April Death Valley Trip

[SIZZLE]

Me, @landcrshr , and @surfpig made a trip to Death Valley a couple weeks ago. They both took their '97 LCs and I took my '97 4Runner. We were known as the Three 97s. Had a great time and the wildflowers were off the hook. Here's some pics from the trip:

Met up on Hwy 395 and then headed south. The plan was to go in through Eureka Valley and then work our way south along the east side of the park. Couldn't make it all the way to Eureka Valley the first day so tried for a cabin up Death Valley Road, but some other LCs got to it first. So we went back up the road and made camp. It was windy and cold that night. Rained after we went to bed and then froze. The next morning we could see we camped about 200 ft below the snow line.

 

[SIZZLE]

Next day we made it to Eureka Dunes. We hiked the dunes and then hung around and watched the light play on the dunes as the remaining weather swirled around us. It was a bit cold and windy, but it was a relaxing day after a bunch of driving to get there the day before.

 

[SIZZLE]

 

[SIZZLE]

The next day we drove into Death Valley proper where we got our first taste of the wildflowers. We hiked Titus Canyon since its closed to driving and then fueled up, cleaned up, and checked in with family at Furnace Creek. Got a permit to camp in Echo Canyon so that we could drive the trail the next day.

 

[SIZZLE]

Echo Canyon is a fun trail and the wildflowers were outstanding. We first poked around Inyo Mine before continuing.

 

[SIZZLE]

There are two difficult spots on the trail, one near the top of the pass and one after on the way down. The first obstacle was the more challenging. The 80s walked right up with some spotting. Sorry, I didn't get many pics because I was doing the spotting. For my little 4Runner to make it I had to use some rocks to do some road building and was able to make it first try too with @landcrshr spotting.

 

[vipergrhd]

I guess @TYM4FUN and I missed out on a beautiful trip. That is looking awesome guys.

 

[SIZZLE]

Then we came down into Armargosa Valley which was fully in bloom. We headed over to Oak Meadows to see the Death Valley pupfish just before the park closed and then headed out to camp on BLM land.

 

[SIZZLE]

The next day we drove back into the park and went up Greenwater Valley to Gold Valley. We did a hike at the end of Gold Valley and then drove the loop around a couple of peaks and that turned out to be a magical experience. The pics don't do it justice, but the flowers were everywhere!

 

[SIZZLE]

Back in Death Valley, we camped at an old cabin for our last night all together.

 

[SIZZLE]

The next morning @surfpig took off to Saline Valley for a couple more nights. @landcrshr and me started to head home, first hiking in Sidewinder Canyon for some awesome slot canyons.

 

[SIZZLE]

Heading north, it was good to see Lake Manly is still there:

It won't be there much longer...

After a quick stop at Furnace Creek again, we headed west through Panamint Valley back to 395. No pics, but the plateau west of Panamint was lush! Looked more like Hawaii than DV. It looked like a carpet of moss on the volcanic rocks. Just amazing!

We camped north of Big Pine and then I left early the next morning to hit the last leg home. Great trip!

 

[TRT2]

Thanks for sharing, looks like a great trip.

 

[surfpig]

Heading north, it was good to see Lake Manly is still there:

View attachment 3619433

It won't be there much longer...

After a quick stop at Furnace Creek again, we headed west through Panamint Valley back to 395. No pics, but the plateau west of Panamint was lush! Looked more like Hawaii than DV. It looked like a carpet of moss on the volcanic rocks. Just amazing!

We camped north of Big Pine and then I left early the next morning to hit the last leg home. Great trip!

View attachment 3619427

View attachment 3619429

That lake was glass. Never seen such a thing.

 

[clrussell]

Beautiful trip. I cannot wait to explore Death Valley

 

[TYM4FUN]

Excellent photos!

 

[landcrshr]

Thanks for putting this together @SIZZLE nice work!

Here's a few more.

 

[surfpig]

I don’t even know where to start…

 

[peesalot]

Sweet, thanks for posting, nice adventure.

 

[vipergrhd]

@SIZZLE Where is the rest of the 600 photos?
I'm sure @landcrshr and @surfpig have some more to share. Thanks for posting up, I really kicked myself for not making it.