Death Valley Off-Road Adventures

This is awesome info thank you very much. I have a roof top tent and would much rather camp dispersed than in a campground so the camping suggestions you gave are great.

I am going to try to have 5-10 gallons of extra gas with me too. I'm not a stranger to the desert, living in Nevada and many of the places I go are many miles from the closest town, just not as hot. I may try to pick up a Spot for this trip, I've been wanting one anyway. But I also have my ham radio.

 

I'll try to get some video. Honestly it looks like a cakewalk compared to some of the stuff I've already taken the stock taco through. These trucks are insanely capable off-road in their stock form.

 

Delorme and Garmin just converged, you might look at what they have. Spot will only send a distress, besides tracking of course.
I have an inreach by Delorme, it can send messages,too.

 

I drove Lippencott with my mostly stock Taco last March. It wasn't that difficult, although there were a couple of spots that were a little hairy, but if you keep moving you'll be fine.

I have an InReach. Never had to use it, but I've read stories of folks that have and it seems pretty foolproof.

 

@TheSaint
I have tracked with mine, and come home to see where I have been.
I have also sent messages to friends (email addresses & cell numbers) when there was NO cell coverage. The message includes a link to a map showing the location. A reply can be made easily, too.
It isn't instant, it takes time for the messages to get in or out. But I really like it.
I can only imagine what is in store with the joint venture of DeLorme & Garmin.

Oh, I got it for 50 at an REI Garage sale.

 

The InReach is cool but now that Garmin owns them they are $400 for the cheaper model. The Spot is only $149. Although the 2 way messaging is really nice I think I would only use it for an emergency.

Plus it looks like the new Spots have a button specifically for car trouble where it will send a message to your contacts saying you're broke down and where.

 

You can make it to the springs in one day and enjoy the afternoon there. Next morning do Lippincott, the Racetrack, Ubehebe, and make it to DV proper(Furnace Creek/Stovepipe Wells) and make camp how you see fit. Lots of options. Next day see some of the main stuff in DV proper or head out to Wildrose and see the Charcol Kilns and check out Mohagany Flats. You can either camp there or head down to Panamint Springs Resort which as noted earlier does have good food. Camping is $10 and breakfast buffet is $10. They have showers too. After that head out via 190 westbound to Owens Valley and stop by Father Crowley Point and see Rainbow Canyon.

Since DV is the largest NP in the lower 48 options for a first trip are open. So much to see and do.

 

Research reviews of the Spot. I did and chose not to get one. YMMV.

 

I've used Spot for a number of years. It works well for my uses. With Spot you can send one of four messages: OK, Custom, Vehicle Help and SOS.

The SOS message is special in that it bypasses your recipients and is sent to SAR provoking a response equivalent to a EPIRB call. It also transmits continuously once activated until the batteries die in SOS mode.

The other three messages are completely up to you. I use OK as an "OK and with my truck" ping to give location and my wife knows if she doesn't hear one in 24 hours something may be wrong and worth calling appropriate authorities for a welfare check (I try to transmit a couple every 8 hours to prevent false alarms). I used the Custom as an "I'm OK and hiking" ping and my wife knows if she doesn't see an "OK and with my truck" by evening then something may be really wrong and authorities should be informed I have not returned from a day hike. I use the vehicle one to indicate I'm stuck and need non-emergency assistance (fortunately have not had to use yet). These messages are sent automatically by the device three times over 15 minutes to have the best chance of getting through. I've never had one of these messages not get through when transmitted though I usually am careful to transmit in a fairly clear sky. Almost all that I've monitored live have sent an email within two minutes of starting the transmission. I've had one or two where it appeared it was the second transmission the device sent of the three message burst that was the first to get through (so after about 8 minutes).

I see complaints with Spot from people under a canopy. Those are the users who seem to get missed messages. Also either the 1st or 2nd gen device had a design flaw early in production and they did a recall to replace all those devices. Lot of unhappy users with that batch of defective units. Lastly trying to discontinue your service is apparently very annoying and akin to your worse customer experiences with cell phone and cable companies.

