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2003 Death Valley Trip - Day 4
(Monday, 20 October, 2003)

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Twenty Mule Team Canyon:

Sarah & I arose at 6, had tasty egg and sausage breakfast burritos and hit the road, en route to Dante's View. On the way, Sarah suggested we take a side-trip on 20 Mule Team Canyon Drive. I was glad we did, as the views were very pretty in the early morning light, and the rocks were quite colorful. It's just a short drive, and only took us about half an hour, that mainly because we got out of the car and walked around a bit to enjoy the lighting.

Dante's View & Dante's Peak:

Continuing on Hwy 190, we passed an active mine and I nearly ran over a tarantula. Sarah pointed it out and I slammed on the brakes and backed up so we could take a look at it, me having not seen one in the wild before. The hairy fellow was busily making his way towards wherever it was he was going, and paid us no heed at all. After some very windy and steep driving, we arrived at the parking lot of Dante's View.

What a view it was! Pretty much the entire 100+ mile long valley was spread out one vertical mile below us. The dried mineral deposits and salt flats looked positively toxic from our vantage point. We walked south a quarter mile or so to a better lookout, then hiked north about a mile to Dante's Peak (not much of a peak). The view from here was the best, and we spent a while taking it all in. Our original plan had been to hike to Mt. Perry, a few miles to our north, but it looked like more effort than we felt like putting in, so we contented ourselves with Dante's Peak. The Amargossa Desert was spread out to our east, and the Panamint Range towered above Death Valley to the west, its tallest peak, Telescope Peak, standing over two miles above the valley floor.

Although a short walk (it barely even qualifies as a "hike" :), this was really enjoyable. The trip back to the car provided more nice views, as we'd gone to Dante's Peak via a ridge trail, and returned via one set into the side (somewhat to Sarah's consternation, as she's not over-fond of heights). This afforded some opportunities for scary-looking pictures (it was actually quite safe).

==> See also my photo gallery from Dante's Peak.

Devil's Golf Course and the Salt Flats:

We drove back to the valley floor to visit the Devil's Golf Course & the salt flats. For the salt flats, we just drove a short distance on the un-paved west-side road until we came to a flat. It was really interesting how the salt aligned into a nearly geometric mosaic, and it all felt rather like being on the moon. We didn't dally too long, as it was over 100°F on the valley floor (who'd have expected a heat wave in late October?). Back out on the main road, we continued south until we got to the dirt spur road leading to the Devil's Golf Course. This was interesting, but it was also disappointing that the formations were so damaged and dirty from so many cars kicking up dust and people stomping around (exactly as we were doing). On the way back to camp, Sarah noticed the often-photographed mushroom rock (it's difficult to see from the road unless you know what you're looking for, which I sure didn't!).

Mosaic Canyon:

After stopping by our camp to fix some sandwiches, and buying souveniers at Furnace Creek, we headed north through Stovepipe Wells and up a very bumpy dirt road to the mouth of Mosaic Canyon. It was really hot, well over 100°F, and I remembered Ray Jardine's advice for backpacking in hot climes - carry an umbrella! Fortunately I had two in my car, so Sarah and I opened them up and started walking up the canyon. Unfortunately mine was black, but it was still noticably less hot under it than in the direct sun. Note to self: get a light-colored umbrella!

Interesting rock formations galore lined the walls of this canyon, from cold golden marble, to crazy mosaics of rock (hence the canyon's name), to striated deposits with literally thousands of thin layers visible. There were only a couple of people here, most having more sense than to go walking when it is pushing 105°! The canyon had started off very narrow (just a few feet wide), but here, widened to a couple hundred feet. Even with our umbrellas and plenty of water, we were tired and hot and turned around after just a mile or so.

==> See also my photo gallery from Mosaic Canyon.

Stovepipe Wells Sand Dunes:

We drove back through Stovepipe Wells, then parked at the north-west end of the Stovepipe Wells sand dunes. This looked to be a much flatter and easier approach to the tallest of these dunes than the "official" parking area, which would have required climbing and descending numerous intermediate dunes to reach the highest.

It was still blazingly hot - my watch read as high as 107°F at one point, but we had plenty of cold water in our packs, and our umbrellas overhead. The sand was pleasantly firm as we walked across the desert, with little of the slippage that often accompanies sand walks. Dried mud had created interesting tile formations in several places. The late afternoon sun cast lovely shadows on the ripples in the sand, and before long, we had topped the tallest of the Stovepipe Wells dunes (the Eureka Dunes, much farther to Death Valley's north, are the tallest in the area). We sat for a while here, enjoying the views and lingering light before heading back towards the car. Some lonely mesquite trees provided a small hint of life, along with occasional peeks of a few kangaroo rats.

Upon reaching the car, we went back to camp and had dinner, retiring on the early side of things, as we were tired from several days chock-full of activity. Tomorrow we would return home and neither of us was really wanting to do that just yet.

==> See also my photo gallery from the Stovepipe Wells Dunes.

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Day's statistics (Dante's Peak, Mosaic Canyon, & Sand Dunes):

Distance:	~6 miles
Total Time:	~3 hours
Elevation gain:	a few hundred feet
Difficulty:	4
Scenery:	9
Trail condition/markings/etc:	8
Overall rating:	9

Trip links:

Day 1 - Driving to Death Valley (w/Panamint Valley & Devil's Cornfield)
Day 2 - Death Valley Double Century & Artist's Drive
Day 3 - Golden Canyon-Zebriskie Point Hike, Rhyolite (ghost town), Titus Canyon Drive
Day 4 - 20 Mule Team Drive, Dante's Peak Hike, Devil's Golf Course/Salt Creek, Mosaic Canyon, and Stovepipe Wells dunes
Day 5 - Returning home via Alabama Hills & other Hwy. 395 treats.