Comments on: Lost and found in Death Valley

By: Tin Cup

Tin Cup — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 05:00:19 +0000

If common sense was so common….Every one would have it!

By: sourdough

sourdough — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 10:51:41 +0000

To Pahrump resident…”it could happen to anyone”…maybe so but it would have to be someone as clueless as this woman.From Google Earth, I did some scaling…When they left Scottys Castle, had they turned left, they would have intersected 190 (paved)in 35 miles. So they must have turned right and proceeded along unnamed road towards the Racetrack. At Teakettle Jct., assuming they had gassed up Parhump, they would have traveled around 170 miles. Assuming that their car couldn’t have made it down the Lippincott Rd. (clearance issues) they probably headed up Hunter Mtn. In 30 miles, they would have intersected the Saline Valley road at Hunter Mtn. She made a collosal misjudgment in turning right and heading downhill into Saline Valley. In 5 miles, it would be abundantly clear that she was heading down into an inferno. At that point, she should have turned around and retraced her path to the Hunter Mtn Jct and proceeded another 15 miles. She would have intersected paved 190. Instead, in descending Grapevine Canyon (SV Road), she passed water. In 25 miles, she would have passed the fresh water lake in Saline Valley, where there is abundant water. (225 miles so far). It is 3 miles from there to Moyers, then she said she drove another 45 miles, which would put her almost to the Big Pine -Saline Valley road intersection. She had to pass 4 canyons on the western Inyos, all containing water, and then Willow Creek, also abundant water. In the morning, she turns around and proceeds BACK DOWN into Saline Valley, Running out of gas at the Moyers, where there was water and food. God takes care of fools and small children. 320 miles accounted for. 45 miles in either direction from Moyers would have her passing water and reaching a paved road. Go figure

By: bruingal

bruingal — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 07:04:00 +0000

I’m sure they are smart and careful people but this incident surely didn’t demonstrate that. I really don’t know how you can accidentally drive 400 miles aimlessly on unpaved roads. Plenty of people visit Death Valley (albeit, most of them have the sense to NOT go in the middle of summer) but nothing happens to them. I’ve been there 3 times and even when going to the Racetrack we took every precaution we could even though it was a day trip. We were fine. It’s all about using your common sense, and not blaming the lack of signage!

By: bruingal

bruingal — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 06:58:38 +0000

Teachable moment here, hope future visitors learn from the dumb mistakes of the past!

1. Rely on your common sense and a paper map instead of a GPS (which I might add runs on car and/or battery power, so you’re hosed when you’re out of either)
2. Pay attention! Unpaved road- probably not meant for the casual visitor. Stick to paved roads, back track if you have to! Roads are unpaved and paved for a reason!
3. Don’t try to blame the lack of signage for your lack of common sense. You are in one of the most isolated places on earth, not some concrete jungle. There are signs near Scotty’s Castle, so what’s to say if you get lost WITH signs near there, that you would miraculously find your way with hypothetical signs on unpaved roads in the middle of no where?

Common sense folks!!! And if you don’t have any…then you don’t have any business going to one of the most isolated places on earth in the middle of the freaking summer.

By: george willngham

george willngham — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 02:02:29 +0000

in the first place they did not to be there at that time of the year in deathvalley i have walked from the lowest point to the height point,when i was in the marine corp& it was hell.G.W.

By: Another Pahrump resident putting in my 2 cents

Another Pahrump resident putting in my 2 cents — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 00:32:34 +0000

Don’t trust what you read in the papers or from the news. Those two outlets don’t always speak the truth. Even if it’s standing in front of them. I heard what happened from the two of the three woman’s mouths themselves. You people on here don’t know what your talking about. It could happen to anyone!!!

By: Another Pahrump resident putting in my 2 cents

Another Pahrump resident putting in my 2 cents — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 00:29:34 +0000

I know all 3 woman. They live locally and the mother is a smart, careful person. It was an accident. It could have happened to ANYONE.

By: Ch

Ch — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 05:14:30 +0000

Anyone going into Death Valley in July is asking for trouble.

By: vikki

vikki — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 14:23:37 +0000

always, always, always, always!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! have water lots of water in your car……..my husband and i live out there…..never and i say never leave home without those emergency backup items….a gallon of water per person or 2 or 3 when you take a road trip….i bet those folks came from Las Vegas and than from there back east….not really from the outback…..thank God they came out okay….

By: Joe Desertrat

Joe Desertrat — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 03:15:57 +0000

I’m with Mike on this. I would love to know their route. I’m completely flummoxed as to how they could have traveled from Pahrump to Scotty’s Castle and ended up in the Saline Valley on the way home. The easiest route was Bell Vista/Ash Meadows Road out of Pahrump to CA 127, make a right and then a quick left onto CA 190, then take 190 to the Scotty’s Castle Highway and that to Scotty’s Castle. That’s a total of four roads, paved all the way. Now they might have taken a longer route up 95 to avoid paying the park fee (really?) but that would still be all paved roads. As soon as they got off a paved road they should have realized something was wrong. I can’t believe they accidentally went over the Racetrack Road and up over Hunter Mountain. Or any of the even worse roads out of there. And the long route over the Big Pine Road seems equally implausible. If they returned on the Scotty’s Castle Highway they likely would have had to have made a right on 190 instead of a left (there are signs there by the way!), gone through Stovepipe Wells (I suppose it is possible they confused that with Furnace Creek) then over two much more serious mountain passes than the ones they drove over on the way there. How could they not realize they were going the wrong way? The only good thing they did was not panic. They should be billed for the rescue efforts.