Another bout of rain for California. I wonder if Death Valley has ever had a flood warning before. Will the rain cause the desert to bloom? Death Valley National Park Severe Watches & Warnings NOAA Weather Radio Watches & Warnings Flash Flood Watch Issued: 1:48 PM PST Feb. 16, 2017 National Weather Service ... Flash Flood Watch remains in effect from late tonight through Saturday evening... The Flash Flood Watch continues for * portions of southeast California and southern Nevada, including the following areas, in southeast California, Death Valley National Park, morongo basin, Owens Valley, and western Mojave Desert. In southern Nevada, western Clark and southern Nye County. * From late tonight through Saturday evening * increased potential of flash flooding due to heavy rainfall. * Potential flooding of normally dry washes, low water crossings and poorly drained intersections. Heavy rainfall may carry rocks, mud or other debris onto roadways. Precautionary/preparedness actions... A Flash Flood Watch means that conditions may become favorable for flooding of washes... streams and other drainage areas in the watch area. If you are in the watch area... you should closely monitor weather forecasts and be prepared to take immediate action should heavy rain and flooding occur or a Flash Flood Warning is issued. Listen to NOAA Weather Radio... commercial radio or television stations for updates on this flash flood threat or by visiting US online at Weather.Gov/lasvegas Flash Flood Watch Issued: 1:48 PM PST Feb. 16, 2017 National Weather Service ... Flash Flood Watch remains in effect from late tonight through Saturday evening... The Flash Flood Watch continues for * portions of southeast California and southern Nevada, including the following areas, in southeast California, Death Valley National Park, morongo basin, Owens Valley, and western Mojave Desert. In southern Nevada, western Clark and southern Nye County. * From late tonight through Saturday evening * increased potential of flash flooding due to heavy rainfall. * Potential flooding of normally dry washes, low water crossings and poorly drained intersections. Heavy rainfall may carry rocks, mud or other debris onto roadways. Precautionary/preparedness actions... A Flash Flood Watch means that conditions may become favorable for flooding of washes... streams and other drainage areas in the watch area. If you are in the watch area... you should closely monitor weather forecasts and be prepared to take immediate action should heavy rain and flooding occur or a Flash Flood Warning is issued. Listen to NOAA Weather Radio... commercial radio or television stations for updates on this flash flood threat or by visiting US online at Weather.Gov/lasvegas
Death Valley becomes beautiful due to rain. It spawns a plethora of flowers that normally does not last very long. Tourists flock there for the event.
I'm planning a spring visit just to see the bloom. - - - Updated - - - DV flooded several years ago and put the hurt to Scotty's castle. I don't think it's reopened yet. Edit:"Scotty's Castle is CLOSED until further notice due to flood damage, and is not likely to re-open to the public until 2019. All entry to Grapevine Canyon and Scotty's Castle district is currently prohibited. More information is available about this extreme flood and recovery efforts." https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/historyculture/scottys-castle.htm
Scotty's Castle is well worth the visit. I am trying in my mind to figure out how it could get flood damage. Well were I going there, I would drive into the Valley very early since the Valley is many miles in length I found this.
The Feds sell excellent maps. Not that normal maps won't work, but the government maps are rich in detail. Scotty's castle is well to the north inside the Valley and there is much to see elsewhere in the Valley.
The pool flooded, the visitor center was flooded in water and mud up to 4 feet, and there was a lot of damage to the roads and the valley below. The house itself was largely undamaged.
- - - Updated - - - Titus canyon is well worth the effort and as of now still open. I MT biked it years ago when I was young dumb and fulla cum. Those were the days. https://www.nps.gov/deva/planyourvisit/titus-canyon.htm
I found the canyon on google maps. When I departed from Scotty's Castle, I drove past the entry to Titus Canyon. It was not a super hot day, but it still was over 100 degrees. I wanted to get to highway 395 so kept driving. Also reading up on the proper vehicle, I was in the Caddy which does not have all that much ground clearance. Photos of it on the park service site make it seem worth going to. I recommend such trips are past any flash flood times but early in the year or perhaps later once the intense heat period passes. It was late afternoon when I left the Castle. I found it remarkably cooler inside. The way it was constructed, it makes use of some kind of convective air flow. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotty's_Castle#Water_and_electricity
For it to still be closed, the park service must collect low revenues. I just learned from Wikipedia that Scotty never owned the property or villa. It is really not a castle. I had heard of it as a teen and hoped to one day get to it. I have been in Death Valley just one time and that was when GW Bush was president. For me to drive to it, I have to head far south and head East. When I went, I had planned to go Tioga Pass road but got near Yosemite and learned the pass was then closed due to heavy snow. There is no quick path to Death Valley from where I live.
Been there a few times. It's a very large house. It's one of the more popular stops in the southwestern US, but it's usually not about revenues. Government isn't a business. It's not a long trip from the SF Bay Area. If you take the 99 south and then cut east it may seem like a lot of miles, but these are very fast highways. Unless it's particularly wet, the roads are great all the way. We camp there every few years in the winters.
I don't know your route, but Google maps says it is more than 500 miles and I live closer to it than does San Francisco residents. What route do you follow? My route shows down to Bakersfield then take 58 and cut off on 14.
If we are in car, rather than motorcycle, then we'll go down 5, turn on 14, then 395, etc. Same as your map shows, I'm sure. Coming in from Panamint. It's a 7 hour drive, though there are some areas where speed limits might as well be a suggestion. If the weather isn't bad, we can go over 178 past Lake Isabella. It's about the same distance, and is a prettier drive. That road can get sketchy during this time of year, though.
I'm driving a thousand miles to see it in bloom this spring, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity. Well a few times in a lifetime but still.
