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By Rich Beattie, GORP Editor
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Death Valley, California

Death Valley You don't have to brave the Alaskan winters to find solitude. A whopping 1.1 million people poured into Southern California's Death Valley in 2001, but with almost 3.4 million parched acres, the numbers didn't matter much. Of course, in this very accessible playground (just two and a half hours from Las Vegas), the danger is excessive heat; summertime mercury can clear 120 degrees. You'll find plenty of great hiking and camping among the dunes and cracked earth; just be sure to use a four-wheel-drive when braving the backcountry. Accompanying you through ghost towns and the lowest point in the western hemisphere (282 feet below sea level) will be bats, gophers, porcupines, and, of course, tons of reptiles.

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