Death Valley Days 2009, Patrick Report

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Wander The West Get Together in Death Valley 2009
“Pop-up Bowl – Death Valley Days”
The “Wander The West” web master, Dirty Dog (Aaron) put the idea out for Four Wheel Pop-Up camper people to get together in Death Valley National Park over the Martin Luther King Day weekend, January 17-19, 2009. We decided to give it a try. The weather in Carson City has been sunny and mild with above average temperatures this past week, to the dismay of skiers and drought-stricken folks in Nevada and California. The prediction for Death Valley is mid- to upper 70s and sunny, lows in the 40s.

Sat. 1/17 – We left Carson City at 7 a.m. and drove south on U.S. 395 to Lone Pine. We passed through the Check Station at Topaz Lake at the California border and the inspector quizzed me, “Where are you going?” “Death Valley”, “What is it about Death Valley, A whole bunch of you went through here yesterday!” After sky-high gas prices this past summer and fall (over $4 per gallon) we were happy to pay less than $2 per gallon. We continued towards Death Valley and went to Father Crowley Point to gain a view of Panamint Valley and the road below.

 

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We arrived at the rendezvous spot at Stovepipe Wells about 3 p.m. There were two 4-Wheelers already there: Marc (and his chocolate lab, Dylan) and “Simi” Mike. We visited for a while and Lawnmower Man (Russell, from Tucson) showed up. Around sunset, we saw a convoy of six 4-Wheelers coming down the hill. They pulled in and we all set up camp, including:

● Dirty Dog (Aaron, web master with his dog Diego)
● Sunman (Suni & Jessica and yellow lab Gunner)
● Deltarat (Bob and Pam with a dog that was trained to “kill” on command)
● Ted (Ted)
● Camelracer (Dick)
● Craig333 (Craig with his dog Yuma)
● Marc (Marc and lab Dillon)
● Simimike (Mike)
● Lawnmowerman (Russ)

So there were 10 rigs altogether. We had a good time visiting. Everyone seems nice and congenial (risky proposition for an internet forum meeting). It was cold overnight, maybe in the 30s. The camp fee was $12; we paid using a neat machine that takes cash (and makes change with dollar coins) or credit cards. The stars were brilliant.

 

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Some more..............

 

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Sun. 1/18 – Clear and sunny, as predicted. Craig had to leave early this morning. It took a while for everyone to get up and get ready. We all wandered around the parking lot and swapped stories and looked at tech stuff.

 

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Took a walk over to the store and read the morning report that Titus Canyon had just opened, so about 9:30 we headed there. The road was narrow but not bad. The approach to the canyon takes quite awhile. Great and dramatic views. We ate lunch at Leadville, an old mine site before entering the canyon itself, which is narrow with towering walls.

 

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some more........

 

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Some more Titus......

 

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Then we headed north towards Scotty’s Castle Junction. After paying our $20 park entrance fee, we headed to Ubehebe Crater. We were there about 3 p.m. which was a good time for pictures.

 

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Then we headed for Teakettle Junction. The park service gal at the entrance station had told us the road was, “the worst 30 miles of road in the park.” We agree; miles of bad washboard that rattled our teeth. At the crater, I noticed that our front bumper was sagging. It appears our September collision with an elk broke a weld holding on the bumper mount. After nursing the truck on the washboard road at just 6 mph, I decided to pull over and remove the bumper. That task ended up taking over an hour and a half, requiring removal of the winch wiring, pump for the shower, etc. The frame mount for the bumper has two ears and looks like a good place to mount a snow plow. The weather was great though: mild and no wind. Usually the weather is awful when there is roadside work to be done on the truck. Fortunately, a couple, James and Sara, stopped and offered to help carry the heavy bumper to the back of the truck. They are from Boston; he’s a doctor. They’re just out here for a few days and visited the Racetrack. James and I wrestled the heavy bumper into the camper, where it took up virtually all the floor space for the rest of our trip. While I was wrenching away Carol found some Cactus to shot while the sun was out.

 

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We got going again as it got dark, and found the others a couple miles east of Teakettle Junction. It was cold, in the mid-30s, and we huddled around a wonderful campfire for hours, bundled up in jackets, hats, and fleece. Lawnmower Man was comfortable in shorts – a real man! A question was presented to me on our arrival if somebody should have gone looking for us? (or maybe the road was too ruff and we bailed after telling everybody where to camp) Really we have everything we need in the truck and camper to pullover anywhere and sleep. It is a busy road so if something did serious happen, rides or word could have happened. I really like this group, to worry and concern toward a fellow wander. Slept great; all was quiet.

Mon. 1/19 – Cold morning, below freezing, but clear and little wind. Ted took off early to be back to Sacramento for dinner; he shared some good red zinfandel the past two nights with Carol. Lawnmower Man was still in shorts, despite the cold temperatures; we’ve yet to see him wear anything but shorts. Carol likes bacon and was sad to hear she missed out on Sunman passing it out.

 

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We left camp first to photograph Teakettle Junction and some Joshua trees. The light was at just the right angle (~9 a.m.?) at the junction, with both signs lit by the sun; at least one of the signs will be in the shade for the rest of the day so that was good timing.

 

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More TeaKettle.........

 

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We headed out to the south end of the Racetrack and walked out ½ mile to find some neat rocks with trails. We found two rocks that had traveled in from different directions and would have collided if they had each gone another few feet! We also found lots of rocks near the rocky hills, along with trails that started a few feet from the shore. I followed one trail from a rock for about 100 yards along a winding trail to the “beach”. You could see foot tracks in the playa that people had walked out when it was still wet. Could even see some vehicle tire tracks that they should not have done!

 

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More RaceTrack....

 

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here some more RaceTrack....

 

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Back at the parking area, only Dick, Marc, and “Dirty Dog” were left. We decided to head south over Lippincot Pass since, 1) we saw a small SUV this morning that had come in from that direction and its occupants said it was not a problem, and 2) everyone wanted to avoid the miles of horrible washboard that backtracking would involve. We left about noon and made it back to pavement about 3 p.m. Lippincot Pass was mostly downhill. It was rocky and slow and occasionally very narrow where there had been a washout. Dick came to one spot like that where one wheel dipped down a bit alarmingly. On one tight corner it seemed best for those with long wheelbases to back up and realign before continuing. You wouldn’t want to try this road after a rainstorm due to possible washouts.

 

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More Lippincot....

 

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We only met one car coming the other way, and fortunately, we were at a ridge parking area where all four of us could easily get out of the way. The road was not bad but my faint-hearted passenger did get out several times and walked – that side-to-side tilting makes her very nervous. But we’ve been on much worse. When we got off the downhill part, it looked like it would be faster, but all the way to the main Saline Valley road was rocky and slow going.

 

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The main road was often quite fast, but there were still lots of rocky areas that were a bit slower. Dirty Dog did not escape without minor rock damage to the running board. There was considerable snow and ice in many places that were north-facing, but it was not a problem. Starting a bit before the Hunter Mountain junction there were lots of big clumps of Joshua trees; once we passed the junction, we came to large expanses that were thick with them. It was cold up high. By the time we got back to pavement at about 5,000-foot elevation, the temperature had warmed to 52˚.

 

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More on way out...