Death Valley 2022/23

[DAW89446]

Loved those skies, shadows, colors and textures. As DVD says, "total eye candy."

[Beardilocks]

Finally back at it after a bit of time off.  Mostly dealing with weather and the like.  Northern DV got up to 4" of rain which took out North Hwy again.  NPS says it could be easily be weeks before it's open again.  AAAAAAAARGH!

I was camped down in the south end of the park and only got a bit of wind.  Well, a lot of wind.  But it's just... constantly been windy this winter here.  

I met back up with Brice a few days ago to knock off a few pins we had in our respective maps around Stovepipe Wells.  The first was just a canyon that I always thought looked interesting when driving by and and some interesting features on satellite.  It's the first major canyon NE of Mosaic (which is to say on the SPW side of the Mosaic Canyon Rd).  

Pretty deep wash coming out of the canyon for the small-ish area it drains.


We hiked the ridgeline to see what dangers awaited in the canyon below.  We assumed we hit an impassible dryfall early so we were looking both at obstacles and potential bypasses.  


This dryfall looked huge and completely impassible.


Looking back at SPW.


It was a really interesting canyon with lots of easy to moderate obstacles.  






Then we came to the seemingly impassible fall we had seen from above.  MUCH less imposing from ground level.  But still about 20-25ft high.  Trickiest part was that it had water flowing down it.  Not a difficult climb but definitely a bit of exposure.


Another "stop and think about it climb".  We each chose a different side and both made it.


Lots of fun shorter climbs.




We stopped at this fall.  It looked climbable, but it looked like the narrows ended here and at some point you're just climbing the mountain.


Heading back down the 20-25ft chute.


All in all an interesting short canyon that sees virtually zero traffic despite it being in such a busy area.  Definitely worth the walk in.

[DeathValleyDazed]

Love these reports and how fun it is too wander around to sites less seen. "Two desert dirt bags in a canyon is better than one stuck on a bush."

[Beardilocks]

Next up that day was an LPB (low probability bridge) not far away.  Just about a long enough drive to eat a granola bar.  I believe this one is on Kauri's map as Sculptured Canyon?

This wire was laying across the wash as we walked up.  I'm guess maybe the old telegraph line or from Skidoo?  Or a support wire?  I'll admit not knowing what telegraph wire looks like.  I'm getting old but I'm not that old.


It turns into a nice deep conglomerate canyon pretty quickly.


We found a neat tunnel made by a collapsed wall section that led to a nice slot.


There was also this beautiful red/pink section of rock.




It got very deep after a while.  Human for scale.


Finally ending abruptly at a monster dryfall.  I was guesstimating it about 75-80ft.  




It also had a really cool twist in the dryfall that made what appeared to be a bridge, but that we suspected was a toppled hoodoo.  Kauri (who has been up to the top)later confirmed that it is a rock and not a bridge.




Looking back down canyon.

[Beardilocks]

Our third hike of the day took us to Black Point on 190 towards Towne Pass.  Looking at another LPB.  

On the walk up the wash we found a rather decent saw blade.  A little WD-40 and some tooth filing....


It turns out that "Black Point" is really only black on the front edge.  And even then it's just brown desert patinated rocks.  


The snow capped mountains were beautiful and not a sight you get here much.  Here looking towards Towne Pass and I believe Pinto Mountain.


Looking towards Tucki.


We eventually made our way down to where the LPB was supposed to be.  Tight narrows for sure.  We both ended up with debris in our daypacks.  


Unfortunately, this chockstone was the LPB


More Narrows


We followed the drainage all the way back up tp the top and then took this 225ft dryfall/boulder staircase back down to the wash and back to our trucks.



I decided to take a rest day before the next hike we had planned for the day after.  Brice went out in search of yet another LPB.  Of course the one I skip out on, he actually finds a freaking bridge.  Gah!  I have all the best luck....  See his thread for details.  Although I may head out there soon to be the second dirtbag ever to see it.

[Beardilocks]

After a night camping in Cottonwood Canyon on the new permit system, we headed out to hit a few canyons that we did virtually but not entirely ZERO research for.  Including not downloading the satellite view.  Because the cell service in the valley is sh*te.   This would in no way be a problem later.  

First stop was to Humperdinck Canyon to find what we thought we remembered as being called Humperdinck Bridge.  And if that name sounds familiar, yes, there is a whole suite of Princess Bride named canyons out here named by the canyoneers.  

The approach.  This section of the Cottonwoods has some terrific granite walls.  I'm wondering if the Princess Bride naming didn't start with The Cliffs of Insanity.


Very quickly we got into some nice narrows.  






At this point we were already in trouble with the virtually but not entirely ZERO research aspect of the trip.  There were at least 4 canyons/dryfalls that all drop into the same wash.  After some poking around we decided that the one we were standing at was indeed NOT Humperdinck.  (Later research shows it to be Buttercup Canyon).


We crossed up a dryfall to a ridge only to be confronted with what might be 2-3 more "canyons".  At least the view was great.


We found ourselves confronted with Dread Pirate Roberts Canyon and Humperdinck.  Although at that time we were completely unaware of this.  Or of which was which.  Very pretty area though.


Further research later showed that the bridge was actually called Dread Pirate Roberts Bridge.  And we were on the wrong side of the mountain.  The bridge is (probably) at the top of the rappel route instead of the bottom.  Or in the middle.  Even with research we likely would have struggled to find it.  



