I am considering a trip to Death Valley in late March, never having been there. What temperatures am I likely to encounter? As I searched the sites on the internet I noticed mention of the northern sections of D.V. being the less visited and I assume least photographed. Am I accurate in that appraisal? It appears that lodging in that section of the valley is non existant...is camping the logical approach? Thanks for any information and guidance that you can share.
March should be fine. It will be chilly in the AM, but will be in the 70's maybe a bit higher during the day. I have been there 8 times, always in April, though. DV is immense. You need to decide how much of it you want to see in advance and scale your objectives to the amount of time you have to spend there. I usually do a 2-1/2 day trip (after I've been in LasVegas for a week for a convention). I drive to Beatty, NV on a Wed. evening and begin my trip before the sun rises the next morning. Zabriskie point is good for a variety of sunrise views: 20 mule team canyon to the south, golden canyon to the west and manley beacon to the north. Mesquite flat (Stovepipe Wells) is where you can get the sandune shots (ususally another sunrise affair). It's about an hour from Beatty. Zabriskie is a little closer, but not much. Of course you could stay in Stovepipe Wells or Furnace Creek. There might be some good late morning opportunities in Wildrose canyon. Mahogany flat is another place that seems to be shootable midday. You can head west toward Lone Pine and on the way take a hike to Darwin Falls. It's quite pretty there. The northern parts are of possible interest. Ubehebe I think needs to be a morning or late afternoon shot. Scotty's castle is a bit too touristy for me. I do enjoy Racetrack Playa. Forget trying to get to the Bristlecones this early in the spring. I lucked out once and got up to Schulman's grove in April. It was an unusually dry year and there was an early thaw. I doubt that will happen again soon. Near Beatty is Rhyolite, a ghost town that makes some nice subject matter in the early morning. Toward Lone Pine is Cerro Gordo, another ghost town up the mountains (8-9,000'). If you get as far west as Lone Pine, check out the Alabama hills and Mt. Whitney portal. There's a ranger station right as you reach town and they are always very helpful. I know a lot of people try to avoid the overshot locations, but there are a million ways to look at the same scene. I've never been at a loss for something unique in DV. There's always something there to discover. Have fun. Have some for me too, as I regretably will not get there this year.
I just returned from there about 2 weeks ago and have been there before. Best place to stay when you want to explore the extreme northern part (Eureka Dunes, Last Chance Range, Racetrack Playa, etc...) is in Big Pine, CA. The drive from there is fairly short and quite amazing - great Joshua Tree forest along the way, great grove of Junipers (I was fooled into thinking they were Bristlecone Pines the first time). Previous poster is correct - no chance of getting to the Bristlecones unless you're willing to hike the last mile or so up the road. At 10,000 feet, you may not want to try this. I usually enter the valley from Vegas and do a big loop, starting with the southern part of DV first, then over to Lone Pine, CA and the Alabama Hills, then up highway 395 to Big Pine and back into the northern part of Death Valley. The road is called Death Valley Road and you can't miss it - it's just as you're heading out of town.
Great country - have fun.
Hi Don,
There are two areas to set up a tent - two separate campsites just across the road from Furnace Creek, and one well north, just short of Uhebehe Crater, at Mesquite Flats.
You can also bite the bullet and get a room at Furnace Creek. Bare bones, and the price is a bit steep at ninety-five bucks a night - but you get a shower.
The wind can come up from time to time in March and April. I believe that's the reason there's a bar in Furnace Creek. You can idle the hours bemoaning the loss of your tent, while enhancing the melancholy with bleary reminiscences of those priceless shots you surely would havre gotten if only...
Death Valley is a big place. A few days simply can't do it justice, especially if scouting locations in the early hours is a necessary part of your itinerary. But any visit is bound to be an enjoyable one - just driving from one end to the other, which takes a full day or more, will be a full plate.
If you are coming in from Los Angeles, figure on a six hour drive. if from Beatty, maybe an hour or so.
There won't be wildflowers to speak of this year. No rain. Same as last year. However, there are an infinite number of landscapes awaiting your efforts, so your adventure is going to be well worth the trek out.
Hope this helps.
Best regards,
Thanks everyone. Your guidance is appreciated.
Hi Don. Just a FWIW from someone who lives nearby to D.V. Personal prefs are everything but to me the area near furnace creek is far more beautiful to photograph. Down below sea level the earth is laid bare with little or no ground cover to interrupt the grandness of the forms. Up at Scotty's Castle / Mesquite Springs it's 1500 to 1800 ft elev. and to me it's more like a normal desert with lots of ground cover. Not near as naked or beautiful. It's the starkness of the forms below sea level that draws me back for the perfect pictures I never quite get. Every time I go to Death Valley I leave something behind. Last trip about a month ago I left my spot meter laying at Devils Golf Course. Ouch. In late March you can see anything from 70's to 90's in temps.
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Mud hills and wash below Golden Canyon
Thanks Jim,
With daytime temps of 70-90, what nighttime temps will I experience? Typically, would I be less likely to experience high winds in early March?
Thanks to all for your guidance.
Don, I think 55 to 70 is a fair guess for nights. Winds come and go as they please. It's windy today. jg
Since no-one else has, I just wanted to add some of the usual, but very important advice:
Bring water! Bring food! Check your tires and bring a good spare, etc. Have a good map. Do not leave your car if it breaks down unless you have thought things out very carefully. Death valley does claim lives now and then, though at least you won't be there for the worst heat. Regardless of the temperatures during the day, it can be amazingly cold at night if you are camping, especially if you are up high, so be prepared. That said, if you stay on paved roads or developed campsites, you won't have much to fear.
By the way, in my experience you may as well put your serious photography away except near dawn or dusk, for otherwise the brutal contrast will reduce your results to mere snapshots.
It's one of my favorite places. I wish I were there right now.
Cheers.
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