Death Valley Off-Road Adventures

A-holes can be found everywhere and anywhere campgrounds or backcountry. My family and I base camped at Furnace Creek CG a couple years ago with our trailer and met only cool peeps from all over. Just like most places we go. Sometimes you have big groups making noise but not usually.

 

A good ass-kicking does better than Johnny Law sometimes to correct bad behavior.

 

Just know that if you're wrong, it could easily cost you. As in you're the one who goes to jail.

 

Good point. Sometimes you fight, sometimes you let assholes do as they please. Been scared sometimes, fought sometimes. You do as you think fit.

 

I'm not talking hog tieing anyone I'm talking about just airing down some tires so that when they do wake up and want to get going it's not going to happen as quickly as they'd like. Karma got these two shitbirds before they got an opportunity to hurt anyone else.

 

I’m just glad they chose to go too fast and roll their truck in the open desert down in the valley, and not on one of the tight switchbacks near North Pass when I was coming down in the opposite direction.

 

What happens when they’ve suffered a medical, are delayed in getting help?

Their Karma will come. Just don’t be responsible for it.

 

The only vehicle that has come past my trailer for 30 days is a Land Rover Discovery, and that is fine with me.

 

You never know who is packing and airing down tires makes a surprising amount of noise. Even if you get away there are plenty of other campers nearby to be blamed, assaulted or caught in a line of fire. Don’t escalate things, it is never worth the risk. You may think only you are taking the risk but in reality you are putting other people at risk too in this particular situation.

In this case it is a long ass way to the highway before the DUI morons can really put people at risk, there is cell coverage at the springs and Lee also has a radio to call NPS. If you see them leave the springs DUI they aren't getting away. Phone it in.

In general it is always worth remembering that as a functioning member of society with reasonable income and savings that you have way more to lose than most any criminal idiot you stumble across. For the criminal idiot the incident is merely yet another stay paid for by the taxpayer along with probably their only access to medical and dental care until they get arrested again. For you the incident is potentially life altering - even if you don't get injured or killed in the process.

If you ever start to think your middle name is Karma just count to ten, walk away, drive away, etc.

 

Sir, your rationality has no place on the internet. Go away so the illogical internet-tough-guy, chest beating, and wild-west-shootem-uppers can continue.

 

Have any of you ever encountered any members of the ancient and honorable order of E. Clampus Vitus?

 

Never have, but have sometimes been tempted to join. But I’m only 61, which I think is far too young to be a Clamper. So I’ll wait 10 or 15 more years ...

 

One of my buddies, Serenity Sid, is a long time member. Sid's a crusty old son-of-a-bitch, and I wonder if his compatriots are too.

 

There's young ones my brother was initiated when he was in his 30s. He was involved in the northern Cal chapter inside the bay area but has since moved away to another state.

I learned of them because of all of their plaques that they placed in in and around California and Nevada

Very cool! Sounds like my kind of guy.

 

drove Titus canyon in the rental Ram last week. Was a few 'interesting' spots that I would have felt better in the Tacoma, amazingly not far behind me was a Pontiac g6 coupe that made it through - though we later saw them back in Stovepipe Wells putting on a spare tire.

 

Just wow. A coupe. I do recall one hairy 6-8" or so shelf you have to drop off, though I suppose the conditions may have changed or there may have been a better line to be taken. Pretty vanilla trail, epic sights. But to risk it in a coupe is silly. They could have easily gotten two flats on the run and would have required assistance. Dummys.

 

the drop about a quarter mile past Leadville? Yeah, my friend ripped the $hit out of the plastic running board on the suburban he had as a rental when he tried to cut right then left over the drop, I had him spot me and I made it through that spot without a scratch or scrape - we still don't know how the little Pontiac made it through there. I suspect with lots of scrapes in the undercarriage.

 

Yes that's the one. I didn't even get out to survey it, it sort of snuck up on me. Couldn't imagine a sedan making it without serious damage/highpointing.

 

They do a great job marking significant places in CA. Pretty awesome.

 

The first time I actually got into Titus Canyon (I posted previously about my failed attempt on a motorcycle in 1984) I just drove our Prius from inside the park, to the parking lot at the exit of the one-way section and hiked into the Canyon. As I recall, that section of road was a mile or two of smooth dirt. When we pulled in, a guy getting out of a Lexus crossover commented in surprise that I had made it in OK in a Prius. Kinda like I was surprised to see the Prius in Saline last week. The only time I’ve ever gone all the way through the Canyon was when I had a Forester and it seemed easy ... I don’t recall any drop near Leadfield. That was about 5 years ago.