Death Valley Off-Road Adventures

Thanksgiving has always been a busy time but I've never seen that kind of crowd.

 

Relevant thread: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/death-valley-radio-frequencies.474906/

I was able to hit at least one of the repeaters from the top of Hunter Mountain earlier this year... Don't remember which one, but no contacts were made. I double checked with an HT, I was loud and clear from the repeater.

Heard some traffic on some of the non-ham freqs too, but not much. E.g. the ranger/sheriff/airbands/whatever, I preloaded all the freqs and left it on scan. Didn't have APRS back then, but now I do, and I wouldn't expect much action in a place like DV.

Nothing in the valleys of course.

 

I always can hit the Mazuarka Peak VHF repeater from Hunter and the top of Lippencot. I can also hit it from Saline and quite a bit from the North Route into Saline. High Potosi in Vegas can be reached from Emigrant Canyon Road and Mahogany Campground

 

We spent 3 days in the park and, other than our first night driving out to Marble/Cottonwood Canyon to camp when we passed a several dozen vehicles camping along the road from 8 miles in to the split and a line for gas at stovepipe (fortunately we had topped off at Beatty and had extra fuel) it wasn't as busy as I expected. Both nights we couldn't see another vehicle or hear any people from our camp. Once you get off the graded dirt roads the crowds definitely thin out.

Took advantage of the almost full moon and got out for some night hikes. This was the first trip to the park for our kids and they had a great time.

 

Drove out to Alabama Hills, CA this weekend and driving past all the DV turn offs was torture after reading through some of this thread last week. It helps a little to know it was very crowded.

How long do I have before my 20 degree rated sleeping bag is not enough for the overnight?

 

I was using a 32 degree bag and it was a bit cold. Probably should of used my 0 degree bag instead. Even had it with me... I like being a bit cold than hot though.

 

It was 18° yesterday morning at 630 at the Mahogany Flats Camp Ground.

 

House battery negative terminal the newest and most recent washboard induced casualty..

 

I hope to someday see you out there on the trail. Just to witness whatever kind of driving it takes to achieve such constant carnage.

(Please don't take this the wrong way--I'm genuinely impressed!)

 

They make sleeping bag liner that increases your bag by 15 degrees

 

This works down to really low temperatures:



(Apologies, I have nothing to contribute and am bitter that I am trapped on the other side of the country from my truck and DV. Also I mistook this for @scocar’s build thread. Carry on...)

 

Good to know. My fiancée runs cold so this is definitely something to keep in mind. We sleep in my camper shell but so far it doesn’t feel like it insulates that much more than a traditional tent.

Ooof, that sounds chilly. Got down to the low 30s this weekend which was a nice reminder of what to expect during desert season!

 

It's only a 35 hour drive. Less if you cannonball (right up your alley, I know ). Two days and you could be soaking up the solitude. C'mon man, I've done 4 days of driving for 5 days of adventure down there in the last 3 weeks.



All in fun. I really do feel for you, as I know how the desert calls, and feel lucky that my drive is only 18 hours each way.

 

If you’re planning to head to the park, know that they have started to close it down per the lockdown orders.

Call before you go. Better check your own travel restrictions too.

 

current conditions
https://www.nps.gov/deva/planyourvisit/conditions.htm

i forget...was the entire park (including offroad tracks) closed last time?

 

They closed the entrances. But this time, it sounds like you can buy shit things at the visitor’s center.

 

It reads as though the park is open in limited use. All campgrounds, even backcountry, closed. The main paved roads should remain open. Good thing the desert is big and DVNP is only a small part of the Southwest US.

 

Sound like all roads will remain open but all campgrounds are closed including backcountry camping. I suppose that includes the saline springs campsite or anywhere else for setting up a tent.

Any idea if this extends to surrounding BLM lands? There are more than a few interesting spots nearby to camp and explore adjacent to the park boundaries.

 

It does include Saline for camping. I was planning on going in a couple weeks too. Very bummed but I know many other areas to go instead.

 

i'm in the same boat...