This will be my 17th trip to the Park and it's throwing me a bit of a curveball. I'm trying to work up some plans to visit the Park in February/March, with the added difficulty factor of guiding my in-laws who drive a Dodge RAM9000+ with a camper shell & no off-road modifications.
I'm sticking to my guns about at the least dispersed camping but a lot of my usual haunts, and places that I've wanted to check out, are not even remotely viable considering what the family is driving. As such, I've been looking into the new backcountry roadside camping that DVNP has implemented and it's .... fine.
Looking at two nights in Marble Canyon so we can hike the narrows, dragging them out to Butte Valley / Geologist's Cabin for a night, and then wrapping up with Echo Canyon if only to break up the drive back to Northern Nevada on the last day.
They know that Death Valley is one of my favorite places in the world as I've spoken so highly of it, but I'm a little worried this trip lacks a certain "wow" factor that I get when I'm in the deeper backcountry and typically don't see anyone else for days on end. Unfortunately their truck is just too damn big to want to risk taking it most places. It doesn't have any sort of lift, but at least it's 4x4 and has E-rated tires. Dog help us all if it gets bogged down in sand / gravel anywhere. I'd probably just bail & file for divorce when I got home ...
Well, that's my confessional for the New Year. If anyone has any thoughts or ideas they'd like to chime in with please do. Otherwise stay tuned for trip report photos of picking up campsite tags at the Furnace Creek Ranger Station and whatnot!
I'm sticking to my guns about at the least dispersed camping but a lot of my usual haunts, and places that I've wanted to check out, are not even remotely viable considering what the family is driving. As such, I've been looking into the new backcountry roadside camping that DVNP has implemented and it's .... fine.
Looking at two nights in Marble Canyon so we can hike the narrows, dragging them out to Butte Valley / Geologist's Cabin for a night, and then wrapping up with Echo Canyon if only to break up the drive back to Northern Nevada on the last day.
They know that Death Valley is one of my favorite places in the world as I've spoken so highly of it, but I'm a little worried this trip lacks a certain "wow" factor that I get when I'm in the deeper backcountry and typically don't see anyone else for days on end. Unfortunately their truck is just too damn big to want to risk taking it most places. It doesn't have any sort of lift, but at least it's 4x4 and has E-rated tires. Dog help us all if it gets bogged down in sand / gravel anywhere. I'd probably just bail & file for divorce when I got home ...
Well, that's my confessional for the New Year. If anyone has any thoughts or ideas they'd like to chime in with please do. Otherwise stay tuned for trip report photos of picking up campsite tags at the Furnace Creek Ranger Station and whatnot!