The lowest point in Death Valley reachable by car, Badwater Basin, seems especially low when contrasted with the high peaks that rise nearby. Supposedly, the brackish pool here got its name from a surveyor who labeled it "Bad Water" when his mule refused to drink. While the water is not poisonous, its composition is similar to a solution of Epson Salts -- and just about as appetizing.  Even so, the tiny Badwater snail manages to survive in the salty water and a few plants--pickleweed, salt grass, iodine bush and others--live along the fringes of the pool.

High on the mountainside above the pool is a sign that reads "Sea Level." Simply but dramatically, it reminds visitors that the entire Badwater Basin is very low indeed--in fact, about four miles to the northwest of the pool is the lowest point in the United States, at 282 feet below sea level.  Above the sign, high in the Black Mountains, is Dantes View, the loftiest mountain, Telescope Peak, whose snowy summit hovers upside down in the still water of the pool.