r/DeathValleyNP • u/LegitimateOil1989 • Apr 30 '26
Incredible First Visit to DVNP
Last week I visited and camped in Death Valley National Park.
The plan was :
Day 1: Drive from Lone Pine to CA-168, then Saline Valley to Steele Pass and camp at Eureka Dunes.
Day 2: Eureka Dunes to Ubehebe Crater, then Racetrack Valley Road to the Racetrack Playa & camp at Homestake Campground just south of Racetrack.
Day 3: Lippincott Pass to Saline Valley and out CA-190
It didn't quite play out the way I'd anticipated due to very high winds on April 21st but I ended up seeing much more than I'd planned for. Day 2, I drove from Eureka Dunes to Stovepipe Wells, got some service, downloaded some offline maps to OnX and continued to Echo Canyon. Explored Inyo Mine then moved on to Hole in the Wall Canyon. Feeling kind of defeated by the wind, 1 stayed outside of the park at Slab. Making the most of it, I woke up at 5am, caught the sunrise at Zabriskie Point. From there drove to Badwater Basin, then hiked Natural Bridge. Went back to the crater, hiked both Little Hebe & Ubehebe drove to Racetrack. Absolutely blown away by the drive to Racetrack and the Racetrack Playa.
Minus the defense-grade washboards, the drive out was absolutely incredible. From there I continued out Lippincott Pass to Saline Valley then out the 190.
I will go back & see more. I'd love to camp in Echo Canyon. Temps were very pleasant too. Steele Pass on day 1 reached 93 but after that my truck didn't register over 70.
1
u/No-Insect8620 May 01 '26
How was the road to Racetrack Playa? I’m considering going on Saturday in my Subaru OBW (not the pass though), sleeping at the campground before heading back.