EXPLORING WILD DEATH VALLEY SUV 4X4 4WD JEEP ROADS TRAILS HIKING INFORMATION VISITOR TOURIST GUIDE MAP SIGHTS ATTRACTIONS

The Key to getting there and back comes in the form of a map!

 

Teakettle Junction sunset

Here is a general map of the territory for quick online reference only.

Click HERE to view the MSN Death Valley National Park map

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Here are a few words from the master Death Valley cartographer himself - he also produces many more maps of other backcountry areas within the state of California

 

Greetings outdoor explorer! I love maps. I love them so much that I've made it my career to publish maps. They contain bits of history, geology, and culture that can make the landscape come alive. Maps can be confusing to many people and it is well worth spending some time learning to read a map to make your visit to Death Valley, or anyplace else, a little more enjoyable. To get a sense of the scope of Death Valley you would need a small-scale map, about a 1:250,000 scale. A small-scale map shows a large area in small detail and you really can't concern yourself with every little bend in the landscape if you want to take in Death Valley on one single map. When you want to do some more detailed exploring of an area, then you should look for a large-scale USGS 7.5' (seven and-a-half minute) topographic map which has contour lines showing elevations. A large-scale map shows a small area but in large detail. These 7.5' maps are also known as "quad" maps because each one is a quadrangle that covers 7.5' of latitude and 7.5' of longitude. The scale on a "quad" sheet is 1:24,000 which means 1 unit of measurement on the map represents 24,000 units of measurement on the ground. In this case, on a 7.5' quad, one inch would represent 2000 feet (24,000 inches equals 2000 feet). Compare this to the 1:250,000-scale map you would need to cover all of Death Valley. Here, 1 inch would represent 3.95 miles. To get all the 7.5' maps that cover the Death Valley area would require dozens of maps, and many of them would have very little information that would really help the average traveler to the region. In between the 7.5' and 1:250,000 scale maps are a few other maps that may or may not be useful. There used to be a series of maps called the 15-minute series, but the USGS has abandoned the production of these maps. They were produced in the 1950s but have been replaced by the 7.5-minute maps. There is also a series of maps at a scale of 1:100,000 which is used as a base map by the Bureau of Land Management for their Desert Access maps. If you use one of the topographic versions, be aware that the contour intervals are in meters rather than feet. And one of the more useful maps around, even though it is not a topographic map, is the "Triple A" map, although it is actually produced by the Automobile Club of Southern California. No matter which map you use - and many people use more than one map because they all have different ways of showing the landscape - spend some time getting acquainted with it. Look at the legend and see how the roads and trails are represented. Is the contour interval 40 feet or 200 feet? It makes a difference when you start planning a hike! If you use a GPS unit, does the map have a grid, and is it lat/long or UTM? Note the datum and be sure to set your GPS to the datum on the map. Many GPS units come from the factory set at a 1983 or 1984 datum, but USGS maps use a 1927 datum. Maps and guidebooks are the starting points for your adventure. They can help you plan and dream about where to go and what to do once you get there. But in the end it is all up to you to have the kind of experience that is so enjoyable that you want to get back out and explore someplace else. Dream it, plan it, and do it!   Sincerely, Tom Harrison Tom Harrison Maps 2 Falmouth Cove, San Rafael CA 94901 www.tomharrisonmaps.com

If you wish to get your hands on your own copy of Tom's map, here is how to do it - followed by a low resolution sample image of the Death Valley National Park map

 

 

You can order the map at: www.tomharrisonmaps.com

Here is a partial sample of his map, which is large, easily readable, and printed on waterproof plastic for years of rugged outdoor use by the most demanding Death Valley explorer. The real map is superior to the quality I am able to render here on your computer. It is also much larger than what you see below.

 

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OTHER MAPS OF INTEREST:

 

 

Area reference map

- courtesy Wikipedia -

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Ancient lake activity during Ice Age periods

- courtesy Wikipedia -

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Satellite photo courtesy NASA

 

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The following map corresponds to numeric locator designations as found on the TRAIL GUIDE page of this website. This map is also available as a link from that page, so that you may read of a particular trail, and then click on it to navigate to the locator map.

 

 

 

 

WildDeathValley.com - Your backcountry guide to Death Valley National Park