Contributor III
Contributor III
There's a 24/7 Mobil gas station in Olancha, just south of the 190 turnout. From the point we turn out from 190 onto Saline Valley Road to the last waypoint in the trip it's about 260 miles of driving. We will be passing gas stations in the valley at Stovepipe Wells and Furnace Creek, but they have been closing the Stovepipe Wells one recently due to damage to the structure from a wind storm that blew through late last year.
I'd plan on having about 100 miles worth of extra gas just to be sure.
Contributor III
And if you don't already have one, I recommend picking up an annual National Parks pass -
Shipping can take a couple of weeks, so if you plan to order one probably better to do it soon.
Shipping can take a couple of weeks, so if you plan to order one probably better to do it soon.
Advocate I
Enthusiast III
I can confirm that the gas station is open. I was in the area the weekend of the 24th.
Contributor III
I hear that because of the damage they were closing it if the winds picked up above 20mph or so. Apparently the structure covering the pump area is rusted.
Advocate I
I guess in the worst case if we top off tanks to start at Panamint Springs and Stovepipe is closed then the next opportunity to fill up would be at Beatty prior to going through Titus Canyon and that would be around 200 miles total to get to that point in the trip from the start.
There is a Gas station in the Park - I will also be carrying 3.5 gallons Extra J.I.C
Contributor III
There are two gas stations in the park, 26 miles apart. One at Stovepipe Wells, and another at Furnace Creek.
Contributor III
A note on expected weather conditions in case you need to plan. Our highest elevation campsite will be near Racetrack Playa which is at 3700 feet. In December it's entirely reasonable to expect overnight temperatures in the 30s, and being the hardy photographers that we are we'll be standing around in those kinds of temperatures waiting for the sun to come up
Beyond a good camping setup, I also recommend bringing spare batteries as the cold tends to shorten battery life.
And another thing to keep in mind for those of us who don't hit cold weather too often, it's a good idea to put a cold weather additive in your washer fluid to stop it freezing. This happened to a buddy of mine when we were out in Moab a couple of years ago, and he ended up having to replace his washer fluid tank. In my experience, washer fluid sold in the Bay Area is not suitable for temperatures below freezing, but many places sell the lower temperature additive.
Beyond a good camping setup, I also recommend bringing spare batteries as the cold tends to shorten battery life.And another thing to keep in mind for those of us who don't hit cold weather too often, it's a good idea to put a cold weather additive in your washer fluid to stop it freezing. This happened to a buddy of mine when we were out in Moab a couple of years ago, and he ended up having to replace his washer fluid tank. In my experience, washer fluid sold in the Bay Area is not suitable for temperatures below freezing, but many places sell the lower temperature additive.
Some more night and cold night photography tipsA note on expected weather conditions in case you need to plan. Our highest elevation campsite will be near Racetrack Playa which is at 3700 feet. In December it's entirely reasonable to expect overnight temperatures in the 30s, and being the hardy photographers that we are we'll be standing around in those kinds of temperatures waiting for the sun to come up
1) Buy a roll of Gaffers tape (I use Gaffer Power Made in the USA Premium Grade Gaffer Tape because it sticks well and does not leave any GOO on my gear. I buy it from them direct gafferpower.com or on amazon).
- Get your focus set on a bright star early in the evening then switch to full manual mode and tape your lens so it does not change. (tape your zoom ring too if using a zoom lens)
- Use this to cover up your blinking lights (you'll be shocked how someone's blinking red "writing to card" light casts an unremovable red color cast in your night photos! the blue green Sony ones are worse)
- Add grip to slick places on your camera and tripod
- Use a hole punch to punch out dots and put them on nearby similar sized camera buttons / controls so you can tell them apart by feel (yes with gloves on)
- Get a sharpie marker and wrap 2 feet of tape around the body to keep in your photo bag. You can slit the wide roll down to thinner strips with a razor knife as it comes off the roll and have a couple of sizes ready on your sharpie.
- This is good for keeping cold metal or carbon fiber away from your body.
