As we explored Montana in July, it was Monte @Blackdawg who suggested that a December trip to Death Valley would be the perfect time to get everyone together for a visit to the desert. Having planned our first trip in 2021, I set about building an itinerary that would pick up where we left off, taking us through entirely new terrain over the course of six days in the desert.
Then, a week before blast-off, the plumbing in Monte's new house exploded. Understandably, that put a crimp in his ability to join, and soon after, Mike @Digiratus, Zane @Speedytech7, and I decided to postpone the trip - so we could all go together - rather than pushing on without him.
Still, @mrs.turbodb and I had already forked over the staggering sum of $58/each for roundtrip tickets from Seattle to Las Vegas on Spirit Airlines. With a $99/each cancellation fee, there was nothing to do but figure out a new plan!
Digging through a series of resources - most notably, Digonnet's Hiking Death Valley and my stash of Steve Hall's trip reports - we settled on an itinerary that would shuttle us in and around the Cottonwood Mountains to a series of peaks, canyons, and overlooks that we'd not had a chance to visit when we'd trapsed through their folds only two weeks earlier.
Little did we know at the time, but it'd soon become apparent - as we encountered one summit and visitor log after another - that we were following in the footsteps two Death Valley Giants. Steve Hall and Jeremy Stoltzfus, it seems, have been everywhere.
Let's not get ahead of ourselves, this trip is coming soon...Consider subscribing to be notified when it's here!