AdventureTaco - turbodb's build and adventures

Dan, love the constant updates here. Saw you were up in the Panamints again the other week and was quite envious!

My truck is still taken apart, another trip cancelled this weekend. Keep finding leaks and cracks, and too busy with work to make any progress

Although I did order a set of alternator bushings to throw in the toolbox!

Oh and I finally got chainsaw... killer deal for a used one!



Not too helpful with the bodywork, but come next snow storm, I'm making ice sculptures!!!

 

I love that your first trip to "Death Valley" was here, and that Butte Valley is what got you hooked. Obviously, from my signature, Butte Valley holds a special place in my heart as well - and was also the point in my first trip to Death Valley where I got hooked. If I could force myself to, I'd love to spend 3-5 days just relaxing in that valley, enjoying the sunrise as it highlights Striped Butte.

The bridge at Chicken Rock is gone now, but of course that one sketchy turn isn't. If you go up Pleasant Canyon, and back down/out South Park, it's really not that bad - esp if you can wrangle up a spotter. I would be happy to be wrangled sometime in the fall, if you'd like.

Oh, and it's not in this part of the story (yet), but Rita's is in rough shape. Photos to come in Part 2.

You're going to love that saw. I wish now that I'd been able to wait a few years and gotten the red version, rather than my (really nice) Stihl MS-261. The Stihl is probably technically better, but the convenience and quietness of battery for folks like us outweighs that, I think.

Also, I already told you how to deal with work. Stop procrastinating. Or maybe... start?

 

How would the trip be if running it from South to North, coming back out Pleasant canyon ending in Ballarat? Just asking because we'll be running it that direction in the next couple of weeks.

 

Not sure what question you're really asking that I didn't address with photos in the write-up a couple posts earlier in this thread? Probably I'm just missing some nuance though, so feel free to ask again (in a slightly different way). Of course, the part down Pleasant Canyon is yet-to-be-posted, but there's nothing tricky there (usually).

You can get an email when I post the Pleasant Canyon part, here.

And I've previously run the loop from Pleasant Canyon -> South Park (the easy direction) in this trip: Back for More (Dec 2021). The loop is in Part 3, but the entire trip report is a good one.

 

Nice write-up! I'm still tempted by the Pleasant-South Park loop but the whole Chicken Rock section really isn't to my liking. I feel like I want some extra mirrors or cameras for better visibility when traversing something like that. Plus with having a top heavy Flip-Pac the whole off-camber thing feels even more dicey.

Having already done the western part of South Park (up to Briggs) I'm kind of thinking of doing an out-and-back route entering and exiting Pleasant. Really, canyons look completely different going up them vs. down them so I might even enjoy doing it both ways.

 

I went down chicken rock with hbmurphy and he traversed it so quickly I didn't even realize we did it. He has off-road experience and training most of us do not.
Ken I think you and I and anyone else who has traveled a lot of DVNP wouldn't have any problem doing the obstacle but that doesn't make it easier when the time comes. The thought of doing it has stopped me a couple times from completing the loop in my own truck.

 

Thanks! The write-up of course ended (for now) just when it got "interesting," hahaha!

Going up Pleasant Canyon is a great drive. Coming back out is also really nice. And leave some time to explore and hike around up at the top. There are many roads and mines there to be explored, at the top of both canyons.

And of course, my offer to Eric extends to you as well Ken. In fact, I'd be happy to spot both of you in the fall, since I'll be making another trip to this loop - trying for a fourth time to finish what I started! If we could get @Crom in on the trip, I feel like I'd be in the presence of all the DV celebs.

^^^ This.

 

I'm itching to get back up there too...

Running it from the South Park side first might be a little trickier, since you're climbing rather than descending that obstacle. Going downhill is very forgiving of line choice, so long as you don't choose one that goes off the edge that is. Nothing a few excursions from the cab can't remedy. Going uphill, there's no doubt where the edge is; it's right outside your window. But the challenge then will be finding a line to climb the steps.

