Death Valley

[Chiefelectusn]

Going to be in the Death Valley area in mid May.
Can you drive through the park in a 40' RV with tow comfortably without problems coming from Beatty, NV to Lone Pine, CA.

[time2roll]

Very good, thank you. Easy drive for those that know their limits. JMHO.

[nevadanick]

Nothing is closed, most are afraid of the grades going west. I was there last weekend and it was 103 during the day already. I would not hesitate to go and when leaving go early am when its cooler if your worried about it. I went there on July 4th a few years ago just to experiance the heat. The high was 124 and at 9pm sitting outside the bar at Furnace Creek with a cold beer it was still 100 plus but was comfortable. If your worried about going out the west side just come in from Pahrump and leave early and go out through Beatty.

[time2roll]

Atlee wrote:
You can still stay in Death Valley with no problem, as long as you go in and out on the east side of the valley. Now, May is not the time to be staying in Death Valley.

What is closed on the 190 from the West?
I plan to go Trona to 190 to Furnace Creek very soon.

[Atlee]

You can still stay in Death Valley with no problem, as long as you go in and out on the east side of the valley. Now, May is not the time to be staying in Death Valley.

Last year, I spent 4 nights in the Valley, but it was in March.

I did the decent into the Valley via the road from Beatty, NV. I went out of the valley via CA190, and then turned south, in time, going to I15 a little before the San Bernardino Mtns. I was going to LA.

[TyroneandGladys]

Would only do it at night running the generator for roof AC and not running dash AC.

[jarviswin]

Chief, Do you know where you are staying in Pahrump yet? I happen to live there. Shoot me a pm if you want/need any intel.

Bob

[Jim_Shoe]

Three friends of mine and I drove through Death Valley on a Sunday afternoon in a Plymouth Barracuda with no A/C. That was 1967. I've still never been any hotter than that.

[lanerd]

If you're coming in from the east (pahrump) I would go on to Furnace Creek and camp there. Then use that as a base camp and use the jeep to explore the rest of the part. When leaving for good, recommend going down to Baker and I-15 (as I mentioned in my previous reply).

Have fun..

Ron

[Chiefelectusn]

Thanks to all!
I think that we will stay in Pahrump and tour Death Valley by Jeep, then either circle north or south around it to get to Lone Pine and then Lee Vining,
Smart thing to do. Thanks again.

[fireman93514]

n7bsn wrote:
I've done it towing a 5er, it was, well, cool. Rain when we went over the pass that changed to snow while we were in Lone Pine.
I don't recommend it, period.
This forum has a former CalTrans employee that strongly does not recommend it.

That retired caltrans employee would be me. May Temps in the valley will be hovering around one hundred degrees. I have seen hone hundred twenty degrees at nine in the morning. Mid seventies at night. It just isn't worth the risk. That road is hard on RV's hot brakes and overheating are common and I have seen them on fire. Help is a long way away.

[n7bsn]

I've done it towing a 5er, it was, well, cool. Rain when we went over the pass that changed to snow while we were in Lone Pine.
I don't recommend it, period.
This forum has a former CalTrans employee that strongly does not recommend it.

[jmtandem]

Be very careful going down Towne pass to the west as it can be unforgiving with curves and a relatively steep downgrade. It is not a place to have brake problems.

[lanerd]

I don't think I would recommend it.

Hwy 190 climbs from -100 ft to almost 5000 ft in a long curvy road leading to the summit of Towne's Pass. From the summit there is a 10% downgrade for about 5 miles (maybe a little more) down to the Panamint Valley floor...then once again climb up over the Cerro Gordo mts on a VERY curvy and 6+ grade before getting over to Owens Valley and Lone Pine.

Your motor home better be in tip top condition, and I'm sure it's temperature will climb sufficiently that you'll have to pull over to let it cool off.

You can by-pass this last climb (out of Panamint Springs) by taking the cut off (in the Panamint Valley floor - before you get to Panamint Springs) over to Trona and Ridgecrest to Hwy 395. There is a small climb over Slate Range just before dropping into Searles Valley and Trona. This grade is at least 6%, but it's only a couple of miles long and does have a couple of horseshoe turns.

Note my location...I'm only a few miles from there and have lived here most of my life...so I know this area quite well.

During May, I would recommend going the Trona way or as far as Stovepipe Wells, and then back track over to Furnace Creek and then go out of the park via Death Valley Junction and Baker to I-15. From there you can go west on I-15 to Barstow, Hwy 58 west to Hwy 395.

Good luck and I hope this helps..

Ron

[Lynnmor]

Chiefelectusn wrote:
Going to be in the Death Valley area in mid May.
Can you drive through the park in a 40' RV with tow comfortably without problems coming from Beatty, NV to Lone Pine, CA.

I'll be there at the same time. I might loop down around and head for Yosemite. PM me if you want to exchange ideas.