…to boldly go nowhere
March 31, 2024 I was looking for a place to escape the crowds on Easter Sunday but found myself in the main valley. Not the best idea. But I decided to check off an old set of pins on my list in what I'm calling Mini Artists Palette. It a colorful area jutting out of … Continue reading Mini Artist’s Palette, Death Valley
March 24, 2024 The next morning I headed back up Johnson Canyon to take another crack at the Sandstone Dome that overlooks what I've found is called White Tanks Wash, between Johnson & Starvation Canyons. Alice Hunt's archeological papers from the 1950 mentioned several Native American “campsites” in the area (a loose category that is … Continue reading Sandstone Dome at White Tanks Wash
March 23, 2024 Hanaupah Canyon, off West Side Rd, opened up this last week so I decided to go check it out. I haven't been all the way up the canyon in about 6 years and I was curious what it would be like after the flooding and road repairs. The road up the fan … Continue reading Hanaupah Canyon Since the Floods
March 22, 2024 I had seen one photo of this strange rock many years ago and have been searching for it since. Last year I found one other pic that showed a bit more background and was able to do some Google earth magic (with the help of a friend) to narrow down the location. … Continue reading “Well This Looks Like the Stockyard”
March 19, 2024 I decided to bag a peak this week and check off one thing off my long “to-do” list in Death Valley: Hit the ridge-line somewhere overlooking Eureka Dunes on the East from the Last Chance Range. And boy was it worth it. Sandy Point Benchmark. *Warning: Gratuitous view photos* We climbed up … Continue reading Sandy Point, Death Valley
March 10, 2024 I took an adventure way off the beaten path into the very heart of the Panamint Mountains to find these cool fossilized camel tracks. Or something like that… I have heard no age given on these tracks (I believe the park service only first heard about them a few years ago), but … Continue reading Fossil Camel Tracks, Death Valley
March 13, 2024 I went to check out a pair of twin 'caves' that are documented habitation sites. Alice Hunt estimated occupation as “sporadically” from Death Valley II culture (as long ago as 7000 years) to pre-WWI prospectors. All evidence of Native American habitation was removed when the caves were excavated in the 1950's. Both … Continue reading Twin Native American Caves
March 12, 2024 Keeping up with my Road Condition Report from my last post, here's Johnson Canyon. (Hanuapah is still closed for some reason.) Johnson is quite a bit rougher than Trail Canyon but not bad. The biggest issue slowing progress up Johnson Canyon is that the operator maybe had too much float on his … Continue reading Johnson Canyon/White Tanks Wash
March 11, 2024 With West Side Road having just opened up 48hrs before, after being closed since Hurricane Hilary in August, I had to run in and take a look. The road is still closed on the north end making the typical 5 mile drive off pavement to Trail Canyon now 35 miles of pavement … Continue reading Trail Canyon, First Run 2024.
March 11, 2024 Here's a relic of a different kind that I found in Death Valley: The remains of a pair of B-24 Liberator WWII Bombers. On August 1st, 1944 during a night training run 20,000ft over Death Valley, six B24 Liberators were flying in tight formations. Most of the crews at the time were … Continue reading WWII B24 Liberator Wreckage, Death Valley Salt Pan
Pockets Full of Dust 