gdanmitchell
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 p.1 #5 · Death valley in thanksgiving? | |
I wouldn't worry about Thanksgiving snow in DV. It is remotely possible (I've been snowed on, for example, at Scotty's Castle) but very unlikely. As someone pointed out, you could see some snow up high in the Panamint range. I suppose that in a very unusually cold storm you might get some snow on the higher passes as you approach the Valley.
Once in the Valley few of the places you mention are likely to be affected. A few comments follow:
Artist Palette - easy paved road at low elevations. No AWD needed and no snow for sure.
Eureka Sand Dunes - A very long and rough drive from the main part of Death Valley, may be better to approach from the North. A sturdy vehicle with good clearance and good tires is desirable.
Stovepipe Wells Dunes - A short walk from a paved highway and near a motel and campground. No worries. (Also known as "Death Valley Dunes" and, I think, "Mesquite Dunes.")
The Racetrack - A very long drive on one of the worst washboard roads you'll ever drive. NPS has advice on this road but my experience driving out there a number of times is that most people should a) drive slowly, b) use a vehicle with decent ground clearance, c) not worry too much about AWD if the weather/conditions are benign.
Sliding Rocks - The "sliding rocks" are at the Racetrack...
Telescope Peak - You cannot drive to Telescope Peak. You can drive up into the Wild Rose Canyon area to approach it. The road gets worse as you climb, and eventually you have to park and hike to the summit. It isn't a short hike and the elevation is pretty high.
Did I miss any?
Badwater, Zabriskie Point, Scotty's Castle, Dantes View, Titus Canyon, Rhyolite, Twenty Mule Canyon, etc...
Any other advice you could give in terms of photography in death valley during winter season would be appreciated!
Given the "did I miss any?" question and your already long and geographically diverse list... Death Valley is a huge place and the drives between many of these locations are very long both in distance and (especially with the gravel roads) time. There is no way in the world that you would do all of these on a 1.5 day trip, at least not if you plan to get to them at good photography times and have any time to actually make photographs.
If this is your first visit and time is really that limited... I suggest doing a bit of triage on your list and whittling it down to more manageable goals.
First, on a first visit and with only a day and a half, if you try to visit a place like the Racetrack and/or Eureka Dunes that requires a very long drive on awful roads you will have little if any time left over to see anything else. (When I go to the Racetrack I generally head out that way starting right after lunch, shoot afternoon and evening, stay overnight (and do full-moon night photography if possible), get up before dawn and shoot early in the morning, and finally drive out, getting to Scotty's Castle around noon the next day.) If you want to make the entire focus of your trip a visit to one of these, fine - otherwise I think you might find an alternative more productive.
Generally I can to one major shoot in the morning and one in the evening. I might get a secondary shoot in during the morning and again in the evening if I plan carefully - picking a location that works at slightly non-optimal light times and which is not too far away from the primary spot. For example, I might shoot Zabriskie Point (if conditions are above average to stunning) from before dawn until slightly after. Then I might try to shoot in a canyon where later light is still good. I'll follow a similar plan in the evening.
A sample 1.5 day itinerary could be something like:
1. Dawn at Zabriskie Point.
2. Golden Canyon, Marble Canyon, or similar in the morning.
3. Take the Scotty's Castle tour during the day.
4. Shoot another canyon in the late afternoon. (Or, instead of 3 and 4, drive through TItus Canyon - rough road warning! - and emerge in the mid- to late-afternoon.
5. Shoot an evening subject like the salt flats just south of Badwater.
Day 2:
1. Shoot Death Valley Dunes (near Stovepipe) at dawn.
2. Shoot one more canyon - Marble Canyon is nearby.
This list isn't meant to be definitive, but rather to be an example of an approach that might work for photography.
Dan
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