Death Valley Off-Road Adventures

If I had four days and was going to climb Whitney, I’d probably stay over there. No matter how hard you train, the following days you’ll want to do very little hiking. Doing Mammoth Bike park would be fun. Seeing Whitney from Alabama Hills would also be nice. Even a trip around Mono Lake with an overnight in the sand would be cool. There are plenty of 4x4 routes with great place to explore too.

If it’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s to not cram too much into a short trip.

 

"Fall" is a pretty broad brush time wise, but I'm assuming if the weather is favorable for summitting Whitney then it could still be quite warm in the southern, lower parts of the park.

If I had four days in the early Fall and was already up in Lone Pine then I'd concentrate the four days on the higher elevation northern parts of the park which are typically more remote and less crowded. There is an enormous amount of driving involved in large loops through the Park. I'd be tempted to recommend Lee Flat, over Hunter Mountain, Hidden Valley, White Mountain Road, Racetrack, Lippincott, Saline Valley, Steel Pass, Eureka Valley, and out to Big Pine assuming you are returning north via the 395. Alternatively if a more inland route home makes sense you have three exit routes north out of Eureka Valley. There is an enormous amount to see on that loop. I spent ten days in that area once and barely scratched the surface and I've returned multiple times and still need to go back multiple times.

You'll want Digonnet's Hiking Western Death Valley National Park: Panamint, Saline, and Eureka Valley for that region (which I just now notice has a brand new edition as of this past April - time to buy the new one I guess).

 

As a DV first timer, not knowing what to expect, this is the kind of info I was looking for. Thank you!

 

Speaking of Mengal, anyone been through since it reopened? Thinking about a quick trip this week and wondering how the road condition is (I assume it'll be decent since it just reopened).

Truck is on 33s with skid trilogy, sliders, and rear locker. I'll be traveling as a solo vehicle with a small trailer that can go wherever my truck can but turning it around on a shelf road is something that I'd rather not have to do again.

 

Have you been to Whitney before? If not, explore there, if so, head to DV. As others have said, pick a section of the part and stick to that area. Saline would be nice for a post hike soak if you end up in the north end of the park.

 

A friend whose hubs spends days in the dunes wanted to go to DV but has avoided it because of the crowds. They were coming home from Christmas and figured no one would be there….

Priceless.

 

Even more good news from the park. They've been without electricity for some time. Power has been restored!

 

I cannot offer much about the park except Badwater Rd and the lake-that-was. But I will tell you they charge brutal prices at the stores for everything from basic water to microwaveable meals (I was only looking at the prices in the store at Furnace Creek, not buying!). Bring as much water and food as you can, if you do not already.

 

Another suggestion, for a taste of the western DV region, I really like the Pleasant Cyn / South Park loop. This is easily an entire day if you are going to stop and explore things on the way, and can definitely be fun as a 2 day / overnight, for time to hike and relax. Plenty of elevation change, so you can camp low or high depending on temps.

This barely scratches the surface, but a good mix of scenery, fun driving, and mining history. And I'll echo others here, better to tackle a smaller area and enjoy it, than try to rush through an elaborate itinerary of distant destinations.

 

Second Edition
Hiking Western Death Valley National Park
Panamint, Saline, and Eureka Valley
Michel Digonnet

The second edition of this incomparable resource (unless I suppose you compare it to Digonnet's other books) was released this past spring. The fact that the first edition is fourteen years old makes me feel rather ancient...

This is a very useful, but certainly not essential, update of that first edition. The degree of updating is much like the second edition of Hiking Death Valley National Park in that it has a few more hikes and has updated a variety of hikes. If you are a DV nut, especially of the northwestern part of the park, then you might enjoy getting the new edition.

I just received my copy, but have spot checked it for new content:

New Hikes

Andrews Mountain
Hunter Mountain*
Waucoba Canyon
Malpais Mesa
Talc City Hills
Sentinel Peak*
Slims Peak*
Porter Peak*
Reilly
The Lee Mine
Darwin Hills
Zinc Hill*
Stone Canyon
Mine Peak*
Water Canyon

Those with * are already covered in Mojave Desert Peaks but appear to have edited text in this book. Spot checking some of the changes are just in the Location and Access section as it can refer to other nearby hikes. In some cases the road condition descriptions are a bit different.

I can vouch for the description of Malpais Mesa as that's one of my favorite places I've visited!

Updated Hikes

I spot checked a few hikes where I knew there were changes to be made. For Marble Canyon the new edition makes it clear how rough the road is now. That wash flowed shortly after the first edition in which it suggests a sedan might get most of the way carefully. Now it indicates high clearance 4WD. McElvoy Canyon is updated to include the dramatic effects of the hundred year flood that flowed in 2012. In these few spot checks clearly all the text had some minor editorial changes besides the more substantial updates.

 

Thanks for the recommendation. I just got the book.
I’m hoping to explore DV a bit this Jan/Feb

 

No problemo. Looks the same as it ever was.

 

Did you sneak out there recently?

 

My goodness
These folks need to be made an example of…

https://news.yahoo.com/3-off-road-drivers-cited-051712978.html

 

It's a poorly written article that does not emphasize the damage and careless actions of these drivers. But you're right, they should be made an example.

 

Visitors to Badwater Basin can bear witness. When the salt-flat was soaked into a lake asshats walked into the middle/soft. From the few large footprint holes I saw standing at the shore/solid, it is bad. I wonder how many of these same asshats complain about the "stupid holes in the ground!".

 

The vast majority of IG is full of people standing on the cliff’s edge watching the ocean. For those that don’t know, the past couple of days have had heavy seas and places like Half Moon Bay, Capitola, Santa Cruz, Pismo Beach, and others, waves are cresting on the cliff. People are getting hauled into the water. Not one or two, tens. At Pismo, trailers are submerged. Trucks buried in the sand.

It just goes to show you how stupid people can be during anomalous weather conditions. I will never understand.

 

Hope that you never can.

 

I know it's cliche but there's no fixing stupid. How many warnings have been issued... God forgives, water doesn't.