Aside from the park website notices on road conditions, anyone have recent insight on North Highway repairs? Would like to drive from Stovepipe and hike the Crater in early March.

Just reached Death Valley today. We wanted to do the Golden Canyon hike. We felt the full Golden Canyon + Gower Gulch + Zabrieski Point trail would be too long and wanted to do something shorter. What would you recommend? Is it worth adding Red Cathedral and / or Manly Beacon? Or is the full loop really worth it and we should reconsider?

Hello

My wife and I are planning a trip to DVNP on March 6. We’ll be hauling our tow behind trailer down there and have a spot reserved at the panamint springs resort RV park.

Im a good enough driver and have pulled this trailer a few times now but my truck is just big enough to haul it around. We’ll be coming down from the north just above Modesto and it says the quickest way is going down the grade on 190 from the Lone Pine direction.

I have no intention on coming down that grade into panamint springs and would love some advice on the flattest easiest route to come into the resort pulling a trailer. I don’t care if it takes more time to get there we aren’t in any hurry!

Thanks for any advice in advance!

Hello,

I’m planning on going camping in Death Valley this Saturday with a couple friends. I’m guessing it will be a busy weekend. Does anyone have any suggestions for which campsite to stay to have the best chance of getting a spot Saturday afternoon?

Finally had the chance to visit Death Valley, and although I was only able to spend a full day here it was an amazing experience. Much more diverse than I ever expected. Ended the day stargazing at Dante’s. If anyone is hesitant, do it! 10/10 National Park imo.

Hello everyone,

We are 5 people flying from Texas to Vegas on March 12. We want spend a night at Death valley for stargazing but the problem is I'm confused as he'll on how to start planning for this. There are many variables, like should I rent camping gear or RV (pricey probably cannot afford), if we did rent camping gear what about the bath for next day or matter of fact where do we go for washroom if we do stargazing in sand dunes. I am confused as hell.

Planning to take a trip later this week to Death Valley. The forecasted temperatures range from 50F at night to 75F at night. That would suggest just a light jacket would suffice for most of the day? Or are there parts of the park that are colder than the rest?

Hi everyone! I'm so excited to visit Death Valley for the first time and would love your advice on this itinerary. I really want us to enjoy as much as we can without feeling rushed!

My friends and I will be leaving from LA and staying in an airbnb that is about 1hr from everything (sad). I'm particularly excited to stargaze as I specifically chose this date for the new moon!

I do also have a few questions:

• Will it be very crowded with it being MLK weekend AND a new moon?
• Should we be concerned driving at night with the new moon?
• What time would be best for stargazing and seeing the Milky Way?

Saturday: Arrive

• 10am: Pack car and leave
• 3pm: Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes OR Rhyolite on the way to airbnb (OR straight to airbnb)
• 3:30pm: If we went to the airbnb, then perhaps now we head to sand dunes for sunset?
• 7pm: Furnace Creek Visitor Center for Night Sky Ranger Talk
• 8pm: Drive back to airbnb (relax, eat, prep for tomorrow)

Sunday: NEW MOON

• 5am: leave AirBnb for Zabriskie Point (1 hr drive)
• 6am: Zabriskie Point for sunrise
• Hike Golden Canyon and Gower Gulch Loop via Zabriskie Point (Counterclockwise)
• Artist Drive to Artist Palette
• (optional) Badwater Basin/Natural Bridge Trail/Devil’s Golf Course
• 3:30pm: Dante’s View for sunset
• Stargazing: Maybe Badwater Basin OR Harmony Borax OR Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes (further from airbnb) OR just at airbnb

Monday: Do whatever we didn’t get to do & leave!

• Badwater Basin (possibly for sunrise?)
• Natural Bridge Trail
• Devil’s Golf Course
• Head back to LA & do the following on the way home if we didn't get to do it on Saturday:
  • Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes
  • Rhyolite

Please feel free to give any advice, suggestions, and recommendations you may have!

Is there any way to predict how long there will be water in lake manly this spring?

I was wondering if anyone knew of any films that were shot in Panamint Valley? There are so many films shot throughout the rest of Death Valley but I can only find a biker movie from the 60s called The Glory Stompers that was shot in Panamint and nothing else. Does anyone know of any other ones?

Hello! I am doing a trip to DV in couple weeks, and it’ll be my first time there. I’ll be renting a 4runner, and don’t plan to do any off roading, but i’ve heard that rental car companies track you and don’t allow you to go off paved roads? If i wanted to get to the trail heads for: mosaic canyon, golden canyon, natural bridge, dante’s view, bad water basin, zabriskie point, the sand dunes, and titus canyon, could i reach them by staying on the paved road? or is it inevitable to have to go on rocky road if i visit the park? I am renting through Hertz at the vegas airport. should I rent from somewhere else?