- Increases diameter and adds some squish, to make it eaiser to grip in the cold with gloves on
- You can use pipe insulation and the gaffers tape above for an inexpensive setup
- LensCoat LegCoat Wraps are better. Lower profile and more grippy between the leg and wrap. (LegWraps, LensCoat or via BandHphoto.com)
- Put one on each tripod so you can find yours in the dark w/o using a flashlight.
- Velcro ones are better than "snap bracelet" or plastic clip ones.
- Look for them locally by the kids bikes in dept stores or on amazon
- I prefer wired when in groups because we've had some interference with wireless ones in the past.
- Get one that can do timed shots of at least 30 mins.
- DO NOT use IR wireless "selphy" remotes as the "invisible" IR light may mess up night shots when the camera sensor picks up the IR light.
- Phone apps are NOT the way to go here.
- You are going to have your hands full and still need to see.
- Be sure to ask before turning on either as everyone's shot will get messed up if a flash light comes on.
- I like the older version of the NITECORE HC60M with the "ultra low" 1 lumen mode
7) Someone should pick up some glow sticks. When you are done with "serious" photography at a given site crack a few glow sticks and have some fun. Setup for a 30-120second exposure then Draw what you like with a beautiful DVNP setting as the backdrop. "Terminator Time travel" Energy balls can be made by tying 1 or more colors of glowstick on a length of paracord and swing it in a circle in front of you while spinning 360* around slowly on your heel. :D
Another reminder for those in warmer climates, Check your rig's battery. There are batteries for "Northern" and "Southern" states with different chemistry. Folks from Tx, SoCal, etc get stranded here in Co often when the temps drop and the battery fails to take a charge. Likely to be really bad this year for anyone who has not been driving as much due to lockdowns.
Wish I was able to meet up with all of you!
Boort
Enthusiast III
I just checked, my annual pass expires this month. I always buy at the entrance station of a national park. Is purchasing online recommended?And if you don't already have one, I recommend picking up an annual National Parks pass -
Shipping can take a couple of weeks, so if you plan to order one probably better to do it soon.
Contributor III
There is no entrance station in Death Valley - your only option for a pass is to get one at the Visitor Center at Furnace Creek, which is about 75 miles from where we first hit dirt roads to get into the park. You likely have enough time to get one online.
millerm217
Rank IV
Explorer I
buy your entrance path online for Death Valley: Death Valley National Park Site Pass in California - Recreation.gov
Contributor III
If you aren't already doing it, you may also want to investigate 'focus stacking' before the trip. This is the process of shooting multiple photos of a scene - each of which is focused on a different part of the scene - and combining them later to get better front to back sharpness (assuming that's what you want ;)). Since part of the process is how you setup the shots in the field, you may want to get familiar with the process before the trip. There are many videos on how to achieve this, but here's one that gives a good overview -
Contributor III
I had a chance to head over to Death Valley and do some schedule planning over the last few days, and confirm where we need to be and how we get there on time ;) All roads are passable right now - even Hunter Mountain after some brief snow last week. I didn't have to engage 4-Low for any part of the trip, but the road to Marble Canyon is pretty rough and ungraded. Camping spots were busier than I expected, but that may have been due to people taking advantage of the Wednesday holiday to get out of town. I counted 25 tripods at Zabriskie Point for sunrise this morning, and probably 15-20 more photographers without tripods.The photo below was taken looking in the opposite direction to Manly Beacon before sunrise.
Looking forward to December...
Looking forward to December...
Contributor III
And an update on weather. Overnight temperatures were in the 20's at the Racetrack on Thursday night, while other camping spots at lower altitudes were in the 40's-50's overnight.
Contributor III
With your Outback, the only part I'd be concerned about is the road to Marble Canyon. I did it earlier in the year with my Cherokee with 8.7 inches of ground clearance, which I believe is the same as what you have. You shouldn't need underbody protection, but going may be slow in parts to pick smooth lines. Aside from that, it's just the standard washboard to get to other backcountry locations - with the usual guidance about having good tires.
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Contributor III
Based on the dry run last weekend, I'd say we will be at Racetrack playa by around 3PM or so on Thursday if you want to meet us there. If you are coming in over Hunter Mountain you can potentially catch up with us earlier. If it's later, camping will be at Homestake, or Ubehebe Lead Mine if Homestake is full.
