Abandoned Hiking Climbing Gear - Common?

[MojaveGeek]

Interesting closure. I will be based out of SPW in March and was thinking of going up Little Bridge or something in that area. If I get up there I would haul out some of that trash if I had the energy that day. Looking at your video, you show a dotted line route with one leg on the way up, and the other on the way down. Do you recall which leg went by the discarded gear? I can sort of guess based on topography and the location of Trellis, to figure out where the original hikers might have gone, but you don't know where they left their car. And that's not the friendliest country to cross.

Anyway I hope those hikers had good reason to leave that much trash out in the desert, even if it is not a highly traveled area.

A few years ago we followed that old road you crossed. It crosses over Salt Creek - there is one old wooden bridge - near McLean Spring. I read that there was an old trading post there at some point, though it seems like a strange place for a store? Did not see any evidence of that. The crossing can be a bit muddy, but the road is pretty to follow, and nice walking.

[DeathValleyDazed]

If I get up there I would haul out some of that trash if I had the energy that day.  Do you recall which leg went by the discarded gear?  ... you don't know where they left their car.  And that's not the friendliest country to cross. Anyway I hope those hikers had good reason to leave that much trash out in the desert, even if it is not a highly traveled area.

A few years ago we followed that old road you crossed.  It crosses over Salt Creek - there is one old wooden bridge - near McLean Spring.  I read that there was an old trading post there at some point, though it seems like a strange place for a store?  Did not see any evidence of that. 

Ok Mojave Geek, thanks for entering the thread. I hope the following details will clarify. The two fellows who abandoned the gear parked at Stove Pipe Wells. The one fellow felt lucky to return while assisting his ill buddy, let along carry all that gear back. At least that's his excuse. Yesterday he admitted to me that the whole underground city and tunnel stories were "pipe dreams." Glad he came to his senses but he added that the real story is "in the journey." Some of my personal favorite moments in Death Valley are from just getting out and wandering around aimlessly. lol 

Here are links and details of the abandoned gear location. First is a Google Earth Web:
https://earth.google.com/web/@36.5840901...503h,0t,0r

The coordinates: 
http://salamandersociety.com/deathvalley...inates.png

Abandoned gear location is remote and a long slog over boulder strewned washes from either Stove Pipe Wells, Devil's Cornfield, Salt Creek:
http://salamandersociety.com/deathvalley...ellite.png

One can barely make out the actual gear in this Google Earth Web image. I fairly certain this is the spot unless it's some other survey marker?:
http://salamandersociety.com/deathvalley...Gear-X.png

[MojaveGeek]

Cool, DVD, thanks for the work to generate those GE images and link! I'm dubious you would see the gear - the image is dated 2013 and they went I believe in 2017? I stare at GE images so much... one can imagine many things! I've seen what looked like game or miner trails to just be the edge of an exposed contrasting stratum, stuff like that. But where you point out does seem to match pretty well with the pic; that's the key here. I was looking at a point slightly "upstream" - it looks like the wash with a bit of vegetation on the north side is a bit further below the point of view. But I get the area. How confident are you on the coordinates? Based on your memory, which is something I have no access to of course, or map matching like I was doing earlier today?

No guarantee I'll get over there, but I was thinking of going up Little Bridge as I was last there 15 years ago and none of my companions on this trip have been. It's not too far over to the gear site, but it is all perpendicular to the lie of the alluvial fan and we all know what walking on that crap is like. Or maybe we'll go right over to your no name. I do like to find hikes near SPW on some days, to not waste time driving.

Thanks!!

[DeathValleyDazed]

I'm dubious you would see the gear - the image is dated 2013  How confident are you on the coordinates? 

No guarantee I'll get over there, but I was thinking of going up Little Bridge as I was last there 15 years ago and none of my companions on this trip have been.  It's not too far over to the gear site, but it is all perpendicular to the lie of the alluvial fan and we all know what walking on that crap is like. 

MG, good catch on the date of GE image, which I failed to see so just now switched from GE Web to my GE Pro but there is no newer update. I'm quite confident of the coordinates and remembering the gear atop that knoll. I remember making the extra effort to scale the small knoll for a better view and re-orientation of my heading. 

If I were you I'd probably not even contemplate locating the gear, let alone packing it out over that gawd awful terrain. Leave that to whoever might be following this thread and has more gumption, better knees and ankles.   It was fun to revisit the area online. Have a great trip out to SPW and environs.

[MojaveGeek]

If I were you I'd probably not even contemplate locating the gear, let alone packing it out over that gawd awful terrain. Leave that to whoever might be following this thread and has more gumption, better knees and ankles.   It was fun to revisit the area online. Have a great trip out to SPW and environs.

Thanks for the bye I won't feel bad if I don't go. We'll see. I'll have a couple of companions. The issue is mostly that crossing alluvial fans suck. Otherwise, it's just fun to have a particular destination, but I agree that it's the journey that counts.