Overview
- Death Valley logged 2.41 inches of rain from September to November, its wettest fall on record, with November’s 1.76 inches breaking a 1923 monthly mark.
- Water is pooling across Badwater Basin at generally below shoe-top depth and sits roughly a mile from the Badwater parking area.
- Numerous backcountry and some paved roads are closed or impassable due to debris, though Zabriskie Point, Dante’s View, Badwater and Mesquite Sand Dunes remain open.
- This reappearance is smaller than in 2023–24, when NASA measured depths from about 3 feet to under 1.5 feet and visitors were briefly able to kayak.
- Rangers say the feature will likely persist into early 2026, with its duration driven by wind, temperature and any further rain.