So we moved onto the next target.  A canyon alternately called Pothole Canyon, the imaginative Canyon 7, and/or Miracle Max Canyon.  A 2.5mi circle around the mountain from where we were.  I've always wanted to check out this canyon.  From Lemoigne Rd it looks like a huge cauldron, a wide wash with steep cliff walls that just... ends.  It looks fascinating on the top as well.  The approach is a oddly dull.



Just about the time you start to think that you've hit a wildly uninspiring dead end at a massive wall, the canyon turns left ever so slightly.  And WOW.




Ropewiki lists the final rappel here (lower fall) at 105ft.  Total rappels don't equal the height of the fall in this case because if the depth of the potholes.  But I'm guessing the whole fall is 250-350ft.  Depending where you measure from.




From my understanding of it, this is the only fall of this kind in the park.  And one of the biggest pothole falls anywhere.  It's stunning.
Looking out of the lower pothole.




We had a vague memory of a trip report where you could scramble up a ridge for a better view into the potholes. But after much pointing at sketchy climbs and making dubious claims of being able to climb them, we decided to just walk out. The only way up to the ridge we could find was a looooong scramble and ridge walk from the mouth of the canyon. Which turns out is the correct way up. See Kauri's site for details and photos of that.

[Beardilocks]

I'm doing a quick follow up here as well, in part to inform people and in part to kinda show where NPS is currently with the new permitting system in these areas of the park. IE: They haven't thought it through all the way yet.

When we got back to our trucks, we both had LEO warnings for parking illegally. We were absolutely parked perfectly legally: just off the road, in a wash, not over the wilderness barrier signs, less than 2ft from the road. This is exactly where everyone parks to do these hikes.

I inquired at the SPW Ranger kiosk and the Ranger on duty was one who knows me well enough to know I would not park like an idiot. His answer was... disconcerting at best. He said that I was parked perfectly legally for any road i the park, but... Now that you need a permit to camp in Cottonwood AND need a permit to hike it, LEOs are dropping warnings on anyone parked in the area. It is NOT listed as no parking or anything of the sort. He really had no answer to this problem. His suggestion was essentially to park at the trailhead or in Stovepipe. Which is ludicrous. It would add 6mi to the roundtrip to park at the canyon mouth and 12mi round trip to park in SPW or on 190. That is not a valid answer in my opinion. He also said we might need to get a Cottonwood hiking permit to park in the parking area at the entrance of Cottonwood/Marble. That's silly because I'd be taking a permit from someone that wanted to hike Cottonwood/Marble and then NOT hiking it.

THIS ALSO APPLIES TO Echo and Hole in the Wall. So if you parked on those roads to hike you are currently in danger of getting a warning/ticket.

NPS clearly needs to sort out what is ok where and make the rules very clear and published somewhere. But I know that the number of people hiking either the Princess Bride Canyons or north to other canyons in the Cottonwoods (hidden bridge for instance) will need to park in these places.

I'm going to send an email to NPS and see if I can get a better response or advice on this matter. Having failed to find Humperdinck Bridge (since it doesn't exist lol), I might want to take another crack at that and already having been given a "warning" I would likely get a hefty fine the next time...

[Brice]

Here's a terrible photo of pothole, with a human for scale.  It's really an impressive sight.

[MojaveGeek]

Ha, I was just wondering EXACTLY the same question, about the parking, thinking specifically about Echo and Hole in Wall (Slit Canyon). I was thinking "Well I should put a note on the dash that says I am hiking and not camping and not park in a designated spot, if they are so marked..." The answer you got is absurd, of course. These are "no camping" not "no parking" areas. And if they are really meant to be "no parking" then, well better not post expletives here but it seems that closing off those portions of the park to day use is a major impact which required public comment periods.

But you did camp one night with a permit, it sounds like? How as that to get? If you need to be at the SPW ranger "station" during the few hours of the day in which that is open, well good luck with that.

Those canyons off the Cottonwood road do see canyoneering but I suspect Slit Canyon is where this tension will play out, as it is in Michel's book and for all I know probably on Alltrails too.

How was the Cottonwood Road? HC OK, or is there deep sand maybe needing 4WD.

[MojaveGeek]

OK having commented on the park service BS, now back to the hikes.

At last you post stuff I know Yes, the wires are the Rhyolite - Skidoo telegraph line. You can find a number of traces of it where you were, and there's a bunch of it behind the Mesquite Dunes, and a canyon in the Kit Fox Hills still has some of the poles. It can also be found, along with some broken insulators, heading up toward the Buttes from there. I consider it a fun find

That canyon with the monster fall at the end is very cool, been there. The next one, is that Black Point Canyon? Doesn't look quite right. That one (Kauri turned me on to it) had a rather large dump area near the bottom, and one or two stumps of poles, and then some very scenic semi-travertine falls higher up, but I did not see evidence of bridge potential going up either of the higher forks. It is scenic and a nice destination in the SPW area.

The view of Tucki is super for showing the snow line. I don't think I've ever seen so much snow so low Lots of snow there, and in the Cottonwoods.

Finally, Pothole, aka Miracle Max. Yup, Kauri's got the TR on how to get above the falls, but she talked me out of it ages ago Made it in to the Potholes last year. As you say, the last part is not so exciting and you're just about ready to write off the day as a bust, when you round the corner and... Oh!

We thought it looked like a Picasso face. Pretty awesome.

Thanks for the eye candy, the memories, and the warnings.