I agree with Eric: Compared to other popular DV "obstacles" I don't think this one is particularly demanding. Obviously there's a bit more exposure, but driving solo in DV always comes with a lot of exposure, whether you break an axle or get stuck hanging off a cliff edge, it's going to suck. (I'll take the axle over the cliff though!) A lot of things look scarier than they really are through the windshield. The problem with this one (going uphill at least) is by the time you can see it, you're pretty much committed to getting through.

I'm wanting to run it uphill next time -- I too seek the "other view" of these canyons! I'm always surprised how many new things I discover going the other way.

Edit: Since I believe this one is outside the park boundaries, it's definitely one I'd scout with the flying camera first. Mostly just to check for traffic, but also to make sure it hasn't washed out or something. I think the prospect of backing down that whole shelf section is worse than the obstacle!

 

Question answered @turbodb . Sorry for the confusion.

 

Good point. And going up if you lose traction your truck can walk itself closer to the edge which is no fun.

I was at Briggs with my brother and he flew his drone up along the road. The road looks much wider from a drone than when you get up there in the truck.

We stopped at the start of the shelf and then walked the shelf to Chicken Rock. We then opted to back down the first switchback and turn around instead. Yeah, the shelf and Chicken Rock are totally doable but it was my brother's first run in his Jeep doing narrow mountain roads (he had plenty of open desert experience from a previous job). Backing down the switchback was easy. Backing up the shelf - yeah, that'd suck. I learned long ago a little walking ahead beats the heck out of backing out.

 

I would love to go do some driving out there with a group... When the time comes and if you're open to another 'guest' keep me posted!

 

How have you found the Makita saw so far?

 

If your disaster included loosing your passenger rear mud flap... I found it. Actually I found 2. Between Rita's Cabin and the World Beater Mine. Was just up there last Friday/Saturday.

 

Wait, those are Second Gen.

 

Beat me to it! Now you've got a couple spares

Hope you enjoyed your time up there! Did you follow any of the side spurs to the north between Rita's and the World Beater? Or did you go up into the mountains behind the World Beater to check out the Ratcliff?

 

Now that's funny!

 

Like most of my travels, it was last minute and not well planned. We started Tuesday and drove the Cerro Gordo - Salt Tram - Swansea route. I've done it before and took my girlfriend this time. Then we took the highway to Saline Valley Road up to Salt Lake, cuz, why not see the whole Salt Tram? Then back out to Panamint Springs to buy gas because when gas is $6+ in Lone Pine, $6.50 in Panamint Springs is a bargain! At this point my previous planning was "Ballerat".

I started up Hall Canyon from Indian Ranch Road but it's washed out in places and I didn't know anything about it. The map shows a 4x4 trail that connects to Trail Canyon Road. I gave up and turned around before the foothills. I met a group going in on my way out and they didn't have any knowledge other than it looked interesting from Google Earth. I ran into them later and they said it was spectacular. Have you been up there?

Anyway so the decision was made to drive up Pleasant Canyon. Spent Friday night at Clair Camp and the next day we drove up to Rita's Cabin. (Do you know any history for Rita's? Girlfriend was interested and couldn't find any.) On the way back down we explored the road to the Cooper, also labelled Copper, Mine. Not sure if we found it. There is a single shaft that runs maybe 50' into the hillside right along the road. But the map showed it farther up the hillside. At this point it's switchbacks and I was walking them to be sure there were turnaround points. I gave up due to huffing and puffing and knowing marks on a map are often the "Claim" and not the mine itself.

At this point it was Saturday and we headed home with a stop in Trona at the one restaurant, a burger joint, for lunch and a quick jaunt around Trona Pinnacles. The Pinnacles, great to see and the monorail is interesting but after about an hour there I'm like "what's next?"

 

Make any progress on the rear diamond housing?

 

Sounds like that's coming in about 2 weeks

 

Let me know if you find a passenger front mudflap. I lost mine last time I was in DV in March haha