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#131785 - 14/02/05 02:46 PM Question about Death Valley, CA
loopit Offline
Member

Registered: 21/04/02
Posts: 139
Loc: Annapolis, MD
I'm going out to Vegas in another month am planning on driving out to Death Valley for a day while I'm there. Can someone who is familiar with the area tell me what things (ghost towns, cool landscapes, plants, etc.) I should check out? I have a map and the park looks really big and would appreciate any advice.

Thanks!

Jeff

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#131786 - 14/02/05 03:27 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
Anonymous
Unregistered


You got it backwards. Death Valley for vacation and Vegas for a day. The important thing to know right now is that hwy 190 between Furnace Creek and DV junction is closed (severe floods washed it out). Are you flying or driving -(rental car or Xterra in death valley)?

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#131787 - 14/02/05 03:36 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
loopit Offline
Member

Registered: 21/04/02
Posts: 139
Loc: Annapolis, MD
I'm going with family and everything's already planned out (a day in Vegas, day at the Grand Canyon/Hoover Dam, and a day in Death Valley). I just wanted to get some advice from those who are familiar with the area so I can be sure to see all the good stuff.

I was planning on taking 95 and going through Rhyolite (Ghost Town/the long way) then taking Badwater Road/127/Old Spanish Trail/160 on the way back.

I'll have an SUV rental (no Xterra) so I won't be able to do any hardcore offroading. frown

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#131788 - 14/02/05 04:47 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
Anonymous
Unregistered


Well, I think given your time and vehicular constraints, you've planned a pretty cool day. Check the morning report on the park website. If they open up Artist's Palette and Devil's Golfcourse roads (off of Badwater road) both of those are cool sites. If you want another neat day trip from Vegas, check out Valley of Fire state park (east of vegas approx. 30-45 miles). Enjoy the dez.

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#131789 - 14/02/05 05:29 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
loopit Offline
Member

Registered: 21/04/02
Posts: 139
Loc: Annapolis, MD
I was thinking about taking a morning trip out there on the day we were going to spend in Vegas. How many hours do you think it would take to see all the neat attractions out there?

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#131790 - 14/02/05 06:04 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
Axle Offline
Member

Registered: 18/03/02
Posts: 1229
Loc: Fort Carson, CO
Death Valley is HUGE. And you are talking about 4-5 hours just to get to the park border from Vegas. We've spent 14 hours driving around DV and only got to like 4 of the attractions out there. A good person to ask about DV is Logan. You can email him at xclogan at sprintpcs.com. He'd probably even take you out there and show you around.

Axle
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#131791 - 15/02/05 06:47 AM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
loopit Offline
Member

Registered: 21/04/02
Posts: 139
Loc: Annapolis, MD
I had the park send me a map and it has different routes from Vegas that you can choose from. It says the shortest route is 2 hours but I'm going to take the Ghost Town Route (160 miles) which says it's 3 hours on the way there then the Most Scenic Route (172 miles) 3 1/2 hours on the way back.

Thanks for the info, I will contact Logan.

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#131792 - 15/02/05 07:54 AM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
Anonymous
Unregistered


Quote:
Originally posted by loopit:
I was thinking about taking a morning trip out there on the day we were going to spend in Vegas. How many hours do you think it would take to see all the neat attractions out there?
Valley of Fire??? It is a much more realistic day trip than Death Valley. I remember it taking about an hour to get into the park from the strip. Might be a better option than heading to DV for a day - much less time in the car. I just didn't want to discourage anybody from seeing DV-one of my favorite places. Either option will leave you impressed. Not sure if you know this but your Death Valley plan is a leave before sunrise and get back after dark type trip.

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#131793 - 15/02/05 01:29 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
Axle Offline
Member

Registered: 18/03/02
Posts: 1229
Loc: Fort Carson, CO
You know come to think of it you can get into the park in 1 1/2 - 2 hours from Vegas. I was thinking you had to go down the 15 to Baker and go in that way. I forgot you can get on US 95(?) and head to Pahrump and go in from that way. Either way though once you get into the park it's a journey from one place to the other, especially if you want to see some of the things like the racetrack and ubehebe (sp?) crater where there are no paved roads to get there and the couple of times I've seen them the roads are extremely washboarded making the trip I don't want to say unpleasant but it definately wears on you when you do it all day long.

