By far, the best first person account on the missing Germans I’ve read. A bit dry, lengthy but highly addictive.

https://www.otherhand.org/home-page/sear...y-germans/

I updated my last post with a couple more roads I forgot about when I I was making my list.

* Pleasant Canyon, several times to Claire Camp, and up to the Porter Mine gate and overlook into Happy Canyon.

* South Park Canyon, several times to Briggs camp, the bridge, Chicken Rock, South Park.

* Pleasant Canyon/South Park Loop, one time for the complete loop.

(2020-09-30, 03:12 PM)netllama Wrote: Never underestimate the determination of a van full of Germans.

They were no pansies driving their Panzer into oblivion!

Furthest from a road I’ve been would be the Wingate slots/Never ending cyn area but it’s relatively easy hiking to get there. The lower cyn and main side cyn of Dry Bone combine a potentially unrivaled combo of distance and brutal terrain, but I haven’t made that hike yet.

Going up the Dry Bone wash, heading southwest up the unnamed canyon, and approaching the opening to Upper Big Fall from the north was the furthest away from civilization I've felt.

Somewhere near here:

https://caltopo.com/map.html#ll=36.71209...z=15&b=mbt

(2020-10-03, 09:13 AM)bbbb Wrote:  the furthest away from civilization I've felt. Somewhere near here:

https://caltopo.com/map.html#ll=36.71209...z=15&b=mbt

I just noticed how caltopo lists way more benchmarks than Google Earth which provides even more hiking destinations and helps locate past destinations. As usual I'm slow to catch on because MojaveGeek's use of "Borax Benchmark" way back when I first joined the forum seven years ago was the first I'd heard of "benchmark" related to Death Valley. Duh!

Just for fun here's a list of DEVA benchmarks from Caltopo. I may have missed some? I've only been to a very few of these. (*)

Artists Benchmark*
Between Benchmark
Blacktop Benchmark
Borax Benchmark*
Boundary Benchmark
Brass Benchmark
Cameo Benchmark
Cottonwood Benchmark
Cowhorn Benchmark
Coyote Benchmark
Darwin Benchmark
Devare Benchmark
Goldbelt Benchmark
High Benchmark
Hunt Benchmark
Ibex Benchmark
Leaning Benchmark
Lost Burro Benchmark 
Marble Benchmark
McClain Benchmark
Mill Benchmark
Myers Benchmark
Owl Benchmark
Park Benchmark
Ryan Benchmark* 
Sharp Benchmark
Spring Benchmark
Vine Benchmark
Warm Benchmark
Zinc Benchmark

(2020-10-03, 10:25 AM)DeathValleyDazed Wrote: I just noticed how caltopo lists way more benchmarks than Google Earth which provides even more hiking destinations and helps locate past destinations. As usual I'm slow to catch on because MojaveGeek's use of "Borax Benchmark" way back when I first joined the forum seven years ago was the first I'd heard of "benchmark" related to Death Valley. Duh!

Just for fun here's a list of DEVA benchmarks from Caltopo. I may have missed some? I've only been to a very few of these. (*)

Artists Benchmark*
Between Benchmark
Blacktop Benchmark
Borax Benchmark*
Boundary Benchmark
Brass Benchmark
Cameo Benchmark
Cottonwood Benchmark
Cowhorn Benchmark
Coyote Benchmark
Darwin Benchmark
Devare Benchmark
Goldbelt Benchmark
High Benchmark
Hunt Benchmark
Ibex Benchmark
Leaning Benchmark
Lost Burro Benchmark 
Marble Benchmark
McClain Benchmark
Mill Benchmark
Myers Benchmark
Owl Benchmark
Park Benchmark
Ryan Benchmark* 
Sharp Benchmark
Spring Benchmark
Vine Benchmark
Warm Benchmark
Zinc Benchmark

Nice! I think most of these benchmarks are on the NPS DEVA High Points list, but this is testing my memory so I'll have to double-check. 

(I admittedly have visited very few of these benchmarks; which means I need to get back to the park soon.)

I highly recommend you check out Cottonwood Benchmark. The views are incredible from the top, and I think you'll enjoy the shortcut/scramble route.

I think this is an interesting topic because there’s so many ways to define remote. Some parts of the park/region just feel lonelier than others as well.

Some of the canyons that lead deep into the Inyos from Saline Valley feel extremely wild. Although that just steps over the bounds of the park.

I agree that Owlshead region is probable about as far as you can get from other humans by vehicle, thanks in part to the military base and low traffic. I think the area btw the repeater and Butte Valley is maybe the least traveled area in modern times. Probably because there’s not much out there. I wish Wingate Wash was still open to 4wd but I may attempt to hike part of it someday.

Dry Mountain/Round Valley seems very wild. I’d love to thru-hike Corridor to Saline Valley someday.

I thru-hiked Aguereberry to Furnace and that’s an interesting example of feeling extremely wild and untouched but basically having the Oasis in sight the whole way.

I did Dry Bone thru solo and that was an intense (and probably stupid) experience. Very remote and very wild. Amazing to come down out of that deep canyon and then hike the valley floor. One of the rare times I’ve felt truly alone.

I would also love to thru hike from Jackass Canyon in northern Saline valley to Hidden Dunes. That’s a very remote feeling area as well.

I also feel that hiking deep into the Northern Cottonwoods from White Top road would be extremely wild. Towards Tin Mountain to Rest Spring or Heart of Stone Canyon.

Also the old Skookum Mine road up into the Last Chance and they to Steele Pass looks fun.

(2021-08-24, 08:21 AM)Beardilocks Wrote: I thru-hiked Aguereberry to Furnace and that’s an interesting example of feeling extremely wild and untouched but basically having the Oasis in sight the whole way. 

Wow Beardilocks, that's some list of explorations in DEVA. Very impressive. When you completed Aguereberry to Furnace did you happen to cross Salt Creek over the old corduroy bridge? That's a fascinating historical location and not too hard of a walk out from Furnace Creek. BTW did you have someone drop you off and then retrieve your car?

The most remote I've felt is deep into Trellis Canyon which lays on the east slopes of Tucki Mountain which I accessed from Salt Creek. I must confess that discovering some recent bootprints in the sand and gravel made me feel safer and not lost in outer darkness. 

I haven’t even started exploring DV yet. Lol. There’s much more on my to-do list than my done list. I’ve hiked about 50 canyons/peaks/dune set/etc but I have at least that many already listed and found that I want to get to some day.

There’s not much left of the corduroy bridge to walk on. But a few sections still standing for pictures. Lots of other strange historic things to find up that wash as well. For that hike I left my truck at Furnace Creek and drove up with a friend and left her truck on Aguerreberry road. Made it an overnight to camp on the slope and because I’m way too out of shape to do it one go.

For Dry Bone, that was much more stupid. I parked my truck where the old dirt track comes into the main road in the valley and road my 110cc Honda I used to travel with up Racetrack road and up White Top. Then hid that in the bushes and hiked into the canyon. And yes, that scramble down is sketch as hell, especially with a pack and alone. I overnighted at the canyon mouth and made my truck the next morning to go rescue my bike. That one was more painful for the 3 trips down Racetrack road. Well that and the fact that my wheel broke off my truck later that afternoon and started a whole different 2 week ordeal.

We’re you in Trellis canyon searching for the lost giant caves?