Trip to Death Valley

[Daniel Bibbens]

I am taking a four day, three night trip to Death Valley and planning
to leave my doors and windows at home. Have any of you done the same
or similar and regretted not having your doors? Anyone wished they'd
brought something and didn't? Thanks in advance.

The weather is forecast to be sunny and in the high 90's during the
day and high 60's at night. It's just my dog, my Jeep ('04 TJ w/mods),
and me. I'm leaving April 20th and plan to return the 24th. I'll post
some pics when I get back.

--

[Carl]

I'd cut some cloth about the size of a half door and get some large magnets
so that you could at least cover up a portion of the doorway if you get
aggrivated with the sand coming in. Compact and easy to store but useful.

Just an idea.

Carl

"Daniel Bibbens" <dbib...@xobjex.com> wrote in message
news:86fykbt...@cheyenne.xobjex.com...

[Jeff DeWitt]

I have no clue about driving in the desert, the only time I ever did I
was driving a Dodge Diplomat and it rained!

However your trip sounds like a lot of fun, and I bet your dog will have
a blast, dogs and Jeeps seem to go together!

Jeff DeWitt

[Jerry Bransford]

13 of us from this newsgroup went to DV 7-8 years ago in either March or
April and we ended up going through snow at the upper elevations. I
nearly froze my a$$ off at one point since I didn't have my top or doors
on, begging for an extra sweatshirt on the CB.

--
Jerry Bransford
PP-ASEL N6TAY
See the Geezer Jeep at
http://members.cox.net/jerrypb/

[L.W.(Bill) Hughes III]

This is your excuse to buy a rag top, then you may always take it
off. I've caught a couple of times in a sand storm, and there's no way
you can be out in.
God Bless America, Bill O|||||||O
mailto:LWHug...@aol.com http://www.billhughes.com/

[4X4PLAY]

What a kool idea Carl...I think I'm gonna try this for those days without
the doors when ya hit a mud hole...damn mud in the seatbelts really messes
them up...
Thanks for the idea Carl!

Jeff

"Carl" <carls...@hotmailREMOVE.com> wrote in message
news:jYSdndHCmJi96NnZ...@comcast.com...

[Snow]

take some cheap traps (you can pre cut them to fit doors and top) and some
duct tape. If weather or conditions get bad you can at least duct tape your
panels on and stay comfortable.

Snow...

"Daniel Bibbens" <dbib...@xobjex.com> wrote in message
news:86fykbt...@cheyenne.xobjex.com...

[Earle Horton]

In my experience the desert can be cold at night, even if they say "high
60s".

Earle

"Daniel Bibbens" <dbib...@xobjex.com> wrote in message
news:86fykbt...@cheyenne.xobjex.com...

[L.W.(Bill) Hughes III]

Hi Earle,
Yes, the clear air allowing us to count every star in the Milky
Way, makes for extreme temperature changes.

God Bless America, Bill O|||||||O
mailto:LWHug...@aol.com http://www.billhughes.com/

[L.W.(Bill) Hughes III]

L.W.(Bill) Hughes III <billh...@cox.net> wrote in message
<44456DB2...@cox.net>...

> Why do I always have to be the one to make the first move?

[jbjeep]

I recall that. You S. CA wusses! That was about the only time I was _really_
comfortable.

[jbjeep]

question is are you going off road or not?
are you camping or not?

prepare for it to be damned cold at night. also for the wind to blow all the time.
or for it to be scalding hot. If it were me, I would take at least the doors - you
can always leave them in camp or in your hotel room.

When we were wheeling there in 2000, I ran with doors off and the softtop skin (roof)
on. Sometimes it was interesting. Others it was fantastic. I cant recall off hand
if I even had the doors with me on that trip or not.

Just looked at the pics on my web site (
http://jbjeep.terahex.com/deathvalley/deathvalley99.html ), now that brought back
some memories!
-jenn

[Daniel Bibbens]

jbjeep <jbj...@saw.net> writes:

> question is are you going off road or not?

