Zabriskie Point | Death Valley National Park Trail Running

One of the main attractions of Death Valley National Park, Zabriskie Point is a must do trail run you'll be stoked to have ticked off during your visit. There are two ways to approach this run with multiple options once you've entered this maze of beautiful rock formations and buttery, single track trails. For the purpose of this video, I started just north of Badwater Basin, which begins at the Golden Canyon trailhead and the location of where they filmed a few scenes from the original Star Wars movie in 1977, A New Hope. Having been raised on the original Star Wars trio (A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi), it was fun to explore a zone with that nostalgic feel. The trail running up to Zabriskie Point via Golden Canyon is spectacular. While the running down low is not too engaging, the fact that you're running through a movie set made up for that section. Once you enter the single track portion of the trail, the views open up and you are treated with beautiful sights of Golden Canyon and the Panamint Range to the west. Initially I wanted to loop this and add on Gower Gulch as I came back down, but the running and views in Golden Canyon were so incredible that I decide to run this as an out-and-back. Altogether, I logged roughly 5.5 miles and 1,300' feet of elevation gain, so not too long at all. One disclaimer I need to add here, is that this was an incredibly hot run! I recommend starting in the early morning if possible, when temperatures are considerably cooler. It was 96 degrees when I departed my car and I had already run 10 miles earlier in the day up to Mount Perry, so I was pretty wrecked afterwards, mainly due to the heat. Bring plenty of water and electrolytes, fuel, and makes sure to have the appropriate clothing and sunscreen, you'll thank yourself at the end of your run. After your run, make sure to drop into the Inn at Death Valley, formally known as Furnace Creek Inn. They have a great restaurant to refuel and take a load off after a long morning on the trail. Better yet, book a room for a couple nights and head out on a few day missions to really take in the full the beauty of the park. I'd recommend targeting the springtime for a visit and trying to time the trip with any superblooms that may be occurring, you'll be blown away at the beauty Death Valley has to offer. Make sure to check out our Trail Running GPX page at https://www.cirquerunning.com/gpx-files, so you can download the route and upload it to your watch or phone. This GPX page will be a continuous work in progress so make sure to take advantage of the GPX files we already have posted and be sure to check back weekly as we continue to update the page. Also, make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel @CirqueRunning to keep up to date with all of our latest trail running edits. Enjoy this video of Zabriskie Point in Death Valley National Park! Cirque Running's other sites and media channels Website: https://www.cirquerunning.com/ Trail Running GPX Files: https://www.cirquerunning.com/gpx-files Coaching: https://www.cirquerunning.com/coaching Instagram:   / cirquerunning   Substack: https://cirquerunning.substack.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?... Run Gear List Patagonia Strider Pro Shorts 5" Patagonia Capilene Cool Lightweight Shirt Patagonia Duckbill Cap Suunto Race Titanium Ultraspire Momentum 2.0 Race Vest Hoka Mafate X Goodr sunglasses Your online digital guide to trail running in the Sierra and Southern California. Cirque Running’s mission is to inspire our trail running community through digital dirt surfing, elevated retreats and professional coaching, with certified UESCA ultrarunning coaches. We’re Trail Runners, Mountain Guides, Educators, Coaches and Stewards of the Sierra and California, and we want to share these remarkable places with all those seeking natural abundance in the Range of Light and beyond. #trailrunning #deathvalley #deathvalleynationalpark #blackmountains #running #hiking #mountperry #dantesview #badwaterbasin #telescopepeak #zabriskiepoint #starwars