The badlands of Death Valley are water-oriented formation. The most famous of these formations located at Zabriskie Point is very aesthetically pleasing to the eye and its formation is a wonder to the mind. At first glance the badlands are completely barren, and they are made of a uniform soil that has many divots and pathways along the hills into the valley. These intricately and naturally decorated badlands were once a uniform and level area created by Death Valley's diverse past. There was once a lake that resided where the badlands now are and this loosely consolidated material was once the bed of the lake. (US GS website) When the rain shadow was cast upon the valley and the lake dried up, this loosely consolidated material began to be influenced by the flash floods that frequented the area. The water cut pathways into the lake sediment and continued to follow those pathways. This is why the badlands have a multitude of creases that follow gravity into the valley.