Southwestern Burnup Tour - Sierra Nevada Onion Valley Hike, Death Valley, and Beatty NV - September 2011

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Quick Sprint Across Death Valley

Driving from the Sierras through to Nevada
Saturday, September 24

We had now finished our 2-day 'pre-desert' mountain outing; it was now time to head back towards the Las Vegas area, as we were scheduled to pick up Arn's brother Kyle at the airport the next morning. We didn't plan to actual stay in Vegas - just drive to somewhere within a two-hour drive.

We chose to take the scenic route that crossed Death Valley National Park. Arn had never been, and was keen to get a sampling of the place. We turned east onto highway 136, then onto highway 190. Highway 190 is the major east-west highway that crosses Death Valley.

Towards massive desert ranges

We stopped at a few scenic overlook points on highway 190 as it crossed through the north-south trending ranges of mountains. Rainbow Canyon, in particular, was one nice scenic spot that I don't recall ever having stopped at.

Rainbow Canyon

The unsettled weather was not confined to the Sierra. Ahead of us, we could see impressive dark cloud masses over the arid Inyo Mountains. Here, deprived of much of their moisture after being squeezed over the Sierra, the rain did not appear to be reaching the ground.

The temperatures climbed past the 100 degree F mark as we arrowed our way across Panamint Valley -- meaning that Death Valley itself would likely be as hot or hotter. As we made our way over the Panamint Range at Towne Pass, we noticed that there appeared to be some sort of cycling rally going on, and we marvelled at how cyclists could manage these long stretches of 3000 and 4000-foot elevation gains in such heat, often without any water on their persons (there were periodic manned water stations by the organizers, though).

courtesy AHyndman

Panamint Valley

Crossing Panamint Valley

Death Valley Mud Flat

We arrived at Stovepipe Wells and the elevation of sea-level at about 5pm. Arn was keen to experience a bit of Death Valley up-close, so we drove a few minutes further east and headed out for a walk on the Stovepipe Wells sand dunes.

courtesy AHyndman

Shady at the dunes

Shady but hot

Crest-walking

Although none of the precipitation was reaching the ground in this parched area, the general unsettled weather meant that many big and sun-obscuring clouds were in the sky, and most of our walk on the dunes was in the shade. Even so, the temperature was a few degrees over 100 degrees F (around 40C). It was strange to be in shade and yet still feel this sort of heat. Along with the hazy curtains of evaporating rainfall high above, a few little flickers of lightning came down from the clouds here and there.

courtesy AHyndman

Clouds in Death Valley

Hot even in shade

After Arn had had his fill of running and jumping in the dunes, we returned to the car and resumed our way east. We discussed for a bit, and decided that the little town of Beatty, Nevada -- just over the state border from where we were -- would be a good place to stop for the night. It was well-positioned for a two-drive to Vegas the next morning, and it likely offered a decent and inexpensive place to find some motel rooms.

Interactive Trackmap, Drive through Death Valley [partial] - click map to view

Interactive Trackmap, Drive through Death Valley [partial] - click to view

We rolled into Beatty at around sunset, and drove around its sleepy streets, looking for a suitable place to stay. We were attracted by the large round sign of the Pheonix Inn, but were a bit confused by the fact that the closest looking motel-like buildings were labelled the Atomic Inn. Turns out that the Pheonix Inn is now renamed The Atomic Inn, and apparently hasn't yet managed to convert all of their signage.

courtesy AHyndman

The Atomic Inn

More importantly, they had lots of available space, and at a very decent price. We had a look at the rooms, which turned out to be surprisingly spacious and clean (although to be fair, our room did have a lingering smoke smell). The theme of the place seemed to be a light-hearted tribute to the era of bomb testing at the dawn of the Atomic Age, which took place very near here in the 1940s and 50s. We liked the slight bit of kitschiness mixed with humor in the decor of the place: The space-agey styling cues on the exterior facade; the little atomic nucleus logos on much of the interior furnishings; and in the bathroom, the picture of a nuclear bomb blast -- directly opposite the toilet.

courtesy AHyndman

Atomic Inn

Spacey circles, Atomic Inn

Atomic Themed furniture

After cleaning up a bit, we at dinner at the Death Valley Fire Pit BBQ -- only a block or two away from the motel, and recommended to us by the motel's desk clerk. The restaurant was simple and homey in appearance, but I enjoyed my beef brisket sandwich. And, that's what counts.

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