Death Valley GPS: scenic dispersed backcountry *roadside* camping?
#1
Posted 08 March 2020 - 08:11 PM
#2
Posted 08 March 2020 - 09:07 PM
Have you determined where you will enter and exit the park? That would help offering suggestions.
#3
Posted 09 March 2020 - 03:21 AM
p.s. - more info, as it is needed. Sorry to be not more specific initially
So my ambitious plan is to arrive to Panamint Springs area about 2 pm-ish…. on a Thursday. Early April coming up.
Probably best if I stop for the dinner / camp / crash out a little ways east of Panamint Springs… but ideally somewhere silent and scenic… then hit the road early the next morning.
Maybe I camp somewhere just east of Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes + adjacent Stovepipe Wells?
Things I’d love to see the next day if I can somehow squeeze it all in
Zabriskie Point
Devils Golf Course
Badwater Basin
Artists Drive / Artists Palette (at sunset)
(likely won’t have time for Dante’s View)
(likely won’t have time for Rhyolithe Ghost Town in NV outside of the park, sadly - too far north east for the time I have)
(I would love to see The Racetrack but sadly i know it is a 28 mile dirt road trip, so sadly I will not have time for it.)
Then exit out the east side on the 190 to drive 2 hours that Friday early evening… to overnight camp at Lovell Canyon. NV, near Vegas.
Thoughts? Thanks. :-)
#4
Posted 09 March 2020 - 03:28 AM
also - I just got this web link - helpful info for the area.....
https://www.nps.gov/...untry Roads.pdf
#5
Posted 09 March 2020 - 03:53 PM
That backcountry roads map shows a road heading North just East of Panamint Springs. It leads to the Panamint Dunes at about 7 miles. Anywhere along that road is decent camping. First few miles are flat, except lots of dips as you drive cross-grain over the alluvial plain. I camped about 2.2 miles in where you start getting some level, smooth playa surface next to the road. A short hike past that is an old mining road heading East up a canyon and it was a nice day hike with some old mine ruins. The drive East toward Stovepipe Wells is a long, long and steep climb up and then down again. I never found any dispersed camping near Stovepipe. I either stay one night at the park campground there, which is just a big dirt parking lot, or drive 30 minutes up the road to Cottonwood Canyon -requirement is 8 miles in for camping. The map shows a road on North side of 190 a few miles West of Stovepipe. I think that is Lamoine Canyon and I tried it but did not go very far. It has a steep drop into a wash and then I could not find where it picked up on the other side. I don't think it has been maintained for years.
For the area around Zabriski, Echo Canyon has decent camping after the required one mile. At the end of that road is one of the best mining ghost towns around. Have not been up Hole in the Wall but read it is good for camping.
Since you are going through Pahrump on the way out I should mention there is good boondocking off Wheeler Pass Road.
#6
Posted 09 March 2020 - 06:19 PM
Super helpful - thanks Bill!! :-)
(you) For the area around Zabriski, Echo Canyon has decent camping after the required one mile. At the end of that road is one of the best mining ghost towns around.
Off the top of your head, do you happen to know how long the Echo Canyon road is? I can't remember. and if you happen to recall... about how long to do that drive to the end of Echo Canyon Road? I do love mining ghost towns. :-)
That backcountry roads map shows a road heading North just East of Panamint Springs. It leads to the Panamint Dunes at about 7 miles. Anywhere along that road is decent camping. First few miles are flat, except lots of dips as you drive cross-grain over the alluvial plain. I camped about 2.2 miles in where you start getting some level, smooth playa surface next to the road. A short hike past that is an old mining road heading East up a canyon and it was a nice day hike with some old mine ruins. The drive East toward Stovepipe Wells is a long, long and steep climb up and then down again. I never found any dispersed camping near Stovepipe. I either stay one night at the park campground there, which is just a big dirt parking lot, or drive 30 minutes up the road to Cottonwood Canyon -requirement is 8 miles in for camping. The map shows a road on North side of 190 a few miles West of Stovepipe. I think that is Lamoine Canyon and I tried it but did not go very far. It has a steep drop into a wash and then I could not find where it picked up on the other side. I don't think it has been maintained for years.
For the area around Zabriski, Echo Canyon has decent camping after the required one mile. At the end of that road is one of the best mining ghost towns around. Have not been up Hole in the Wall but read it is good for camping.
Since you are going through Pahrump on the way out I should mention there is good boondocking off Wheeler Pass Road.
#7
Posted 09 March 2020 - 07:03 PM
Maybe 5 or 6 miles to the old Inyo mine. From the paved highway I think it took 45 minutes. I drive slow and have seen SUVs going twice as fast. At the 3 mile point there is a rock ledge in the road but had no trouble with my Tacoma.
#8
Posted 11 March 2020 - 12:51 AM
#9
Posted 11 March 2020 - 01:38 AM
Father Crowley Overlook on 190
Someone suggested to try to see fighter jets in Rainbow canyon Death Valley and I know that is close to Panamint Springs, but Google Maps doesnt show me clearly how to get to Rainbow canyon Death Valley...?any tips?thx
2003 Ford Ranger FX4 Level II 2013 ATC Bobcat SE "And in the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years."- Abraham Lincoln http://ski3pin.blogspot.com/
#10
Posted 11 March 2020 - 03:18 AM
We were just at the Father Crowley overlook. According to several people, they stopped flying thru there due to the recent crash. They have found more private canyons for training.
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