Axle
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#131794 - 15/02/05 08:21 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
Saline Offline
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Registered: 06/10/01
Posts: 786
Loc: Fruita , CO
DV is best enjoyed over days/weeks. You could always head over the Beatty NV route to Titus Canyon, down to the sand dunes at Stovepipe Wells, or go to Scottys Castle. Lots of driving for one day though.
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#131795 - 15/02/05 08:35 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
CCX Offline
Member

Registered: 20/03/02
Posts: 808
Loc: California
If you are able, the Titus Canyon Rd. is very scenic dirt road that is 2wd easy (unless there has been lots of rain)just call first to check on road conditions.
There also is website somewhere that gives the daily road conditions, I'll post it when I find it.


Click here for Titus Rd. info.

Edit to add road report link -

http://www.nps.gov/deva/Morning.pdf

Right now Titus Canyon is closed because of flooding. frown
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#131796 - 15/02/05 11:05 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
gmaxis Offline
Member

Registered: 21/08/00
Posts: 2179
Loc: America's Finest city
The sand dunes are also a cool sight at DVNP although off-roading is not allowed. We hiked up Telescope Peak last Spring and the top was snow covered!
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#131797 - 17/02/05 11:21 AM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
sleddog Offline
Member

Registered: 15/02/02
Posts: 54
Loc: Top of wine country
you really will need to check the morning report from the rangers office. They have been having alot of rain lately and the conditions as of late have been changing daily with dirt roads open then getting closed. The august monsoon rains caused extensive damage throughout the park and it has not been able to recover completely. Many of the "attractions" are not accessible by vehicle but rather by foot and these have been changing daily as well. Alot of what you could drive around and see, now can't be seen. Good luck with your trip. sorry to give a bum report. Don't want you to be disappointed though when you get there!

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#131798 - 17/02/05 02:12 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
buffalo Offline
Member

Registered: 20/03/02
Posts: 1049
Loc: los angeles, california
Hey Joe good to here from you, you fell off the face of the earth after west X. [Huh?]
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#131799 - 18/02/05 10:59 AM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
sleddog Offline
Member

Registered: 15/02/02
Posts: 54
Loc: Top of wine country
Well the wife and i moved to northern cal like we wanted to and i've been going to D.V. quite a bit miss the runs and the adventures with sccx but got sick of the rat race the traffic and the people. Good talking to you also!!

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#131800 - 25/02/05 10:47 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
JSRAIDER Offline
Member

Registered: 02/09/02
Posts: 219
Loc: Southern California
I couldn't agree with you more Clifton, a day in DV is just not enough. There's Scotty's castle (too far north), Titus Canyon, Ballarat (seldom seen slims grave), Barker Ranch, Devils racetrack, Dante's point, etc... Always check ahead weather and road conditions can be killer out there! Good Luck and have fun!
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#131801 - 28/02/05 11:15 AM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
Loop Choke Offline
Member

Registered: 23/11/02
Posts: 339
Loc: Peoria,IL
I agree. You definately need more than 1 day to do DVNP. THere are some good suggestions here for places to see when you are there.

Jason
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#131802 - 07/03/05 10:03 AM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
sandmanX Offline
Member

Registered: 17/09/00
Posts: 577
Loc: Ridgecrest California
Quote:
Originally posted by Loop Choke:
I agree. You definately need more than 1 day to do DVNP.
Jason
That, or live closer to it. smile
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#131803 - 09/03/05 05:41 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
XPLORx4 Offline
Member

Registered: 23/03/01
Posts: 1906
Loc: San Jose, CA
I'd have to agree with others about a visit to Death Valley. It's definitely a place to spend multiple days, even if you live closeby.

But if time isn't on your side, stick to the attractions along your route that you can see from the highway. Artist's Palette, Badwater, Devil's Golf Course, and Titus Canyon, if it's open, could easily fill up your daytime travel.

Titus Canyon is probably better seen when traveling east to west, since the entrance in NV is a fair distance from the exit. The scenery is spectacular, though.

