Death Valley, Saline Valley, Eureka Sand Dunes, and Mesquite Camp

It took several weeks of planning but we were finally on the road with enough beer, whiskey, tequila, and carne asada to last us beyond our 3 day trip. Our first stop and rondevu point was to be the hot springs in Saline. We had 3 groups; 1 Jeep arriving early, 1 Tacoma(Me) and a Jeep arriving in the afternoon, and 2 jeeps and a 4 runner arriving late night.


We were entering Saline Valley from the south on the 190th. The wind was pushing really hard from Palmdale all the way to the road entrance. As we stopped to get gas, a light rain started to fall and we could see brand new snow in the near by mountains. The rain was unexpected but the strong winds were not. After filling up with gas, we just hoped that the rain would not go into Saline.

Here are the low clouds

The clouds got further as we drove towards the Saline Valley Road. We thought we were safe, but little did we know that we would meet again.

The strong winds did not stopped until maybe 4 or 5 the following morning. They did block the view a little bit.

Here is the entrance to Saline. The road is not harsh at all with enough clearance and good tires you can drive pretty fast on it but it can be deceiving. I will make a note of it later in my report but some brave poor souls decided to take their volvo deep into the valley and they did pay for it.

I was amaze by the beauty of this place and the panoramic views that exist. It is just an incredible place that pictures do not do it justice.

You can go from desert one second to what look liked a pine forest. As you start climbing up the mountains you will bump into cows. The cows are tagged and it seems like a rancher rents the area for the cows to grace.




Funny thing is that right as we reached the top of the mountain, our crew that got there in the morning was able to pick us up on the radios from about 30 miles away. They could not reach the springs because they had made a wrong turn and were going to wait for us at the end of the lake. At that point, we were able to see into Saline Valley, it was around 7:30 PM and it was incredible.

Going into the Valley was fast, from my view point I was able to see bright read lights flashing, it took me about 25 minutes to reach them only to discover a small volvo sedan driven by two young girls on their way the springs. I was driving down that round about 40+ miles per our but they were doing about 10-15. By that time it was pass 8 PM, I can only imagine how long they had been driving. I asked if they were ok, they said yes and confirm with me if they were going in the right direction, I said yes and good bye. I did not see them at the camp but the camp is large but I only wonder at what time if ever they reached it.

At that point, the crew that was waiting for us called on the radio advising us that there was a caravan of cars coming towards us. And in fact, about 10 minute later, the caravan was stopped at a water poodle. I crossed it and asked if they were OK, they asked me if I was coming from the springs and i told them that they were going in the wrong direction. I was going that way and they could follow me. 2 miles up the road, I met with my crew and we went on our way to the springs. The guys in my crew that arrived earlier did not download the map I created from google and were relying on the KLM file provided. This was a bad idea as their GPS got them lost and the same thing happen to the 3 vehicles that were supposed to meet up with us.

In any case, we made it to the camp and found a great spot next to one spring and settled for the night. We lost the wood we were carrying that night on the road but in any case we could not setup a fire as it was too windy. It was not cold but luckily for us someone had left a fire pit full of wood that we took the following day to our next camp.

A burro entered our camp area around 2 am and it was hilarious as it started to freak out when one of our dogs approached it and then behind it a big ass coyote showed up. The dogs were put away at that moment.

Here is a video of that night


Cool stuff in the camp grounds. Just keep in mind that is clothing optional and you will see naked people but not early in the morning.

The valley from the camp grounds.

The valley from the spring. This is pretty cool we were able to enjoy this spring the whole morning from 7-10 am. The spring on the other side was full of nakies. After we got out, other nakies took over but that was ok, we were done. The water is nice and warm.



We were up to Steele Canyon and I was worry about the pass because everyone was telling me I need 4WD and I ride a pre-runner. Well, I am proud to say that I made it without any issues or getting stock.

Here is a picture of the road leading to steele. This is at the bottom.

Video of me going down the last steps. These are the easiest and I did not need assistance so my friend recorded.



more stuff to come later

 

Sweet, can't wait to see more.

 

cool trip so far!