CA Campground Recommendations?

[joefromsf]

Originally Posted by caideN

Thanks for the info!

I reserved 2 different sites, 1 per day, at Furnace Creek because there wasn't one site that was available for the 2 days straight.

So far, our plan is to only visit the southern part of DV.

Do you know specifically which trail is 2WD friendly and is 2 miles out that allows boondocking?

I don't really like crowded campgrounds and it seems like Furnace Creek is going to be crowded.

If you don't have a map yet, see recommendations in this recent thread: http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/for...ted-18819.html

Regarding boondocking, the distance is one mile from a paved road or "day use only" dirt road. More info here: https://www.nps.gov/deva/planyourvisit/backcamp.htm

FYI, on the DV backcountry map that was provided in a link in a earlier reply, the yellow shading corresponds to where you "can't" boondock.

The closest boondocking legal roads to the Furnace Creek area are the side canyons to the west off of West Side Road. Since these all start on the valley floor the first mile "might" be 2WD. The all eventually turn into 4WD so proceed with caution. I am most familiar with Warms Springs Road and am almost certain you could easily drive a mile up that one. I have ridden them all on a motorcycle but wasn't paying attention to whether they had any good boondocking sites.

Just noticed the dirt road near the Dantes View turnoff is not considered day use only. Its call Furnace Creek Wash Road or Greenwater Valley Rd. Its definitely 2WD, fairly flat and has some side roads if you want to get a few feet off of the main road to avoid dust from passing vehicles (recommended). This might be your best bet for 2WD boondocking.

There are less crowded campsites but they are not near Furnace Creek. During the week Panamint Springs Resort shouldn't be full. Its a private CG in DV and they take reservations. The CG is all dirt and there are many sites that border the desert.

Emigrant CG is a very small free CG in DV. Technically its a tent site camping area, which means no RVs. I've staying in there with a van before and have seen VW campers in there too.

I also like Mesquite CG to get away from the crowds.

On the occasion when I do camp at Furnace Creek, I prefer Texas Springs CG. Yes a lot of it is a parking lot for RV type camping, but I go to the back loop and camp on the north or south sides which border the desert.

[yvrr]

We stayed in Furnace Creek going to and coming back from the Valley of Fire get-together last October and it looked like the campground was completely refurbished recently. The sites are reasonably separated which is good.

[daveb]

I'd go with reservations because at that time of the year the park is usually packed. I do like the Furnace Creek CG but it's been a while since I've been there.

West Side Road can be bad in wet weather (I think it's closed at this time) but March usually poses no problems. I would ask about the condition of the Amargosa River Wash you have to pass through to make it a loop drive. Turning around would be the only answer if you can't make it through the wash. West Side is usually full of wash board and is slow going.

Nice that they've changed the rules for 2 miles to one. I never thought the park service would make it shorter! That makes for easier spots to find.

I really don't like camping in the wide open but for an overnight pit stop the closest trail from Furnace Creek is Trail canyon off West Side Road. Last time I was in there it was just kind of a loosely packed gravel trail in the start. You can read about it here if you like. I don't think I needed 4WD until I was into the back of the canyon. I have like 3 posts about DV on my site. There is a lot of stuff to see in DV with 2WD but before going into an area I'd still ask at the Furnace Cr ranger station. Remember you still have to pay or have a park pass to be driving inside the Park.

[capnkurt]

My wife and I went with some other friends (Mountainbikeroamer included) to Death Valley last year in early March. The bloom was great. We boondocked off Echo Canyon road, which is just a few minutes away from Furnace Creek, southeast along 190. The park in general was packed, but traffic up Echo Canyon wasn't bad at all. We decided to camp in the vicinity of the red circle on the map. We ended up driving all the way up to Inyo mine the day we packed up camp, and we both had 2wd vehicles. It was a great place to stay, but the first night was so windy that it made our hardcore tent camping friends move to their car in the middle of the night.

capn