Another really cool place (where there's even a natural spring that produces a rather large waterfall!) is Darwin Falls. That's definitely a 1/2-day event, though, since you have to do a little hiking.

If you're hoping to do spend a day in Vegas, a day in Hoover Dam/Grand Canyon, and a day in DVNP, I'm not sure how you're going to accomplish that, unless you see everything from your car, snap a photo out the window, then drive some more. Where are you starting and stopping your 3 days of travel through AZ/NV/CA?

If you've never been to Vegas, there's enough to see on the strip to fill up an entire weekend. The casinos are pretty amazing.

Hoover Dam is, for the most part, a 3 to 4-hour thing if you leave from Vegas and take the guided tour, and the south rim of the Grand Canyon is another 3.5 hours (one-way) from there.
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#131804 - 09/03/05 07:23 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
loopit Offline
Member

Registered: 21/04/02
Posts: 139
Loc: Annapolis, MD
Thanks for all the info. Here's what we have planned:

Wednesday: Vegas
Thursday: Take a helicopter tour through the Grand Canyon (leaves Vegas and lasts about 3 hours) then around Noon head down to the Hoover Dam
Friday: Drive out to Death Valley
Saturday: Vegas

Is it worth it to drive out to the Rhyolite Ghost Town? What are the best places to go for photography?

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#131805 - 09/03/05 09:45 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
dhsundance Offline
Member

Registered: 25/05/02
Posts: 88
Loc: San Diego
Quote:

Is it worth it to drive out to the Rhyolite Ghost Town? What are the best places to go for photography?[/QB]
I've always enjoyed going to Rhyolite. It also gives you the opportunity to run Titus Canyon. From what I remember it can only be run east to west.

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#131806 - 10/03/05 12:08 AM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
XPLORx4 Offline
Member

Registered: 23/03/01
Posts: 1906
Loc: San Jose, CA
Quote:
Originally posted by loopit:
Is it worth it to drive out to the Rhyolite Ghost Town? What are the best places to go for photography?
Never been to Rhyolite, but as far as photography goes, in Death Valley it's not so much where to go, it's when. Early morning and late afternoon are the times of day when you'll get the most dramatic lighting.

My favorite website containing the most current and detailed Death Valley info is this:
http://www.ridgecrest.ca.us/~matmus/DeathV.html

If it were me, I'd probably try to visit the park south-to-north as the day progresses. Titus Canyon is absolutely spectacular in the late afternoon. It's a shame that it's still closed (just checked the DV "morning report"). If it happens to open prior to your trip, it's worth a visit. It's too bad Hwy190 is closed, since you'll either have to drive in and out via Hwy95 through Beatty, which makes for a helluvalot of repeat driving, or via the southern entrance (Hwy178) via Shoshone, but if you get an early start, you should have plenty of time to make it up to Badwater before it gets too hot. Then check out Devils Golf Course, Artist's Palette (closed to vehicles, but apparently not to pedestrians; Bummer! it would be a long hike, especially if it's hot!), and the other sites along the road as you approach Furnace Creek. Stop for a snack or lunch at Furnace Creek, and watch a quick video presentation about DVNP at the visitor center. In the afternoon, you can continue north to see or play on the sand dunes near Stovepipe Wells, and then go drive Titus Canyon to experience dramatic shadows cast by the late afternoon sun. If Titus Canyon isn't open, another really neat place to check out is the Chloride Cliffs, just south of Daylight Pass on Hwy 374. Accessing the Chloride Cliffs may involve a bit of moderate 4-wheeling and some trailfinding skills, but if you consult a topo map at the visitor center first, you should be fine and will be afforded excellent views of the valley below.

Here are some pics I took on a trip to Death Valley in 1999:
Click me (please excuse the relatively poor image quality- they are scans of 35mm prints)
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#131807 - 11/03/05 01:00 PM Re: Question about Death Valley, CA
sleddog Offline
Member

Registered: 15/02/02
Posts: 54
Loc: Top of wine country
You will want to check the "morning report ".Alot of the park is still closed, however the wild flower bloom is in full swing .Great pictures can be found all over the place. Godd luck ,have fun , bring water it's been hot this week upper 80's and 90's already.

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