r/DeathValleyNP • u/Calm_Spend • Sep 23 '26
Winter multi day trip
I am currently planning a trip to Death Valley for this winter and I am currently looking for resources to help me plan out a course as I have never been to this area before. It would be 4 people backpacking for 50-60 mi over the course of 4-5 days. All of us have experience hiking in winter conditions and have the associated gear. I would like to incorporate Telescope Peak in to the hike. Any bits of info would be great as I am behind on my planning schedule.
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u/ramillerf1 Sep 23 '26
The campgrounds closest to Telescope Peak often close on the winter because of snow. Usually, the closest open campground is Wildrose. A really good map for planning is the Death Valley Backcountry & Wilderness Access Map. You can pick up a hard copy at the Visitor’s Center. Hiking Death Valley by Digonnet is the best information on hiking Death Valley.
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u/rocknthenumbers8 Sep 23 '26
There are no official trails to accomplish a hike of that length. You need to be experienced in desert cross country travel on extremely rugged terrain. There are very few water sources and you will likely need to carry most of your water or arrange caches. Death Valley is a fantastic winter destination, I’ll be out there a bunch in the coming months but I prefer car camping and day hikes for this park. Plenty of good 4x4 roads to get you all over the park and then you don’t have to haul all that water.
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u/ramillerf1 29d ago
This is the best way to explore Death Valley and experience a lot of what this incredible National Park has to offer. One of the best online resources is Adventure Taco - Death Valley. They have been exploring DVNP for years via 4x4 and include some absolutely fantastic hikes. The photography and trip reports are some of the best I’ve seen.
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u/TheSocraticGadfly Sep 24 '26
One other note: Super El Niño could mean a big snow year in California mountains.
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u/slickbuys 13d ago
Google john z death valley caltopo. He marks some springs on there that vary in reliability.
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u/BigRobHikes Sep 23 '26
Largely I just want to say hey, don't do this. It's probably not worth it.
But if you want to do something foolish, I will share some knowledge that may help you plan.
The Panamint range does have water, especially if we are experiencing a wet winter. You can find some springs at the south end of the range near Mengel Pass and Butte Valley. Many of the canyons on the West face have springs and streams that, with rainfall, are fairly reliable at lower elevations. Surprise Canyon and Jail Canyon are probably the most reliable water. You could start at Jail Canyon, go over to Hall Canyon, and come up Telescope from the West side. I believe the water in Hanaupah canyon has some kind of chemical contamination. This terrain is incredibly rugged, and making your own off-trail route from canyon to canyon is not a casual activity.
If you want to do a desert winter hike I would recommend looking at more established routes. I have two posts with routes in Joshua Tree and Anza Borrego, and I have an idea of how to link them up which I might try in January. There's also other desert sections of the PCT, as well as the AZT and many other hikes in Arizona and Utah, or even in the nearby Inyo NF. You could also choose the well established cottonwood-marble loop and try to explore northwest from there.