We create a loop hike in Death Valley

Last year we had a great time discovering a spring hidden deep within Death Valley.  We also explored the area above the spring, and found a pass through the hills to the other side.

We wanted to explore the area on the other side, but ran out of time.  It was on our definitely-to-do list for this year.

And we definitely-did-it, and in the process found a way of making a terrific loop hike out of it.  This year's loop hike is shown in the bubbles on the map.  The gray lines are last year's hikes.

And found an area we want to explore next year.

We set off across the valley floor to the opening we found last year between the hills.

After exploring behind the hills for awhile, we climbed one of them to get a look around.

We saw the beginnings of a rock-filled wash heading down, so decided to try it.

We knew, from experience, that sometimes one can get far down into one of these rocky washes and reach a dry fall that can't be climbed down or around.  When that happens, you have to painfully crawl all the way back up and find another route.  But that's the fun.

As we traveled down, it gradually dawned on us that the hills we were viewing appeared familiar.  And sure enough, we had worked our way down to Graybill Springs.  We failed last year in our attempt to find a way through the springs and onto the other side of the hills, but not this year!


At Graybill Springs: