p.1 #1 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
Hi everyone ... so I've decided to go in the first week of April and want to see the racetrack ... I'm going, as is my wife and daughter as might my parents ... question becomes ... how do I get to the racetrack with 5 of us?
I have a family sedan and mini-van, but I don't think those are too promising. It seems like I can rent a Jeep for $250 or so (and take my chances on a flat) or I can do one of those pink-jeep tours for $880 or so for all of us where I won't have to worry as much.
p.1 #2 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
I go out there regularly. I know that people are going to write and tell you to go ahead and drive the mini-van or the sedan out there. While it is possible, I don't recommend it. You have a 55 mile round trip on a God awful washboard gravel road.
Renting one of the 4WD vehicles from Furnace Creek is a fine option. The road isn't technically hard to drive - so I don't think you probably need to have someone else drive unless you are very uneasy about driving gravel roads - and the rental Jeep is more than enough vehicle for this road. The main issues with the road are the washboard surface and the gravel. It doesn't really require 4WD in normal conditions - it is more that better ground clearance and good tires are important.
First week of April is a good time to go usually. But this year do keep an eye on the conditions since if the current rainfall pattern continues, the playa could be wet - and it is a very, very bad idea to walk on the playa when it is wet or muddy. (Footprints last for many, many years. The bad karma created by leaving tracks on the playa will last forever.)
p.1 #3 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
I'm heading out to DV in mid March, and I'm just planning on picking up a mid size SUV at the airport. The racetrack is a site I plan on visiting a few times while I'm there, but I feel confident that will be all I need.
I used a similar car during a 10 day stint in Central America on roads that were severely washed out from multiple years of heavy rains and still got around fairly well, it just took additional time.
p.1 #5 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
I'd like to add that you shouldn't rely on Google Maps or any other kind of mapping service to provide you a route. Check in with the park and ask for advice on how to get to your destination, because some of the routes can be very treacherous and not for the faint of heart. I discovered this while I was finding routes to the Racetrack, and it was only until I looked at the Death Valley National Park website that I discovered that the route Google was showing me would've been very difficult to drive.
p.1 #6 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
Second Dan's advice. If the roads are in good condition you can get there in a passenger car but it won't be fun, will be abusive to your vehicle, and you'll very likely get a flat.
I think renting the Jeep is the best option. The drive is easy, no technical driving required at all. It is just long and heavily washboarded. There can be minor washouts (just a series of ruts usually) that would stop a passenger car but would be trivial for a jeep. Heck, you could rent two jeeps for less than the tour.
And yes - watch the weather and listen to the rangers. If the playa is wet don't bother driving out, you are wasting your time. And if you get there and it is wet don't go out. Those of us who go there with some frequency have secret voodoo techniques we apply to any footprints found which cause their creators to be stricken with various foot ailments
p.1 #7 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
When I was out there last year I had no problems in a Honda Pilot. I did however take 3 hours to drive the 25 miles. How fast you go is a big variable with this road.
p.1 #8 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
Probably the biggest considerations in driving out to the DV Racetrack are clearance, tires, and speed. And not necessarily in that order. Renting a 4x4 is a good idea---and best to check the tires when you do rent the 4x4. I picked mine up late at night and failed to check the tires in the darkness. Big mistake. I drove slower than a grandma on cough medicine and still got three flats; had a slow leak and lucky to make it back. My tongue-in-cheek experience here: http://kendoophotography.wordpress.com/2009/01/05/happy-new-year-from-death-valley/
I'd rent a vehicle. There is a lot of loose gravel---and even if you drive slowly, people passing you (driving too fast) may spit up gravel on your own car. Don't forget the liability/damage waiver!
p.1 #9 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
Id like to offer alternate advice, unrelated to the logistics of the trip; prepare your family for a LONG and <boring> ride to and from the playa. its' bumps can be maddening and for the less adventurous it might stress you out by the time you get there. OTOH they may simply love the backcountry and enjoy as much as the next person. good luck and be safe
p.1 #10 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
If the $880 is mere change to you, the tour might be the best option for the non photographers in your group and will remove any anxiety you might get from any of them if they worry easily about things.
If you're worried about getting shots at the best time I would rent the jeep. You would lose some clearance with the weight of 5. I have never gotten a flat on the road or even while on trips when others have been driving out there in passenger vehicles. Guess I must be due for one .
The rangers tell me not to visit many of the places I have seen in the park and have pawned me off to the sheriff for places they don't give permits to. Their job is just to prepare you for the worst or keep you away from less accessible areas for any type of search and rescue if they can. For the most the park is a TOURIST CORRAL to the rangers so they put fear in the hearts of worried type of people in your party. You might hear the 4 flat tire story, the family stranded overnight and who knows what else.