An EPIRB/PLB is the most reliable true life threatening emergency beacon. This is because of both the device and the satellite network used to receive the beacon. An EPIRB transmits continuously once activated and this is initially detected by a dedicated satellite network. InReach and Spot depend on the unit coming up with a GPS fix and then transmitting the GPS coordinates. EPIRB while it does have a GPS to do the same does not require it at all, the SARSAT constellation can determine the beacon location using a synthetic aperture technique so that if the beacon does not have GPS coverage (e.g. in a slot canyon) SAR still has a decent position fix on you. Once close SAR can direction find on the beacon itself. Units a bit more pricey but no service plan at all - free to use forever. Life threatening emergency rescue request only though - it does one thing very, very well but does really nothing else.

InReach should *in theory* be very reliable as it uses Iridium which provides global coverage and has a more robust topology for getting a message out than GlobalStar which is what Spot uses. From reviews it appears the reality is far different from that because the devices are hunks of shit with even worse software. Multiple user reports with firmware having to be updated frequently or comms don't work and then the firmware installs fail or device fails to connect after the required FW update. None of this seems to be related to Iridium messaging itself - which I know is extremely reliable - but rather the InReach devices being unreliable and their software fairly hopeless. Like most consumer things this falls into the "works fine for most but fails completely for some" types of failures. The one star review rate on Amazon is 14% which is extremely high.

Right now I carry both a Spot and an EPIRB. Spot serves to make my wife feel better but also provides a recent location should something happen to me that renders me unconscious or disoriented to the point I can't operate these aides or get into a situation where they don't work reliably. You might laugh but I know a guy who got exactly into a situation where he was beyond being able to operate a beacon and was fortunately found unconscious within about half a day by passers by. Really the Spot should probably be good enough for an SOS but being a belt and suspenders kind of person who does satellite comms for a living I recognize the EPIRB is the most robust and reliable option should things really go bad. The ACR ResQLink PLB weighs 4.6 ozs and is the size of an old flip phone so I feel fine having it on my always.

I really like the InReach concept but execution seems lacking. Spot is by no means perfect reliability either based on user reviews but it is not a victim of its own firmware updates as InReach apparently is. EPIRB/PLB is the most reliable option but being an emergency only device is a limitation of its own.

 

Rainbow Canyon......I've spent some time there......

 

Yep, been to the point. First time there I was not aware of the aircraft activity and I was standing at the edge looking east at the highway switchbacks running like snakes when a pair of F18's, probably from China Lake, screamed overhead and by me. Now! I was aircrew in the Navy, many years flying off carrier (USS America), so I don't scare easily, but I tell you that I almost fell off the point that day. That honcho must have had a good time at the officers club at my expense that night!

 

Did you call the commanding officer and bitch about spilling your coffee?

 

No, but I nearly had to requisition some new skivies !

 

I could sit in the same spot and watch the aircraft in the skies above DV for hours.

 

If you camp at the racetrack, sometimes they'll roar over head as they pull up from there.

 

I like the EPIRB idea. It looks like I can get a small one for about $250. With a 10 year shelf life and no subscription fee it is cheaper than the SPOT.

 

There are places the SPOT has no signal and there are plenty of stories of folks that thought the SPOT would bring help and didn't. The beauty is it lets family follow your travel and if you do end up needing help and cannot activate the spot, that information could be helpful. If EPIRB doesn't activate, there is no signal. If the SPOT is active and you don't move, someone will notice. Not so sure about InReach as I don't own one but comparatively, it's more like SPOT than EPIRB.

 

A buddy and I did a loop back in Januray from Panamint Springs Resort to Saline Valley Warm Springs, then back down to Lippincott and went up that to Racetrack, then out past Teakettle Junction and Ubehebe Crater, and headed back to the resort from there. It took us about 9-10 hours with plenty of stopping and looking around. Oh, almost forgot to mention...we did this in a rented Hyundai Santa Fe. There were a couple spots on Lippincott where we had a tire a foot in the air. The next day we drove from the resort to Darwin Falls, then took the Old Toll Road into the back side of Darwin. It was a pretty fun weekend.

 

Found some interesting tidbits about PSR's history...

 

Im stoked that I have another trip to Death Valley on the books! Gonna head out on Friday and meet my buddy at the Saline warm springs. Saturday we will head north thru Steele pass and camp at Eureka Dunes. Sunday we will loop around and do Titus Canyon if it's open. Any suggestions on what to do/where to go if Titus isn't open? Heading home on Monday. Too short but better than nothing.