Death Valley Off-Road Adventures

Indeed. I've hiked my tube and waders into some crazy remote locations. If I can avoid that, I will. Lol

PS. Keep it on topic post coming in 3, 2, 1. Lol

 

Yes year around. It’s park of the park so they have a toll booth and everything.

Can’t go on/in the water though, it’s against the law. You can fish from the shore.
Lake Eleanor on the other hand you can go in but it’s a hike to get there. Maybe half a mile.

 

IMHO Caltopo is far superior to Google Earth or Gaia for making maps, but I prefer Gaia when navigating off-road (also lays down breadcrumbs, and can sync wirelessly). I make maps with Caltopo, then import them into Gaia which is on the iPad in the truck. A year+ ago I replaced my Lowrance GPS with the iPad.

 

This reminds me that I really need to figure out a way to mount my 9" Samsung tablet.

 

This is what I have had in my truck for years...it can be a bit wobbly.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00F3F09O4?ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

 

I use a Ram mount. The iPad is hard-wired to my aux battery. On the downside, I lost two cup holders.

 

Originally, I mounted my iPad to the Tech Deck via a Ram Mount. Unfortunately, that resulted in a lot of vibration while moving.

The vibration solution required 2 solid mounting points.

I modified my Ram Mount for the iPad to mount 2 Ram balls. Then, I mounted 2 additional Ram balls to the top of the dash. Now, I use one on the Tech Deck and one on the dash, for a much more solid mount. I do a little vibration sometimes, but it's not too bad.





While not the best picture, you can see the 2 arm mounts. The one going up to the dash is a double-arm.

 

I have RAM mounts up above my stereo, but there's no room for anything else hanging off that mount. (I have my phone, microphone, potable radio, and girlfriend's phone up there.) Probably going to do something down by the cupholders, but I need to come up with a spot to put our Nalgene's first.

 

Don't forget, you can mount Ram balls on the lower bolts of the grab handles on each A-pillar. That's where the phones go when the iPad is in place.

 

Anyone have updates on the latest conditions? Have a trip planned for the 17-19th and don’t want to be mud bogging everywhere.

We start in ridge crest, go through badwater and end up in Beatty the first day. From there we go to Panimemt for day two and back to ridge crest for day 3

 

I'm also curious, because I'll be out there the 11th to the 14th. Based on the latest updates to the DVNP road conditions map, I'm expecting that we'll end up southeast of 190 the whole time.

 

Best spot to start looking is the DV NPS website.

You're also almost 2w away from your trip. Anything you get today would likely be irrelevant tomorrow or the next day as well. The weather has been constantly changing. An app like Clime or Apple Weather can help you with longer term forecasts.

I'd say don't worry so much and check more frequently as you get toward your departure date. If you're concerned about specific roads and don't see them mentioned, call the park.

 

Thanks… I’m most concerned about the badwater basin. I went through there a couple years ago and it was the worst mud I’ve ever experienced

 

Has anyone here been up to Chloride City and/or through Echo Pass recently?

 

Yes… any latest updates on the park?

 

I inquired about Echo Canyon on Sunday at Stovepipe.
The ranger steered me away saying "when they say short wheelbase they really mean it". It was open though.
The roads listed on the website were definitely closed due to snow. This new storm won't help.
Cerro Gordo road was open into town but there was at least 2 ft of snow starting in town.

 

Some dirt, rocks, a car and a truck.

 

how were the temps overnight?

 

Any word on Hunter Mt? We are thinking about giving it a shot if the snow isn’t too deep

 

Hrm. We were planning coming in to the park from the Nevada side on Echo Tuesday morning. Based on the weather, though, we might need to revisit that idea.