Death Valley in December

DVNP is the largest National Park in the lower 48. Get out and see some of it.

I have been going for 30 years and there are still some parts that are hard to get to.

I'm looking at staying at Stovepipe for most of the trip. But plan on moving to Mesquite Springs for a couple nights to make a trip to the Racetrack and Ubehebe. Might even spend a night in the suv at the dry camp past the Racetrack so I don't have to drive it in the dark to get sunrise shots.

Great pics! That's my main intent for this trip - photography.

This blog post may be of interest:

DV in the Winter

Titus was a piece of cake. Marble Canyon was pretty tricky for a newbie four wheeler (me) -- very sandy, with lots of big rocks.

We camped at Mesquite Springs -- not sure if it is open yet after the flooding a couple of years ago. If you go in the winter, pack some warm clothes:


Click For Full-Size Image.

Wonderful! I have Aguereberry on my "maybe" list. This will move it to my definite list.

That small detour by Zabriske is easy.

Last I was there west side road was easy. Harry Wade road was easy to Saratoga Springs. Cut off by Ibex Dunes was listed as deep sand... was maybe 6" max just filling the tracks.

Johnson canyon has a crux about midway that needs high clearance jeep or a spotter to get over some very large rocks. I parked and walked in.

Road to Crankshaft Junction is easy but watch your speed in the dips.

Road direct to Chloride City had some difficult spots. Narrow and steep.

Mahogany Flat was easy with no snow.

Skidoo and Aguereberry were easy. Although Skidoo has a long stretch of one lane I was happy to not meet any on coming vehicles.

Next trip I want to get to Warm Springs and Eureka Dunes.

http://npmaps.com/wp-content/uploads/death-valley-backcountry-roads-map.jpg

Thanks! I've done a lot of washboard roads with the suv, so I'm used to that. I just take it real slow!

The compressor I have is a small one - I can inflate one tire, then it has to sit for 30+ minutes. I may get a better one just to be a bit safer.

I've done death valley twice over thanksgiving though it was about 10 years ago. For Racetrack we (two vehicles are always safer) brought a CO2 tank and dropped the tire pressures down to 20 PSI. This smoothed out the washboard and we were able to cruise at a pretty comfortable speed as the low tires absorbed the washboard and kept it from transferring through the suspension and into the vehicle. On the return trip we stopped just before the paved road and aired the tires back up. You could always use an air compressor, but the little ones are super slow and may even burn out before all the tires are filled again.

I don't remember what other canyons were called but we went to and saw many of them. I don't think I ever needed four wheel drive on any of the dirt roads I was on. Though I did usually engage it just because I could.

All of those roads should be good. Check with park headquarters for current road conditions. One rainstorm can change everything. I like DV a lot but not in the village.

I did the Racetrack in April 2013 on a small dual-sport motorcycle and the washboard was mind numbing. Tea Kettle Junction: The tea kettles are removed from the sign by the park service. I saw someones picture taken about a month after mine and it had minimal kettles and nothing like when I was there.

Thanks! The Borax is fine. 20 Mule Canyon is just past Zabriskie Point. I think it is more likely to get flash floods, etc., then that the road is in bad shape.

That's what I'm hoping - that the comments are overly cautious. My tires are only a couple years old and I'm getting a new spare (the current one is OLD). I will also have a compressor, plug kit and fix-a-flats. So I think tire wise I'll be OK.