9 replies to this topic

[BillM]

Just finished our first week long trip in the Eagle on our 08 Frontier. (Link to pics at bottom, they look best at full screen) Dropped into Death Valley from the north off of NV266 on Sunday 5/23. Drove into Cucomungo Canyon which was signed closed due to a washout. Decided to check it out anyway and it was in great shape, had just been graded. Incredible fields of lupine throughout the entire canyon. Spent the night near the bottom of the canyon and then drove to the Eureka dunes. Hiked the dunes and actually heard them "sing" (more of a low pitched moan actually).

Headed south into Dedeckera Canyon and Steele Pass. Made it up the first step no problem but got hung up on the second. There is a steep, slick piece of bedrock that your right front tire climbs and it pushed our left rear bumper down to the ground and stopped us. Backed off a bit and did 20 minutes of shovel work then made it no problem. The rest was a tight squeeze but with my wife spotting we made it through with no damage. Dropped down into Saline Valley and camped at the Upper Warm Springs. Had a great soak and watched as thousands of bats appeared after sunset and skimmed the tub we were in to get water.

Next morning after another great soak and hot shower we headed south on the Saline Valley road. Many miles of hideous washboard took us up out of the valley to the Hunter Mountain road. Climbed east through pinyon and joshua trees and were able to replenish our cooler with snow then dropped down into Hidden Valley. It was windy but we camped in a little protected side valley with many wildflowers.

Wednesday we continued north through Hidden Valley to Teakettle Junction. Took the requisite pictures then headed south to the race track. It was dry so we hiked out onto the playa to see the wandering rocks. We had been warned not to try Lippincott but were inspired by the recent report of the 2wd Toyota that climbed it. What the hell, if they could go up it we could certainly go down! Turned out to be a non-event, it must be in as good a shape as it ever gets. We moved a few rocks in one steep loose section but overall did much less road work than we did in Steele Pass. Got back down to Saline and retraced our path south to Hunter. Went west this time and drove out to the 190 and thence to Lone Pine.

Spent Thursday sightseeing the area, mostly Manzanar and rock climbed in the Alabama Hills on Friday. Drove to LA Sat morning for a wedding then home to Reno on Sunday. Great trip and we had absolutely had no problem with our truck or camper. Looking forward to many more trips in our Eagle. We took lots of pics and I'll try to get some posted soon.

Pics at: http://dvtrip.shutte...om/pictures/9#9

[pvstoy]

Thanks Bill for the report and you must have hit the weather good.

I see Reno set a record for only the fourth time in history...The month of May that the temps did not hit 80 degrees. Summer is just around the corner!

[ski3pin]

BillM, thanks for the great report. Sounds like you two had a fine trip to some out of the way places. Can't wait to see some photos!

[SunMan]

BillM, thanks for the great report. Sounds like you two had a fine trip to some out of the way places. Can't wait to see some photos!

Thanks BillM, you sure had a nice itinerary. I have yet to conquer Steele Pass so I always enjoy reading about others who do. Got Pics?

[BillM]

Thanks BillM, you sure had a nice itinerary. I have yet to conquer Steele Pass so I always enjoy reading about others who do. Got Pics?

Just posted a link to pics in my first post above. Our Frontier is stock except we added shrockworks skidplates and slightly increased radius (1/2 inch) load range E tires. We had no problems in Steele except for the above mentioned departure angle hang-up. It is tight though and a spotter is a must. We met a guy at Saline who did it by himself and had body damage to show for it. I'd do it again at the drop of a hat to access Saline, it beats the heck out of the saline valley washboard.

[ski3pin]

BillM, thanks for sharing the great pics! We're with SunMan here, curious about getting up Steele Pass. On our last stay at Eureka Dunes we watched a full size cabover on a Chevy pickup head up into the canyon.............they looked really tired as they passed back by the dunes.

[Dughlas Stiubhart]

Thanks for the interesting report, Bill.

[BillM]

BillM, thanks for sharing the great pics! We're with SunMan here, curious about getting up Steele Pass. On our last stay at Eureka Dunes we watched a full size cabover on a Chevy pickup head up into the canyon.............they looked really tired as they passed back by the dunes.

SKI3

For a small 4WD PU with decent clearance Steele should not be a problem. We just took our time and shovelled gravel and moved rocks a few times. It is very tight though and I wouldn't want to try it in anything wider or longer than our Frontier and as I said, a spotter is a must. Once we were through Dedeckera it was no problem at all. Of course, one good thunderstorm can always change things. Overall it was a much more pleasant way into Saline than the North Pass Saline road. If I were you I'd give it a shot next time you're in the area. Cucomungo is worth checking out too.

[ski3pin]

SKI3

For a small 4WD PU with decent clearance Steele should not be a problem. We just took our time and shovelled gravel and moved rocks a few times. It is very tight though and I wouldn't want to try it in anything wider or longer than our Frontier and as I said, a spotter is a must. Once we were through Dedeckera it was no problem at all. Of course, one good thunderstorm can always change things. Overall it was a much more pleasant way into Saline than the North Pass Saline road. If I were you I'd give it a shot next time you're in the area. Cucomungo is worth checking out too.

Thanks! We'll try it. The Lady hates 4x4 rough roads as an activity - "We can walk this! We don't need to be in the truck!" But as an access to get to the kinds of destinations we enjoy, she's all for it. Thanks again.

[BillM]

Thanks Bill for the report and you must have hit the weather good.

I see Reno set a record for only the fourth time in history...The month of May that the temps did not hit 80 degrees. Summer is just around the corner!

We did get lucky on the weather, it was windy at times but temps were 70s-80s. A couple at Saline said the 2 days before we arrived it was very windy and cold.