Death Valley National Park - March 2018 - Part One

please remember you can click on a photo to see a larger version

Time

The wind rocked the camper as we slept. It wasn't too bad, probably only around 15 to 20 mph but it was constant. We were parked on the crest of the Funeral Mountains, an exposed place to camp so the wind was expected, and where we were - let's just say it was well worth it. This was a trip during spring break into a remote section of Death Valley National Park and we would not see another person during our three days of exploration here. How did this all come about and what was our plan?

Our campsite after our arrival Wednesday afternoon.

Our first evening was spectacular.

Mount Whitney on the Sierra Crest was visible from our campsite - the high peak a third of the way in from the left.

The wind was a bit better in the morning.

The Lady found us a great place to enjoy our morning coffee.

A telephoto shot reveals Mesquite Sand Dunes, Stovepipe Wells, the Cottonwood Mountains, the Inyo Mountains, with the Sierra Crest and Mount Whitney beyond.

Today - Thursday - we had a canyon to explore.

In our story about our Point Reyes trip I mentioned that I know how to make the Lady happy. The opposite is, of course, also true. The Lady knows how to make me happy. Besides a round or two of Tease a Geezer, a good way is to turn me loose planning an adventure into the unknown. I first saw it on our topo map, a low spot along the crest of the Funeral Mountains. A canyon climbed out of Death Valley up to the crest of the Funeral Mountains and the terrain on the east side looked relatively gentle. Erasing all the current roads and letting my mind drift back in time, this looked like a good route that ancient Native Americans might take. This could be an interesting canyon to explore, all the way from Death Valley to the crest of the Funerals. I checked it out on Google Earth. A very faint road was visible. Was it drivable? Would it provide workable access to both the bottom and top of the canyon? Could we find it on the ground? The unknown. And the canyon itself, would it prove interesting enough to justify all the effort? The unknown.

First we had to solve the problem on how to get into the canyon. Our campsite sat 900 vertical feet above the canyon bottom below.

With care, we worked our way down.

We found the canyon bottom filled with a wonderful layer of breccia.

This was a highlight of the canyon. In many places troughs, channels, and mini canyons were cut into this breccia layer. The Lady was in heaven.

We found four springs along the canyon, making this canyon a mecca for wildlife.

Each spring showed much use by bighorn sheep as evidenced by an abundance of pellets littering the areas. On the 7.5 topo map each is labeled "spring". We decided on the designation "S Cubed". We numbered them starting at the lowest spring. The spring pictured above is "S Cubed Three", as in Sheep Scat Spring Number Three. Of course, we didn't quite say it out loud that way.

The Brittlebrush was amazing at  S³3.

It was a delight to work our way down the canyon.

S³2 was choked with vegetation.

The fun climbs continued as we descended the canyon.

We reached a section where the canyon opened up into a broad wash.

The day had warmed here into the mid eighties. We took a break in the shade. The creosote was in bloom.

While snacking, I noticed a flutter in a creosote bush. It was a hummingbird. The Lady confirmed it with her see mores and added it was on a nest. We did not want to disturb so this was my best shot with the telephoto. It was well camouflaged.

The tiny creature flew off on a break from the nest and we took a very quick look inside.

This nest was just a little bit larger than a quarter.

The lower section of the canyon had a nice display of desert wildflowers.

Notch-Leaved Phacelia

Golden Evening Primrose

Desert Gold

Bigelow's Monkeyflower

Desert Fivespot - the Lady's favorite Death Valley flower

Gravel Ghost - my favorite Death Valley Flower

And one I need help with identifying.
Edit - Thanks Alley-Kat on WTW for supplying the identification as Golden Desert Snapdragon.

Near the end of our journey down the canyon we came upon evidence of a massive uplift of the western side of the Funerals along with down cutting into fanglomerates and layers in the ancient alluvium.

We reached the mouth of this canyon where it entered Death Valley.

From the Death Valley side, hiking to this canyon mouth is over 4 miles one way.We didn't expect to see anyone and we were correct.

We turned around and returned up the canyon, immersed in the solitude, beauty, and challenges.

It was striking how the breccia was cemented over a green colored limestone in the central canyon.

Back at S³3 with its flowing water, we enjoyed cooling off in the surprisingly cool water.

The Lady had talked me into getting a lighter pair of boots for desert day hikes. She got a pair also. The UPS guy delivered them the evening before we left on this trip. Twelve miles over rough terrain and they were broken in nicely.

Late in the afternoon we were back where we needed to work out a route up to our ridge top campsite.

We started up the side canyon to the left. After climbing over and around large boulders and rubble  - and a 25 foot pour over that required some easy Class 5 work - we decided on the direct approach. Yes, 800 vertical feet, pretty much straight up.

We arrived safe and sound back at our cozy camp a little after six. We thoroughly enjoyed our day of exploration and were excited about exploring the upper part of the canyon the next day.

But first we had to survive the "Night of the Ticks".............................................

Our adventure continues in Part Two - please Click Here.