Death Valley

Mesquite Springs campground is great -- very quiet, great stars. Ubehebe Crater is right nearby.

time2roll wrote:

pigman1 wrote:
Repairs at Scotty's Castle are just unbelievable. Damage occurred in 2015 and they are now not expecting to re-open until 2020. Five years??? My God, are they using a child's beach shovel and a toothbrush? We were in the valley last year and never saw any evidence of anyone lifting a finger. Then again, it's the Federal Government. Why am I not surprised?

It is a historic building. The method of repair needs to be authentic. Sure it could be repaired in 30 days just slapping on some white stucco and tile. Then the future tours would just cover the lame repairs.

Read the reviews. Relatively little damage to the historical buildings. More problems with road, drainage, visitor center and power. Still, 5 years??? It was pushed from 4 years to 5 recently. When we were there a year ago there was ABSOLUTELY NO EVIDENCE THAT ANYTHING WAS GOING ON UP THERE, and that anything had been going on for some time. As I said, they must be using teaspoons to build the road. LA Times indicated it took over a YEAR just to design the new road. Your Government Efficiency at work!

Mesquite Spring Campground looks to be an excellent choice - normally - but it may be closed at this time, possibly due to flood damage.

Check here: https://www.outdoorproject.com/adventures/california/camping/mesquite-spring-campground

Mesquite Springs Campground is still closed. We just spend 4 nights at the dry campground at Stovepipe Wells, gas is cheaper too and we think it's less crowded than Furnace Creek.

If you are interested in a great dry campsite just outside the park on the south end, from Shoshone, CA, go north on California Highway 128 two or three miles to California Highway 178 and head west.

Go approximately 6.8 miles and turn left onto the excellent graded gravel road (Furnace Creek Road). Go south about 2 miles and you will note a large flat area with vehicle tracks going off to your left towards a butte. That's it!

There are more sites on along the Furnace Creek Road south of Shoshone, but they are more heavily used and you may have to drive up the road further to find a spot you like.

Happy Camping!

donn0128 wrote:
From what Ive read most of the park is closed, so good luck finding a spot.

Where did you hear this?

I stayed at Furnace Creek for 3 days at the end of October without reservations - asked for 3 days & there were only 3 sites available (all dry), and only one would fit your trailer. Many more were available for 1 night stays. My favorite Death Valley campground Texas Springs (No Generators) was closed as was Sunset. I was told they may open later in the year - one ranger said they were closed because of poor scheduling; not enough maintenance people, another said it was due to budget.

Since the park gets more popular as it cools off, I'd check to see what is available.

Just look at the website link.

Thanks guys. We are headed out tomorrow and it looks like we will have to stay around the Furnace Creek area since my parents will be staying at the Inn. I guess I will have to find some 1st come, 1st serve campground and hopefully my dog will be welcome too. I just got a new Harbor Freight 3500 generator inverter that is similar to the the Honda 3000 and I am really anxious to try it out. Seems to be very quiet. OK, I will give you a status report when I get back.

I think there are a few spots at the Inn. Have you called to inquire?