Death Valley Off-Road Adventures

Thanks for the invite. lol

Once the wife and I figure out what we are doing I'll shoot you a text.

 

You finish the house?

It was a quick day trip to get out of the house.

 

Countertops went in 2 weeks ago. Last week my wife finally picked out the backsplash. As I placed the order I was informed that it wouldn't ship until the second week of December. So, I won't be able to "finish" until then but the backsplash is the last piece of the puzzle.

 

Might be done in time for Christmas, huh?

 

Yep. It'll take 2 days from the time I get the tile until the tile is on the wall and grouted. The kitchen is 100% functional as is though. We've been using it the last 2 weeks and the new layout is so much better.

 

You're quick! If I tried that job in two days, it would be a wreck.

Shoot a text when you're ready to roll.

 

So I was going to proclaim from my desk chair here that 117s don't fly any more...

Wow, what an epic experience! Thanks for sharing this. All the more reason to get out there!

 

F-117s have been back in use for a few years. I didn't believe the early reports of sightings. Hope to have the chance to see one.

 

You'll be just fine, esp. on those 35's. There's not much east of the falls, but poke around a bit because there is definitely stuff to see (find)!

 

they have been operational as training OPFORCE few good number of years now..

 

Wow, ok i finally finished reading (ok there was some skimming) all 216 pages of this thread. Amazing stuff in here-photos, write ups, advice... I wish there as a sticky page of all the great “dv beginner” info... maybe I’ll try my hand at compiling... Thanks to all of you who have been contributing for over 10 years! I feel like I’ve gotten to know a few of you after all that reading. I’m especially impressed that thought the same question comes up again and again, everyone seems willing to share and offer advice instead of simply saying, “google it!” Another cool thing from having read the whole thread is to see how things have changed over the years - it certainly adds perspective.

I think i have more than enough to plan an itinerary and will post it when I pull it together. As long as the weather doesn’t go to hell, we’ll be pulling out of the Bay Area on 12/29, returning 1/3. I know it’s probably a pretty busy time to go, so we’re tempering our expectations, but hoping our willingness to take “interesting” roads will improve our chances of getting some solitude. Will be looking for good spots for dispersed camping.

The one thing I’m trying to gage tho, is how much to bite off on the wheeling. I would love to drive some combo of Lippincott, Echo, Mengal, and Steel passes. I’m a pretty conservative off-roader - as my wife and I usually go solo. But it sounds like with care and patience these are all pretty chill for a well equipped rig... I have no doubt my truck is capable (‘06 4x, rear locker, 33’s, sliders), we carry gear to get un-stuck and make repairs, and gear to communicate if all goes bad, and most importantly, we’re never on a fixed schedule or unwilling to turn around. But all that said, i don’t want to scare my partner. Sounds like Lippincott might be the most “exposed” and Echo might be the tightest squeeze, but I don’t get the sense that the crux of any of these roads really are pushing things to the edge - i.e. with careful, conservative lines, nothing that is high consequence... Is that a fair assessment?

 

Very cool to hear this thread has benefited you and your planning. Most of the roads don't push any envelope as long as you're responsible. Sounds like you're well prepared. I've been in the park during and after new years many times. It gets cold. Very cold. Be prepared for that. If the springs are open by then and you and your wife are ok with unclad humans then it is definitely worth a mid-trip stop for a soak and shower. I'll go ahead and suggest you pick up copies of Mitchell's DV SUV trails and the Diggonet books. They are must haves IMO. Not only for route planning but for learning geology and history of the areas. Safe travels and looking forward to seeing some pics.

 

Totally. This will be a first for us together, camping with it that cold, but we have multiple down bags and are bringing a propane heater for emergency heat if not in the tent. Fingers crossed on the springs. My wife really doesn’t like dry camping but wants to give DV a go anyway... He springs would be a treat for sure. The Mitchell book and a nat geo map is supposed to arrive today. will look in to the doggonet books. Thanks!