Yes, I'm going off-road. Starting with Titus Canyon and then on to
as many of 8 more trails as I have time for.

> are you camping or not?

If by camping you mean putting the keys in my pocket and reclining
the seat, then yes.

Thanks for the link to your pics. I was looking at those last night :)

Thanks, also to all who responded to my original post.

I'm bringing winter clothes and summer clothes and am expecting
cold nights, hot days, and temperatures that fluctuate with elevation
changes. I'm also bringing a sleeping bag, a coffee pot, and
jerry-cans of water and gas. I still have room for me and the dog,
too.

I've always done day trips and have always been glad to have my doors
and panels. The Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York had it's cold
and rain, the Badlands OHV park in Indiana had it's mean mosquitos and
thunderstorms. Since I've been in Southern California, I've left home
with sunshine and 65 degrees in February only to find blizzard
conditions at 5000 ft. in the San Bernardino Mountains. Yep, each
trip I was glad to have my doors and panels. But each time was also
longing for a time when I could go without.

This time I'm determined to go without. I've got my soft-top for
noon-time sun and rain that's not wind-driven sideways. For everything
else -- well I'll just have to deal with it. It's a Jeep for Pete's
sake.
--

[Jerry Bransford]

It's not that cold at night, when it really gets cold is just before
dawn. I've spent many (MANY!) years camping in the deserts of SoCal and
it's always that time just before dawn when it can get really (!) cold.

--

[jbjeep]

I suggest a full set of rain gear or rain suit. Does wonders if its wet. Does
wonders if its cool out and with no doors you are freezing - gives you a wind break.
Otherwise sounds like you got your shit together and will have a great time! =)
-jenn

[Daniel Bibbens]

jbjeep <jbj...@saw.net> writes:

> I suggest a full set of rain gear or rain suit. Does wonders if its
> wet. Does wonders if its cool out and with no doors you are
> freezing - gives you a wind break. Otherwise sounds like you got
> your shit together and will have a great time! =) -jenn
>

Good advice. I'll take it. Thanks :)
--

[Lon]

A sunny forecast in death valley, go figure. Seriously, the winter
rains on the coast are still sticking around so you can freeze your
behind off or need to spend a night on the wrong side of what *was* a
dry wash for centuries until you crossed it.

You might want to open side flaps for ventilation, but the top provides
valuable shade which is quite difficult to come by out there.

PS. If you see a broad flat stretch, make sure it isn't deeper than an
inch or two as there are stretches of alkali snot all over the place and
the top may get enough wind and sun to look like dry land but underneath
is really greasy alkali mud. Is fun to play in if you are used to it,
but make sure you get it completely off your vehicle as it is just a tad
on the corrosive side.

Take lotsa film if you've never been there before. I prefer the areas
north of death valley, roughly even with Goldfield and west to the
mountains.. say around Silver Peak and south and west.

Jerry Bransford proclaimed:

[Daniel Bibbens]

Daniel Bibbens <dbib...@xobjex.com> writes:

Well I did it. Almost nothing went according to plan, but Death Valley
is spectacular and a sight to be seen regardless of what you
drive. Pictures are here:

http://photos.yahoo.com/daniel_bibbens/slideshow?.dir=/fb5escd&.src=ph

I started this thread asking if anyone wished they'd brought
something and didn't. Here is my advice -- put your (at least 5
gallons of) water in a cooler with lots of ice instead of a
jerry-can. Bath water just sucks on a hot day. Also, bring some octane
booster to patch the lousy gas. Travel with at least one other vehicle
-- there is *no* cell service, the canyon walls, cliffs, mountains may
block a CB signal, and the main roads are frequently a day's hike from
the far points of the trails.

