Death Valley Off-Road Adventures

Ha!

Social Distancing isn't just a safety precaution, it's a lifestyle!

 

No hit up Ubehebe Crater, Crankshaft Junction, Eureka, Steel Pass, Saline Valley then bailed via the 190/395.

 

Right on. That's a nice run. How many other vehicles would you guesstimate were out there?

 

earlier in the month i was up that road near the J Trees, stopped, eating lunch and making coffee at the back of the truck when I heard....crunching in gravel..WTF..looked up from the coffee cooker as a person with a pack walked by with a dog...took me by surprise.

 

We were just up there and passed by rangers in several locations, and saw several CHP and local law enforcement on the way home Tuesday. No one questioned us. Also, the gas stations in the park were still open.

 

From Saline Valley Hot Springs to Hunter Mt = 45min @ 45mph (the faster you go, the "smoother" it goes).
One of my buds was at 60mph on that stretch of washboard with BP-51s.

Steel Canyon from Dedekera with snow or ice would be a challenge.

 

This is what DV posted on FaceBook back on the 23rd.

I glossed over it only because I wasn't gonna be going. Tho when I cut/pasted this, I noticed "or dig a 6" deep 'cat hole'"-no, no, no! Please do not do that. The last thing anyone wants to see is paper flags or poorly dug holes

 

I carry just about all the same stuff. Never shot my flare gun but have been tempted. I've fed people, informed tourists to avoid Lippincott driving a rental, and took a guy to Lone Pine to get transmission fluid because his was leaking. Good karma.

I'll dig catholes but the paper is contained with the Murphy Method

 

I too drive at a good rate on most of SVR. Always looking for washouts and rocks. It's no joke and that's why there are rollover accidents along that route.

 

I tend to carry way more than I need, but my philosophy is I would rather have it and not use it, than not have it and need it!

 

Yeah the washouts come up quick and with a top heavy, low psi tires, things don't react well with severe input.
With a group of 5 trucks on CB, we were calling out road hazards as they came up.

 

Same is true for Anza-Borrego DSP. Just got back myself and kids.

Glad you got out, nice post/pics @Zam15 !

 

Good to hear from you! Hows it? Thanks for that. Been contemplating taking the family for a boondock outing there for a night or 2.

 

Thanks. Really, really good.

It's as every bit as beautiful as you can imagine. We had stellar day time weather with plenty of wind. Several bouldering sessions and rock scrambles, with two summits achieved. And much, much more.

Thank God for the great outdoors.








Our original plan was for Death Valley, however it was just me and my children on this trip and I didn't want to assume too much risk. We made this trip on a single tank of gas. 3 days two nights.

 

I found this quite interesting and the photographs amazing. Quite a different take on such a hot dry arid area.

https://www.kcet.org/shows/artbound/mojave-project-divining-devils-hole
http://mojaveproject.org/dispatches-item/divining-devils-hole-part-2/

 

It’s the 42nd of March, day eleventy-three of the quarantine. Supplies stocks are good for now. I’m worried about the TP burn rates, we seem to be going through it faster than I expected. I’m thinking it might be wise to separate from the rest of the group to conserve my resources. Go somewhere far away with fewer people. Away from the zombies...

I hope everyone is holding up well in these interesting times. Stay home, stay safe. Use the time to plan for your next adventure when things get back to normal. Maybe we can have a Death Valley meet up when the social distancing is over.

 

thanks for the laugh the roger mitchell book is great (as are his others!)

 

It is good, I need to pick up his others. Between Mitchell and Digonnet's book I’m getting lots of ideas for things to do in the park.

 

yeah i've got his eastern sierra book too which has a TON of good stuff in it, i've probably run a third of those trails so far

 

Great photo. I've been digging into Digonnet's books (all of them) a lot lately. I've got a ton of Mitchell's books too, even some very old ones. Another thing that is taking up a lot of time is scouring googlemaps for potential places to check out. Hopefully in this lifetime I can see a fraction of the places that are out in the nearby wild areas.