 

Sounds like a fun trip. Here are a few things I'd share as recommendations:

The passes you have listed are all fun. Here's my ordering of them in a couple ways:

• Easiest to hardest: Lippencott, Mengal, Steel, Echo. I don't know why people feel that Lippencott is difficult. I just ran it again Saturday and it's really just a dirt road with a bit of exposure off one side. The fall in Echo is by far the most difficult IMO, but the entirety of the difficult section is 30' long - the rest is "a drive up the wash." Honestly, there's not a lot to see above the fall unless you're looking for something particular up there, so it's not really necessary to do (i.e. it doesn't get you somewhere else cool in DV).
• Most to least "worth it": Mengal, Steel, Lippencott, Echo. Mengal is great because there's a lot to see along the way, and Butte Valley is one of my most favorite places in the park. Steel and Lippencott take you between other awesome endpoints. Echo has the Inyo Mine (and a few other things), but is an out-and-back, which is less fun for me.

You're missing an important bit:

• Titus Canyon. So. Beautiful. It'll be on the "far side" for you coming from the Bay Area, but it's worth it IMO.

As for a short trip at the end/beginning of the year, here are my "words of wisdom"

• As @ETAV8R mentioned, be ready for cold. 20's at night, esp. if you are at any type of elevation.
• Distances in DV are deceptive. It may seem that you can "do a lot" in 4 days in the park (30, 31, 1, 2) - but you'd be surprised. Especially if you do any picture taking, or getting out to look at all the cool stuff you come across. And stopping to explore those things you come across is the BEST PART, so you definitely want to do it!
• You won't have a lot of daylight. Even if you're moving at sunrise and stop moving at sunset, you'll have something on the order of 7-8 hours of daylight. And most people want to have a bit of light in the morning/evening to do stuff. So that adds to the "distances are deceptive; don't over plan."
• I recommend looking at the trip report for my first trip to the park (link below). It was an AMAZING trip and really got me hooked. I didn't take my own advice and I went too fast, but all the things we saw were so worth it. Just duplicating that itinerary will fill your entire trip and you'll have a great time.
• With 4 days, I'd limit yourself to two (2) valleys. Death Valley and Panamint, or Eureka and Saline - that kind of thing. You'll just drive yourself out if you try for more.
  
  Our First Trip to Death Valley (Jan 2018) – ADVENTURETACO

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Hey @turbodb saw your sign in at **** ***** **** on the 21st. Missed you by a day.

 

This is great, Dan! Yep, have read a couple of your DV trip reports and will read em all before I go... they are fantastic. And the rankings are really helpful. From what I’ve read Lippincott sounds ‘psychologically’ hard. Like a sidewalk on a cliff. I’ve never fallen off a sidewalk but a cliff would provide some pucker none the less. Titus is for sure on the list. Like many before us, we might make this a bigger survey trip to learn some DV basics and come back for more detailed exploration later. Though, my wife does like to ‘base camp’ and stay still some days. Just starting to plan now that I feel I’ve done a pretty thorough scouring of this thread...lol.

 

Hahaha, nice! Was our first time there, and a chilly night. We were a little surprised by the (small amount of) snow on the way up, but glad to visit it before it was impassable for the winter! Spent the 21st heading north from there and exploring our way out of the park. Another great trip!

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For Lippencott - it's a good 1.5+ lanes wide most of the way, I'd say - so not all that narrow (from my perspective... but I have no fear of heights, so ). I passed a few trucks on the way down Saturday (so again, wide enough to pass in spots).

 

Looks like the Park Service is planning for some work at Stovepipe Wells.

If you want to provide input, https://parkplanning.nps.gov/docume...oKRWyqst-wQ3X8f3NIyPv9UHZstOzw7VYrXE7afWDQRLw

 

If she wants a base camp then stay at panamint springs. For about 5 bucks you get a campsite and flushing toilets and a restaurant across the street. It is a good starting off place for any DV trek

 

Thought they changed it to $10 about three years ago.