Death Valley

Several months ago a few friends and I began planning what we hoped would be an epic overlanding adventure in Death Valley. We aimed for 50 to 70 miles a day of exploration in the backcountry while sleeping in a different environment each night.

To give you a brief idea of a day is like, we’d relax in the morning and make breakfast, walk around the area, check out each others’ gear setup, and pack up camp. Then we’d drive for several hours of sometimes highway but mostly dirt roads, nothing too technical, while stopping along the way for lunch in a picturesque spot. We’d typically get to camp between 4 and 5ish, set up our tents, eat dinner, and then chill by the campfire from 6:30 until 9ish. Given how cold it was (first night was 16 degrees!) and we’d already been in darkness for a few hours almost all of us were soundly asleep by 9:30. (We did have a Starlink which was kind of handy to check in on the home front!)

Perhaps not surprisingly, December is actually one of the best times to visit given the weather is relatively mild - not too cold, not too warm.

Below is a brief overview of our adventure.

First night. Brees Lookout near Mammoth Lakes.

Camp. Via drone. Thanks Pablo for the pic.

On our second day we camped at one of the most remote spots in Death Valley next to this massive sand dune. I had never seen anything like it before. To climb to the very top of it is about a two hour hike.
As the road from the southern part of Death Valley was closed due to flooding, and we entered from the north, we did not encounter any other vehicles over our time there. It was if we had rented the largest national park in the lower 48 for a private stay - it was heaven.

Brandon expertly maneuvering his Land Rover Defender and Patriot Camper X3 through Lippencott Pass.

This a slow and steady descent out of a hairy pass. Grateful to have some good 4Lo and first gear! If you look closely you can see each vehicle in our group.

Our little campfire on the right amidst a sea of stars.

The Trona Pinnacles are an otherworldly landscape made of more than 500 towering tufa spires that look like a sci-fi movie set (I learned afterwards that films like Star Wars and Planet of the Apes were shot there). Formed underwater in an ancient lake, they rise up to 140 feet and create a wild maze of rock that feels like walking on another planet.

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The thing I love most about overlanding in addition to the spectacular nature are the people. I was beyond grateful to have some many friends, new and old, join me on this adventure. Below are a few portraits I took on Ofer’s nifty FujiFilm camera; thank you Ofer for processing these so gracefully.

Norway & Sweden