If the playa is wet but not likely, you can still photograph it as a lake which no one hardly ever does. You won't see the rocks since they are very far from the shoreline of the dry bed.
p.1 #11 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
Thanks for the suggestions ... $880 isn't mere change to me ... it is a significant amount, but I am thinking that the difference of $600 may buy me a lot of piece of mind ... though I've driven in California most of my life, I've never had a flat that I actually HAD to change myself, i.e. I could call AAA or the car made it to a tire place. I do worry about having to change one myself, and worse yet, a second one ... the thought of not having a spare after the first one goes flat is a concern ...
p.1 #12 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
With all the driving we do you should have a friend show how to change a tire. There are too many bad cell areas to not know how to change a tire. With most 2 wheel drive cars there is really only one wheel doing the work so it's easier then then you think to get stuck and knowing how to work a jack in the sand is a great idea. If you have a Spot Device you can program in a specific text message to your contacts to send for a tow truck. It does give some piece of mind. It's only around 250-300 for the service and all.
p.1 #13 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
Steve Sieren wrote:
With all the driving we do you should have a friend show how to change a tire. There are too many bad cell areas to not know how to change a tire. With most 2 wheel drive cars there is really only one wheel doing the work so it's easier then then you think to get stuck and knowing how to work a jack in the sand is a great idea. If you have a Spot Device you can program in a specific text message to your contacts to send for a tow truck. It does give some piece of mind. It's only around 250-300 for the service and all. ...Show more →
+1
Changing a tire is actually pretty easy, especially if weather conditions are good. It's only if you're trying to change one in a blizzard or downpour that it can really suck, because you have to be more careful. Even hot weather isn't too bad. Certainly, it's not worth $600+ to have someone else change your tires for you.
Just don't forget to carry baby wipes for your hands.
p.1 #14 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
Thanks guys ... sounds like the "insurance" of having someone drive for me is about $300 ... $250 to rent the jeep plus $275 for the Spot Device gets me to $525 versus the $880 or so for the Pink Jeep ...
p.1 #15 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
I've gone out there in a Chrysler Pacifica and a Kia Sorrento. I agree with others that clearance is the biggest issue. I don't think it's mandatory, but it makes it a lot easier to avoid bigger rocks as you can just drive right over them.
My problem with changing tires is that often the mechanics overtorque the bolts with the air wrench and it's impossible to get the bolts off. Every year I change to winter wheels and even with a 240 ft./lb impact wrench, I have trouble getting the bolts off sometimes. With a rental car, who knows how tight the bolts are. When I went, I carried a couple cans of fix-a-flat and a SPOT messenger that I own. Fortunately, I never used either one.
I don't think the trek to the Racetrack is THAT bad. I'd take the minivan over the sedan, have a good spare, and some fix-a-flat. Stay focused on the road at all times and you'll see all the rocks that are out to eat your tires. If you get to a tricky area, just take it really slow...there won't be anyone behind you and the back country is beautiful. Both times I've gone (January and July), there were plenty of other people out there as well. And in January 2009, I actually got cell service at Teakettle Junction with AT&T, though I don't know how reliable that is.
p.1 #16 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
I went out there in January 2010 in a rented ford escape 2wd. Absoulutely no problems! Took about an hour and a half. They grade the road nov-dec so it was in good shape. I stressed about the drive way too much! almost rented the jeep, but decided to go for it in the Escape. Maybe I was lucky? No one was there, saw one other car comming in on my way out a toyota camry. Check road conditions at ranger station its a good chance one of them has been out there recently? Good spare is probably best insurance.
p.1 #17 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
I was out there 3 years ago - there were 4 big guys in one 4WD rental and we had no problems. The biggest issue on that road is speed. There were times where it seemed we could speed up to make up lost time from other areas where you have to go fairly slow but DON'T DO IT. The rocks are sharp and going to fast will cause punctures and that means for not a fun trip.
Give your family and yourself lots of time to get out there and be ready for a long drive back in the dark..... Make sure you go way way to the South end of the Playa - that is where the rocks fall from the mountain onto the playa and where the trails are at.
if the trail is even a little bit wet, please be considerate and don't walk out on the playa. Foot tracks take years and years to finally go away. You'll see foot tracks around some rocks from people that go out when it is wet..... messes up the view for everybody else that will visit for the next 30+ years.
Make sure you do sunrise at Stovepipe Well dunes - and be prepared to walk a couple miles in to the Middle-East are for virgin sand with no foot prints
p.1 #18 · Death Valley Racetrack in April - How to get there?
I took my daughter there on Easter Sunday 2009. We were on the Playa just before dark and saw something strange and unexplainable. I also destroyed the Bilsteins on my truck on the way out.
