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Thread: 20140131(JAN31) Death valley

  1. #1

    20140131(JAN31) Death valley

    Time to go see things again. Trying to get there before land use issues get worse. Anyone who has gone on other runs with me knows I often have a loose(to say it politely) plan when going places I have never been before. This will be another one of those loosely planed trips so the below itinerary is at this time "Plan A". Also at this time the Harry wade road is closed as well as several others after the flooding. I dont know about ducking the ropes in DV...We may very well be limited to whats "open" and with budgets the way they are who knows when things will be open again. The last trip left unfinished business. This trip will correct that and close out the far southern tip of the DVNP.

    Difficulty: 3- trail-rating

    When/Where: JAN31-FEB2 Meeting courds sent via email.
    CB channel:14
    FRMS/GRMS channel:15 (bring two radios to share with a CB equipped rig)
    2M HAM: UY simplex primary 146.430MHZ
    Monitor 146.52 (National Simplex Calling Frequency)
    70CM HAM: as needed
    Repeters:not sure any of these are good...
    146.970 PL 123
    147.060 PL 100
    147.210
    442.300 PL 131.8
    Mount Potosi 146.880 -100.0
    Table Mtn 145.280 -131.8
    Table Mtn 447.200 -94.8
    145.3400 ? pl 100 "this covers most of panamint and high locations in the Inyos."
    mazourka 146.7600 ? pl 100 "covers almost all of saline and the inyos."

    Itinerary subject to large changes:
    google earth file ---> FEB trip.zip
    Overview picture below
    feb trip.jpg
    DAY1
    Pleasant Canyon 930ishAM start up to the closed bridge and back.
    Camping at dusk possibly by a cabin if one is open.
    Day 2
    Start 8am
    head down pleasent canyon
    Stop in at Ballrat and say hi to the Rockie who looks over the place.
    up Goler canyon and over Mengel pass
    Camp at dusk possibly by cabin if one is open.
    Day3
    Start 8am
    Harry Wade rd
    Saratoga springs (pup fish and a historic mule team watering hole)
    Ibex dunes (cant drive on them)
    Ibex mine
    lunch in Baker(Mad Greek? Sooo good!)


    Travel times:
    San Bernadino to Trona- 2.3 hours
    Palmdale to Trona- 2 hours
    Las Vegas to Trona- 4 hours

    Requirements:
    -Working reliable Truck. Recovery's out there can cost 1k in towing fee's easily.
    -4x4 (This is bat country)

    -32" tires
    -AT or MT tires for rock protection. No exceptions
    -Spare tire within 3" of other tires
    -Tools
    -Recovery points front and rear
    -tow strap without hooks
    -Clothing/food/water/fuel for Three days in DV. (remember the nights could be cold)
    -first aid kit.
    -ok with severe paint scratches and undercarriage rash at a minimum(very likely to scuff your puma's)

    Recommended:
    -33" tires
    -Rear locker
    -Flashlights for mines
    -wood for cabin stoves or fire pits.
    -cot for sleeping in Cabins. Hanta virus is possible though not likely.

    Should be the worst part, but this was before the last rains. Overall it looks better then when we went down it last time.


    Fuel requirements:
    Minimum fuel requirements ~210 miles from gas station to gas station
    The availability of gas in DV is not 100% reliable and they charge 1-2 dollars more per gallon then normal. Figure in off-road mileage too. EX I get about 10-12 mpg off-road.
    *Trona (on the way in Panimint valley)
    *Shoshone (a little north of where we will be back on pavement sunday noon)

    Camping requirements:
    Primitive camping. Pack it in/Pack it out.



    Weather info and conditions:
    http://www.nps.gov/deva/loader.cfm?c...&pageid=439529
    https://www.facebook.com/DeathValleyRoadConditions
    http://www.nps.gov/deva/upload/Morning-Report.pdf
    http://www.death.valley.national-park.com/weather.htm
    Febuary will be mild to chilly during the day and down right cold at night. Expect a bit of snow in some higher elevations we may visit.

    limit:
    for camping purpose the limit is 4 vehicles (more planing available for larger numbers)
    1. Troy
    2. JD and Fam?
    3. Mike UE
    4. Dave UE
    5. John possibly
    Last edited by troyboy162; 01-27-2014 at 05:58 AM.

  2. #2
    Cool, so far that's a good weekend for me. I'm very interested - the Panamint tour was a fun time and I'd like to explore more of DV.

  3. #3
    Not sure if I'll be around then, but sounds fun! DV is an awesome park.

    Do you know what roads/trails you'll be taking?
    -Daniel2000 4Runner Sport | V6 | 5spd | 4x4 | Leather | 265/75-16 BFG AT/KO | OBA | BudBuilt front skid

    1990 4Runner SR5 | V6 | Auto | 2wd | 3.90 rear | Cobra CB | 265/65r17 Bridgestone Duelers H/Ts | '08 Tacoma 5 spoke rims | Has an 11:1 crawl ratio! SOLD

  4. #4
    Great JD!
    Not really sure where I want to go yet. Theres enough in the Panimints to go there again, but I am hoping the bridge on the south park loop will be open again someday in the next couple years. People are fighting hard to re-open that trail to full sized vehicles.

    I know it was a real bummer to drop down mengle pass and have to come back up. It looked like a whole journey was on the other side just waiting to start.

  5. #5
    I agree. Maybe we just head straight to Mengel and do the pass and beyond. There's an entire VALLEY (I think it's called Bad Idea, or Wound or.... DEATH Valley!) out there to explore!
    But we've got some time till then to figure out options.

  6. #6
    haha I know it JD way too much to see out there! I thre this together. It seems a bit optimistic on mileage but a jeep club covered more terrain per day on a 4 day trip. Sunday would be a early day since its a huge drive home.

    possible route:
    day 1 62.8 dirt 41 miles pavment
    Ballarat start
    gohler canyon
    mengle pass
    warm springs camp
    pavment for 41 miles
    badwater
    devils golf course
    Back on the dirt
    echo canyon
    eye of the needle
    Inyo mine for camp

    day2 51.8 dirt 39.4 pavment
    Lee camp road
    ryolite ghost town
    red pass
    leadfield
    titus canyon
    stove pipe wells
    Camping in ghrotto canyon

    day 3 14 dirt 61 pavement
    panminit springs
    darwin falls
    Darwin "Ghost town"
    out to 395
    Last edited by troyboy162; 09-20-2013 at 12:52 AM.

  7. #7
    3 days exploring anywhere in the dirt sounds awesome to me!

  8. #8
    I'm in. With a fearless leader like Troy, what could go wrong?

    Underground Explorers
    Abandoned Mine Exploration
    www.undergroundexplorers.com
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  9. #9
    lol great night! I bet we will have similar winds this time too. The more I read, the more I hear about the east side of the panimints and crazy dusk winds. The top post is being edited with more info

  10. #10
    I like the outline of the second itinerary.

    Getting a cabin on the weekend is unlikely but if we tried to stay in one Thursday night we'd probably be successful.
    Underground Explorers
    Abandoned Mine Exploration
    www.undergroundexplorers.com
    www.facebook.com/undergroundexplorers

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