Racetrack Playa
Desert · Death Valley, California
A dry lakebed in the remote north of Death Valley where rocks move across the mud on their own, leaving long trails behind them. Nobody had ever seen it happen until 2014, when time-lapse cameras finally caught it: thin sheets of ice, a few millimetres thick, breaking up in light wind and pushing the stones along at a walking pace you would need patience to notice.
Racetrack Road, off Ubehebe Crater Road, Death Valley, California, 92328, United States
Open year-round, free with park entry. 27 miles of rough road — high-clearance 4WD essential.