Death Valley, The Race Track, Mengle Pass, snow & a great adventure

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I've been itch'n to go back to Death Valley ever since my last trip almost two years ago. This place has such variety that it seems the ultimate dual sport destination.

You can see some of it from a car or street bike, more from an AWD car or SUV or adventure bike and all of it from a lifted 4x4 or dual sport bike. Since I recently added a DRZ400S to the garage, I can go for all of it which is what I hoped to do this past weekend.

A friend of mine on a dual sported XR650R, his daughter on a dual sported KLX250, my son and I on the DRZ400S and KTM525EXC loaded the bikes and drove out last Friday at 6 a.m. and headed for Saline Valley Rd off highway 190.

It was a great day to start a 3 day ride:

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We unloaded the bikes and headed out. Right away you are greeted with big views everywhere you look.

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This is my first attempt taking pics on the fly while riding a dual sport. I have done it on my RT but that bike has a windscreen. On the DRZ I found the camera blowing around while riding and I wound up taking many shots all cockeyed so this will be a learning process.

We headed for Hunter Mtn. Road which took us east of The Race Track over a set of mountains I had never ridden though before and up to altitudes over 7,200 ft.

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Hunter Mtn road becomes Hidden Valley Rd where I found the "Silt" I have read about on other ride reports from DV. I slowed down as I saw something different in the road up ahead and we all made it through but with some effort.

For those of you that haven't had the opportunity to ride "silt", it has the consistency of flour, is sereral feet deep and just riding through it covers you and the bike in a very fine gray dust that stayed on me and my bike for the whole weekend.

We also passed a guy and his wife on a Ural. We talked with them later at Teakettle Junction and they were having a blast.

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A few more miles and we reached Teakettle Junction. My friends daughter and my son really enjoyed reading what people had written on the variety of teakettles left on the road sign. It is amazing what you can find in the middle of nowhere.

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Next up the road and looping back south is The Race Track. My friend had been there years earlier but didn't realize the rocks worth seeing are only at the south/east end of the dry lake bed and you can't see them from the dirt road. You have to walk what seems like miles to get to them but once you do, it is worth the extra effort.

I always find the shapes in the dry lake that are made when the ground drys out, very interesting. They look like the rock at Devils Post Pile near Mammoth.

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Once you reach the moving rocks, you can see the trails that have been left. No one has ever seen the rocks move and there are many theories as to why they move.

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We took a quick look at the mine and then headed down Lippencott Mine Road. The last time I rode this was on my R1200GSA and I don't think I would ever do that again. Going down this road is much easier than going up it and it was very easy on the DRZ compared to the GSA.

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Riding down Lippencott Mine Road is better than going up because of the great views and it is easier.

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The views didn't stop as we approached Saline Valley Rd where we were stopped by three students driving an 2WD Acura sedan. They were looking for the hot springs and had already had a flat and lost the rear panel of the body of the car behind the right rear wheel. They wanted to get to the hot springs before dark, had never been there before and didn't want to get lost.

They didn't have a map and there are no street signs in Saline Valley. We got out our Tom Harrison DV map and gave them directions and hoped they made it.