Valley National Park Guide
Artists Palette Map
Things to Note When Visiting Artists Palette
Guide: I highly recommend this one.
Map: I use this one.
Provisions: Make sure to pack plenty of food & water.
Where to Stay in Death Valley
Visiting Death Valley National Park? If you haven’t decided where to stay (yet) check out our helpful guide on visiting Death Valley National Park for tips. Don’t have time? Here’s our favorite hotel in Death Valley.
About Death Valley National Park
Situated on California’s southeastern border with Nevada, Death Valley National Park spans over 5,000 square miles of otherworldly vistas. The largest national park in the continental United States, Death Valley is a park for superlatives.
Death Valley is the hottest place on earth, the lowest place in North America, and the driest place in the United States. Death Valley is also the largest National Park outside of Alaska.
Watch the Award-Winning Death Valley Video
In the remote far reaches of the Mojave Desert lies the largest national park in the continental United States. Hidden here in the hottest place on earth is another world full of diverse life and colorful landscapes.
Join us as we take life to the extreme and explore Death Valley. Filmed primarily in 8K.
Why Listen to Us About Visiting Artists Palette?
You should probably know that we don’t just make this stuff up out of thin air. We’ve spent our entire adult lives exploring and filming America’s national parks and public lands.
We’ve worked with the National Park Service, the Department of Interior, and the U.S. Forest Service for years creating films on important places and issues.
Our work has been featured in leading publications all over the world and even some people outside of our immediate family call us National Parks experts.
We’re Jim Pattiz and Will Pattiz, collectively known as the Pattiz Brothers.
Our goal here at More Than Just Parks is to share the beauty of America’s national parks and public lands through stunning short films in an effort to get Americans and the world to see the true value in land conservation.
If you’d like to follow along our journey we’d be delighted to have you!
And a bonus! Tips for Visiting a National Park
Permit Systems and Reservations
Check to see if the national park you’re visiting has a permit or reservation system in place before visiting. As parks become increasingly crowded more has to be done to safeguard them which means controlling the hundreds of millions of people who visit these places each year.
Popular national parks with reservation systems of some kind include Yosemite, Yellowstone, zion-national-park-itinerary/”>Zion, Rocky Mountain, Glacier, Arches, Acadia/”>cadia, Denali, and more.
Want Less Crowds? Try a National Forest!
Try visiting a national forest while you’re on your trip to avoid the crowds. There are 155 national forests in America, many of which are equally as beautiful as the national parks they neighbor and only see a fraction of the visitors.
For example, try the Flathead National Forest next to Glacier National Park, the Bridger-Teton next to Grand Teton, and the Dixie which borders nearly all of the Utah National Parks.
Practice Safety, Seriously
National parks are amazing but wild places so it is essential to practice basic safety while visiting them. Every year people die while vacationing in national parks. This is easily avoided by:
- Sticking to trails
- Checking the weather before going out on a hike
- Maintaining a safe distance between wildlife which means at least 25 yards from most wildlife and 100 yards from predators
- Avoid ledges with steep drop offs
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