Four-Day Death Valley National Park Tours Available this Fall

Death Valley National Park via Las Vegas is an adventurous way to escape for a long weekend or a midweek getaway while extending warm weather - sans rain - on bicycles this fall.

Bicycle Adventures http://bicycleadventures.com/, a Pacific Northwest-based active travel company specializing in two-wheel tours in North America, Hawaii's Big Island and New Zealand, announces a series of four-day October and November departures into the largest (5,219 square miles) National Park in America's Lower 48.

The dates for Death Valley '1984' departures at $1,984 per person are Oct 12, 27; Nov 1, 6, 11. Two Death Valley Classic departures at $2,250 per person are Oct 16 and 23. (The Classic offers upgraded lodging for an additional $266 per person.) The trip starts and finishes in Las Vegas with pick up / drop off at the Fairfield Inn & Suites Las Vegas South and the Bellagio. (The rates are per person double occupancy and all inclusive except for one dinner.)

Death Valley National Park protects the northwest corner of the Mojave Desert, spanning the border of California and Nevada, and Badwater Basin at 282 feet below sea level - the lowest point in North America. The region receives two inches or less of rain annually. Late fall temperatures range from the 70s to 90s. The region is home to more than 1,000 species of plants found only here (more than 50 are endemic). Unrivaled diversity of terrain includes 200 miles of eerie salt flats, velvety-looking sand dunes, crazy-stripe badlands, deep canyons and snow-tipped mountains. Guests cycle on average 30 miles a day, sometimes past abandoned mines, and they may fit in a round of golf at the world's lowest elevation course, go horseback riding or just sit in the sun by the pool at Furnace Creek Resort.

"My first time to Death Valley, I was surprised by the variety of things to see and do and just how great the cycling was. The area has historical and geological significance, which means great climbs, flat terrain, rolling hills, smooth roads - and very little traffic. This all comes with a really relaxed atmosphere," said Todd Starnes, owner of Bicycle Adventures.

Starnes' head bike guide and guru, Matt Paul, still dreams about the descent on Daylight Pass - six months later. "Epic view, easy corners, smooth roads, 20 miles of descending! This was the most amazing way to begin four days of perfect cycling. On the fourth day, when finishing the climb to Dante's View, I could just about see all of the places I had ridden since entering the valley. That includes 80 miles northwest to Ubehebe Crater, 60 miles north to Daylight, 5500 feet straight down to Badwater Basin and 25 miles to Furnace Creek with Zabriskie Point in between. What a way to finish off the trip. And I still had the 25 mile descent back to the lush Furnace Creek in front of me!"

For more information, 2014 and 2015 availability and reservations contact Bicycle Adventures by phone: 800.443.6060, email: office@bicycleadventures.com or visit online at: http://bicycleadventures.com/.

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