Echo Canyon

[Bluegreen kayak]

Just shoveled out my driveway for the fifth time this week, and the forecast calls for negative degrees the next several days. Meanwhile, my nephew wants to do some backpacking when we're out west the end of February. I was looking at Echo Canyon for several reasons. I've never been up there and it sounds interesting. Since I don't have a vehicle that could handle the road the whole way, perhaps I could drive as far as the "rough spot" that Digonnet's book recommends, and we could hike it from there. Since we'd be following a road, I don't have to worry about route finding, bouldering, or steep elevation gains. And what could be cooler than a ghost town with a full moon?

Looking for advice and current status on the road conditions. Is there room at the spot where the road gets too much for me to pull over, so I wouldn't be blocking it for anyone else? Is it permitted to tent camp up around the Inyo mine area?

[Kauri]

What sort of vehicle would you have? Every time I've driven up the Echo Canyon wash recently (in 2015, 2016, and 2017) the gravel has been rather deep, so personally I'd even be concerned about driving it in a 4WD crossover. The good news is I recall there being a lot of good spots you can pull out and park if the road becomes too rough; but, again, deep gravel is an issue at the parking spots too.

[GowerGulch42]

Last time we went, New Years 2020 (Maybe it was Christmas 2019?) It was perfectly passable in a passenger car all the way to the Inyo Mine. It's pretty heavily used up to that point.

[DAW89446]

If you get to the Inyo Mine, I’d also take the opportunity to cross over into the other fork of Echo Canyon then hike down to the actual townsite of Schwab (many visitors confuse the Inyo with Schwab). More there than the books will tell you, though a keen eye is necessary to spot it. And it covers a large area.

[MojaveGeek]

My experience with the road is similar to GowerGulch, though I think the last time I was up there was about 2 years ago. Drive in a friend's Outback. On that trip we drove to the spot where there is a closed road leading to what is shown as Schwaub (site) on the topo, and followed that old road (which disappears fro much of the wash) up to the divide, then west along the ridge to Winters peak, and down the direct gully route back to our car. 1) that's not the spot with the cool old stuff DAW mentions - despite the name there's really nothing there. 2) The gully route is much more direct and is the preferred way to bag Winters.

We've also driven (same vehicle, different years) to the end of the road, past the mine. From there is an old RR grade to the escarpment overlooking the Amargosa valley, where apparently there used to be a winch line. There are some good petros in route (you will miss them on the walk out unless you're looking, but not on the return) and you can also head over to Schwaub Peak for a more strenuous hike.

I don't recall any signage but you may not be allowed to camp at the actual mine site - if it's not signed, it should be, but no reason not to camp in the area and stroll over to the ruins by moonlight, that would be very cool. The views from the Amargosa escarpment are awesome and its not a hard hike but definitely not a drive-in camp spot.

It is a beautiful and historic area.

[Bluegreen kayak]

What sort of vehicle would you have? Every time I've driven up the Echo Canyon wash recently (in 2015, 2016, and 2017) the gravel has been rather deep, so personally I'd even be concerned about driving it in a 4WD crossover. The good news is I recall there being a lot of good spots you can pull out and park if the road becomes too rough; but, again, deep gravel is an issue at the parking spots too.

It's 2014 Dodge Grand Caravan with over 220 thousand miles, but the tires and transmission are new! Courtesy of my last DV visit in Oct/Nov. One advantage I'll have is a strong 17 year old nephew who does have muscles. It's gravel on the road, not sand, correct? For some reason, deep sand scares me more than gravel, though I don't know why.

[Kauri]

What sort of vehicle would you have? Every time I've driven up the Echo Canyon wash recently (in 2015, 2016, and 2017) the gravel has been rather deep, so personally I'd even be concerned about driving it in a 4WD crossover. The good news is I recall there being a lot of good spots you can pull out and park if the road becomes too rough; but, again, deep gravel is an issue at the parking spots too.

It's 2014 Dodge Grand Caravan with over 220 thousand miles, but the tires and transmission are new! Courtesy of my last DV visit in Oct/Nov. One advantage I'll have is a strong 17 year old nephew who does have muscles. It's gravel on the road, not sand, correct? For some reason, deep sand scares me more than gravel, though I don't know why.

OK, good. I was a little worried you'd have a rental sedan or small crossover. Yes, it's gravel. I think you should be fine, like everyone else is saying, just re-assess as you go and stop if the road ahead looks nastier than you want to handle. 

My parents and I nearly got stuck in deep gravel in Grotto Canyon about 10 years ago, in our 3rd gen. 4Runner, but we had tackled relatively deep sand in it without much issue, so I'm the opposite of you and am actually more paranoid about deep gravel than sand. 

(Not related to the Echo Canyon road, but maybe the knowledgable folks here can chime in with info for future reference for both of us: With sand, I know that airing down tires can help prevent getting stuck, and using traction boards can help get you unstuck. Does the same hold for deep gravel?)

[DeathValleyDazed]

I always pack a quality shovel everywhere in DEVA which I've only had to use once and that was going down Lippincott Road to pass a washout safely. I probably could have made it by inches but I did not want to chance rolling down into the canyon.

You might want to get and explore the Eye of the Needle on the south shortly after entering Echo Canyon.
https://www.jeeptheusa.com/echo-canyon-i...---30.html

[MojaveGeek]

Oh you def need to check out the Eye! It may be hard to see on your approach. You swing left around the formation in a deeper part of the canyon, and then very quickly do a 180 degree turn. There's room to pull out on the back side there and you get good views of the Eye with sky being seen through it.

Based on my last two trips up there, I might take a rental sedan up, certainly I would have when a bit younger.

I'm with you on sand being scary. Losing traction and slowing into what's going to be a serious stuck, or fishtailing around in it. But as with Kauri I came much closer to being stuck driving (rental sedan, that's me!) up the Racetrack Valley road. There had been a good amount of gravel deposited from a rain event. The road has a high center and usually I deal with that by riding with one set of wheels on the center, but I could not keep it up with the loose gravel. I wanted to bail but there's a bunch of that road where there's no room to turn around, especially when you've already got traction issues. I just had to tough it out, knowing (correctly it turned out) that with gravity on my side I'd get out OK.

I think high centering is really a difficult position, but I've not had the experience (yet).

[MojaveGeek]

BTW, that description that DV Dazed posted is the whole route, up and over the ridge behind the mine and down to the Amargosa Valley. That is not a route to take without a serious vehicle.