America Outdoors with Baratunde Thurston

It's bigger than I expected, it's dustier than I prepared for, but I also have some beautiful memories and experiences of just how humbling this trip has been. The solitude of this place is kind of intense. The sky is huge, this vista is vast. I'm invigorated. My dreams have been off the charts out here. I find myself getting up early just to catch the sunrise. So many senses have come alive for me out here. I feel small and I feel lucky to be a part of all this. (tranquil music) Small and lucky, nothing inspires feelings like those more than being alone in landscapes like this, but there's a side to Death Valley that I haven't fully explored yet, one that only reveals itself once the tourists have scattered back to their cars and the sun has dipped below the horizon. Of course, what I'm talking about is the darkness of night. (dramatic music) Immense darkness, in fact, the kind that can only be found in a place as remote as Death Valley. And Harun Mehmedinovic, the man behind this amazing time lapse photography, is the perfect guy to introduce me to this new environment. (dramatic music) Oh, we did it. -

Harun

Yeah, not bad. -

Baratunde

Quite a meeting spot you picked. -

Harun

It's good, yeah. Where we're standing here is one of the last remaining pristine night sky places that we have left in America. So when we're looking at most to this park, especially towards the north from here, we're looking at about 100, 150 miles without artificial light.