Here are a few notes. In summary -- amazing views, bad and expensive
fuel, and no cell signal to be found:

* I bailed out of my plan to go with no doors and panels. The
forecast for Death Valley remained the same (it was accurate,
too), but the forecast for my return trip home was for high
50's, windy, and possibly rain showers (that turned out to be
accurate except for the showers which did come after I got
home). I could have gone without doors and panels and regret
that I checked the weather before I left and wimped-out.

* I filled up at a Shell station in Panamint Springs. The gas is
lousy and my poor Jeep is sputtering -- I have to downshift to
third to make it up a few hills.

* The first two trails I went for were closed. Titus Canyon was
closed apparently because there was a 20% chance of rain over
the mountains and Titus Canyon is a particularly bad place to be
in flash flood. The Chloride City trail was opened but the road
to get to it (Mud Canyon) was closed for repairs -- there is no
other entrance to this trail.

* At 8:00pm the first night, I pulled off the road just West of
Stovepipe wells near the trail-head of the next trail on my
list. The sky was mostly clear and the temperature was around
75. US Air Force fighter jets (possibly from nearby Edwards AFB)
were doing maneuvers until around 10pm. Beside the jets (which
couldn't be heard) there were an unbelievable number of visible
stars. No signs of civilization are visible except for the faint
glow of Las Vegas about 150 miles away. I reclined my seat and
fell asleep. The moon shining in my face woke me up for a moment
at around 4:30. Max (my dog) and I woke up around 6:30am. I made
espresso on a fuel can stove -- very please with that. Max has
breakfast and water. We head out on foot to walk around the sand
dunes nearby.

* The Cottonwood/Marble Canyon trail was open. We start the trail
around 10:00am. The ten miles of washboard dirt road just to get
to a trail that was no more challenging than say -- a washboard
dirt road.

Today I can hear the fighter jets and imagine what an
Iraqi or Taliban soldier must have pondered when hearing the
"thunder" *before* the "lightning". Poor bastards. What were
they thinking? I did take some solice in this season of the IRS
in seeing and hearing what my tax dollars help build. These are
awe-inspiring machines.

After completing this trail, a heavy coating of dust turned the
interior of my Jeep, my dog, and myself to an unmistakable
desert khaki color. The scenery was amazing. The value of the
views has overcome my disappointment with the trail.

* We head a few hundred yards to Stovepipe Wells at around 3:00pm
in search of gas, shade, and a cell signal. We find neither and
start south on 190 toward Furnace Creek. It's getting hot -- in
the upper 90's and Max is getting a funny look on his face. No
cell signal at Furnace Creek either. I gas up -- $3.64 for
regular. This fuel is lousy, too and $0.50 higher than prices
outside the park. I find a shade in a parking lot near the
Furnace Creek golf course. Max rests and cools off. I plan for
the next trail.

* We head toward Badwater -- the lowest elevation place in the
Western Hemisphere. It's hot. The 7 gallons of water I brought
is now bath temperature. The 5 gallon fuel can is venting
because of the pressure building in the heat. There is no road
across the valley here so I decide just to head for Interstate
15 on Death Valley Rd. (Rt. 127) at a town called Baker. We head
west into the sunset on I-15 toward home. This trims a day and a
half off our trip but we'd seen and had enough.

Next trip "The Mojave Road" with lessons learned.
--

[Carl]

Glad to hear it was a good trip overall.

Carl

"Daniel Bibbens" <dbib...@xobjex.com> wrote in message

news:86odyrp...@cheyenne.xobjex.com...

[Lon]

In the summer you can usually keep your water cool with a canvas bag,
but you do need a bit of velocity. Where cool is relative if you are
near Furnace Creek area.

Carl proclaimed:

[billy ray]

I freeze water in plastic milk jugs and then put them in a cooler covered in
crushed ice.

Then refill a smaller container from the main cooler's drain. The water
stays ice cold for several days..

"Lon" <lon.s...@comcast.net> wrote in message
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