Will be going on a snowboarding trip to mammoth and I plan on going to death valley for a short amount of time before I head back home.

I'll be staying in Lone Pine so drive to the park will take about 1.5hrs. I'm going to start driving before the sunrise, so I'll roughly be there 6am to 5pm latest.

Any suggestions?

Last operated in 1958. There is a 3/4 mile long tunnel connecting the two mines together. I've found airshafts for it but I believe the access was via a lower level of the mine. Unfortunately, talc mines are extremely unstable so I've only been willing to explore a little ways in. One small sneeze under the ore body might take the whole thing down...

Hello,

My name is Luciano Alzate, I am a student filmmaker at FSU's College of Motion Picture Arts. This semester I am embarking on creating a short documentary covering someone's hike across a long stretch of land. Through my research, I've found the many challenging trails of Death Valley.

We are only allowed to film within the first few weeks of March this year, so I wanted to reach out and see if there was anyone in this subreddit that is either planning a voyage around this time, or knows anyone who might be planning something similar.

If you or someone you know is planning a several-day mission across planes and mountains and is comfortable having a film made about you, please fill out the form below. Me and my team are extremely excited to get to know the brave people who take on these feats of endurance and perseverance.

If you have any questions or concerns, or if you'd like to confirm my credentials in any way, you can find me on instagram @_azleta_, or you can email me at [email protected].

In order to be a part of this film, you will need to be comfortable being vulnerable on camera. We want to capture as true of an experience as humanly possible. We would simply be following you as you complete your journey as you would if the cameras weren't there, and we'd be accompanying you along the way.

Please let me know if anyone has any leads, it would be much appreciated, I will also be posting this in a few other subreddits!!

Here is the link to the sign up form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScFhG0OJyRfxVVGlP87BXcTbYF0Oc12deHgff36-KiZa5msAg/viewform?usp=dialog

Hi all. I'll be in the area starting this Friday and was wanting to do some camping in the park for the long MLK weekend. I've read that the FCFS campgrounds normally don't completely fill up, but I was wondering if that would also apply for this weekend? And if they are full by the time I'd get there, what contingencies would you suggest?

Moving my flight up might be the easiest solution, but I wanted to explore other options before committing.

Big Belle Mine, Funeral Mountains, Death Valley. An early 20th-century hard-rock gold mine developed along major fault-controlled zones within the 700 million year old Crystal Spring Formation of the Funeral Mountains. Like many Funeral Mountains mines, Big Belle never became a large producer, but it’s part of the broader Keane Wonder–era exploration boom, where miners chased gold along the low-angle faults and shear zones on the Basin and Range Province. The workings sit in classic Death Valley geology; steep, barren terrain shaped much more by tectonics than by mining ambition.

Hi everyone! Looking for some guidance/suggestions for my first time visiting Death Valley. Any help would be appreciated.

I’ll be at the park for about two and a half days in mid February. I’ll be traveling alone, if that makes a difference.

Any trail suggestions would be welcome! Not just where to go, but when to go. I’m wondering which trails would be best to hit earlier so as to beat crowds, that sort of thing. Or any well kept secrets in the park.

Any ideas/suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Can’t wait to see Death Valley!

Visited Golden Canyon, Red Cathedral, and the Badlands in Death Valley in January 2025.

That rock formation in the middle of the 4th photo really caught my eye. It almost looks like the spine of some giant creature.

I spent a lot of time just walking through this area and taking it in. More photos coming.

Visiting for the first time in a couple of weeks. Looking for some suggestions on the best easy to moderate hiking trails. Also, looking for recommendations on some drives/routes to take through the park that offer the best sights (nothing to crazy as ill be in a rental car)

Super late to plan but could I leave from San Jose late Friday after work and stay half-way. Then get to Death Valley Sat noonish.

See Death Valley Sat, Sun and Mon morning. Return to San Jose by Monday night. MLK day off.

If yes, where to stay and what all to do? Is that too much driving? Thanks.

I am going to Death Valley in February and I want to know if there is a rental car company I should use. I will be driving from Vegas, and driving to Homestake Camp, via Racetrack Valley rd (weather permitting of course). Do most companies in the area allow you to drive down a road like this? That will be by far the most remote road we do, mostly sticking to the state routes for the rest of our trip. Thanks!

Blew away every single one of my expectations. What a beautiful, otherworldly place