Death Valley Off-Road Adventures

Is there another path on this trail to avoid this spot or is this it?

 

There is an easier line to the left. A full size long bed Dodge Ram with side steps went through after us with no problem

 

Ah, cool that explains it. I remember now there are a few wide spots where you have more than one path to chose. Now that you mention it I think I remember this area. I think the other option - the one I usually take - is a relatively narrow and short dry fall but one that risks side body damage for wider trucks.

Anyway, hope you had a great trip! Been almost a year since I was through Steel Pass.

 

This was the picture I intended to post and not the other one..

 

..amazed at how much effort someone put into filling some potholes .last fall 2016

 

I believe I saw you guys at Wildrose Thursday night! I ended up staying there on my way out of DV due to mechanical concerns, I didn't want to push my luck in the back-country.

I went from Eureka sand dunes over steel pass to warm springs, started getting some bad front end noises on the way to Lippincott pass so went into Panamint Springs to re-fuel and pull the front driver wheel off and check out what might be wrong.

Spent the night at Lee Flat, headed back to Lippincott and Racetrack, spent the night at homestake which was great since I shot till after dark at the Racetrack.

Headed out to Ubehebe Crater and explored some of the more touristy places, hated all the people and went to Wildrose so I could head back home the next day.

Great trip! can't wait to come back someday! I was surprised at all the dogs in the backcountry, I thought they weren't allowed. Some dude let his dog run around the playa and didn't pick up the shit pile his dog took.

 

Yeah heading up Steel pass from Urekea wasn't that difficult, it would have been nice to have had a spotter though.

 

That was us! I wish Mahogany Flats was open but Wildrose was nice too. I learned that Death Valley's campgrounds consist of dirt parking lots and slightly nicer dirt parking lots. We stopped at Furnace Creek campground and both thought it looked like a refugee camp so we pressed on to Wildrose. I wanted to check out the charcoal kilns anyway.

 

They aren't. And they are extremely disruptive to wildlife that is already barely hanging on by a thread. Someone's pooch takes a piss and wildlife will avoid that area for days and days even if near the only water.

But hey, when has your average asshole given a fuck about the rules and general courtesy when it impacts what they want to do right now?

 

all the rock stacking on Mengel Pass was even worse than Steele Pass this past weekend, much worse than it was a few months ago when I was last there

 

Nice shot. At least that ledge has some step down to it. I'm guessing you had a different rear bumper since you cut the bedsides!
Nice pics and reports by everyone lately.

 

My girlfriend and I stayed at Furnace Creek for one night on our way through to Zion and it sucked, basically a parking lot with small dirt patches for tents and bitchy, loud "campers." We must have gotten lucky even with it being in October since we rolled in around 8 and found a camping spot.

"Whats one dog going to hurt?" yet when everyone thinks the same thing its no longer one dog it's thousands a year. I normally take my dog on all my trips and work around where we can and can not go but since this is a national park and the rules clearly stated no dogs, he stayed home.

Honestly the dude who walked right past the big NO DOGS sign at Racetrack and let his dog tear around for an hour, even harassing other people and clearly out of control really pissed me off.

 

Thanks..

That's prior damage done to the bedsides before I got that rear bumper. It was best to just cut the damaged sections off..

 

I hate Furnace Creek. In thirty years of visiting Death Valley I can count on one hand the number of times we've even stopped there. Never actually stayed at the Furnace Creek campground at all. We've stayed at Texas Springs a couple of times, but even that is a zoo as you get later into spring. The more you can avoid camping on the valley floor, the better your trip will be.

Well, your question is a little open-ended. How long are you going for? Do you want to see the tourist sites? Do you want to hike/backpack? Do you want to wheel? If you ask specific questions you'll get specific answers.

 

LOL he deleted his query after you quoted him.
This is 77 pages of information that he didn't bother with. Oh well.

 

Should have seen how crowded Saline Hot Springs were over the weekend, we decided to continue on through to the Sand Dunes and found it just as crowded. The largest camp had a giant tent and a Large rental truck parked next to it.

 

I was in Saline last week and it wasn't bad but it wasn't the weekend. Previously I knew it was to be avoided during springtime weekends. Now I'll avoid it during the spring due to the noseeums. Fall and Winter for me.

 

Weird. He did respond, saw it briefly, seemed pretty reasonable, but then he went back and deleted it all. I'm a pretty easy-going guy, I actually enjoy answering questions and telling old stories if I have the time. Well, we're still here if he has questions.

This is why I try to go in the dead of winter. It's colder, but the cold keeps most folks away. The latest I've been is about the middle of March, and that trip was way too crowded for my tastes.

 

Hahaha its like they are moving in or something, in Kauai last month I saw a guy using a rental moving van as camper which I thought was pretty brilliant. Eureka wasn't overly crowded last week when I was there, I don't think most people realize that there is lots of camping just past the main area.

 

eureka dunes on my way out. dog on a leash and inside the cab.