Return to Death Valley

[Paul Wagner]

We’re just back from another adventure in Death Valley, with a stop in the Pinnacles on the way down. We hiked Condor Gulch there, saw a couple of condors roosting and camped overnight–waking up to ice on the tablecloth in the morning.  Ahem,

DAY TWO: We made it to Stovepipe Wells in time for a Zoom call (sigh) and then enjoyed the tightly packed gravel parking lot they call a campground.  It was a lovely warm evening. Our neighbors hosted a movie party for some of the neighboring campers…offset by free wifi supplied by the same Starlink connection…

DAY THREE: Marble Canyon. 12 miles rt, but some lovely narrows in the heart of the canyon, just above a chock stone with an easy hike around. Back in camp in time to wash up (m had a shower at the hotel) and a zoom call with Expedia.  The afternoon was spoiled by a generator on one side, children howling like coyotes on the other side.

DAY FOUR: Drove up to Mesquite Springs and got a campsite–winds blowing 15-25, with gusts up to 40. Hiked Red Wall Canyon until we were turned back by a dry fall.  For the second day in a row we watched fighter jets in a mock dogfight overhead, incredibly loud and impressive what they can do in those planes.

DAY FIVE: Up to cool temps and a breeze. It quickly warmed up in the sun. WE chose an unnamed canyon in the Grapevine Mountains and just hiked up until lunchtime, then back down again. We got to 3000 feet by my watch, about 3.5 miles in. It was absolutely silent…a glorious Death Valley experience. We’ll be back to backpack this one, carrying our own water…

After a nap and wash, we drove to look at Ubehebe Crater…then back to camp for dinner, and an amazing moonrise over the Grapevine Mountains

DAY SIX: Driving home, with a stop in Manzanar, the WWII Japanese internment Camp

The full trip report is here–as well as a link to the photo blogs of the hikes.

https://www.backpackthesierra.com/post/death-valley-redux

[Rex Sanders]

Jealous. Too many years since I’ve been to Death Valley. NPS has big plans for Stovepipe Wells but no money. Doubt anyone will miss the gravel parking lot campground, but the project is not ambitious there. Tough to build a nice campground right next to a large dune field – something about wind and sand …

Fighter jets: used to live “nearby” and saw all kinds of military aircraft doing crazy things just above the desert. Sonic booms were like background noise. Two stories stand out.

Watching the just-out-of-secrecy B-2 stealth bomber make low slow passes down the length of Death Valley, accompanied by a pair of fighters.

Daily airshows in Saline Valley, with test pilots swooping low, turning and banking to peer at naked bodies in the hot springs. But one evening we got the night show, with fighter jets displaying a variety of odd animated light patterns underneath.

Suddenly understood where many UFO stories could come from. Yes, it was quite obvious they were jet fighters like we’d seen and heard a few hours before. And no mind-altering substances involved.

— Rex

[Rex Sanders]

Pinnacles backpacking

In 2013, NPS completed a general management plan for the park that did not include “backcountry camping” but promised to study that after the GMP was finished. No news on that front.

Too bad, could be a great overnight trip in the cooler months, especially for people new to backpacking from the Salinas Valley.

— Rex

[Paul Wagner]

I first went there more than sixty years ago.  major changes since then.  But it’s still a great little park.  And the new campground, while much less conveniently located that the old one (which has now apparently been used for staff housing) is really nice, with lots and lots of room between campsites.

I have to admit that as a kid, I never would have thought that the Pinnacles would need a visitor shuttle…

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