I originally posted this over in the general thread area, before I realized a show specific subforum existed. I have edited my original post, deleted the details, and moved this post here, where it more properly belongs.
I liked this show quite a bit. And I have driven versions of all three vehicles tested over the same trails/roads.
Below was what I posted to the general area.
First time poster here, and I thought I would open with a bit of a lengthy one.
First, I like the show in general, it is set up on the DVR and recorded every week. Second, having driven, many times, essentially every trail they showed on the Death Valley trip show I really like that particular show. I connected well with it. Having owned, at one time or another, versions of all three vehicles featured did not hurt either
Also, I know the show is entertainment, first and foremost, as such they take a bit of artistic license with reality from time to time. This is not a complaint about that, in fact it is not a complaint at all, just a comment. Keep that in mind, I am not complaining, but rather commenting.
Spoiler warning, if you have not seen the show yet some of the following might give away parts of the show. I would suggest you watch and enjoy the show first.
I have to comment, one of the basic premises of this particular show was an impossibility. Starting from their start point, in Cuddeback Dry Lake, and going to Mt Charlston via Ballarat and Coyote/Goler Canyon, cannot be done without crossing more asphalt than they showed. Specifically, for sure there are at least two pieces (and probably more) of paved road that would have to be crossed before you got to the Nevada border, and at least one more after the border.
The show started with the trio being married up with their online purchased vehicles at Cuddeback dry lake. They never identify Cuddeback by name, but the shape, size, and surrounding mountains make the ID fairly positive. Also, the location and distance are right and Cuddeback is used for a lot of filming, commercials, shows, etc, so production agencies are familiar with it. And for the purposes of this discussion it is also the best case, any other location would be even worse, from a having to cross pavement standpoint. The race from the vehicles to the trailers was probably south to north, with the trailers parked in the scattered growth at the north end of the dry lake bed.
From Cuddeback the guys went to Panamint Valley, and specifically the first stop in Panamint was Ballarat. This is generally a north-north-east direction of travel.
Due north of Cuddeback is the Golden Valley Wilderness area, closed to all vehicle traffic with no road through it. And, it would be quite the trip, even if there was a legal road or trail. Butting up to this closed area and north-east of Cuddeback are the restricted areas of Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake and the National Training Center at Ft Irwin. And due east of Cuddeback is the closed Wilderness area of Grass Valley. This all results in one direction the guys could have taken out of Cuddeback, to the west, skirting the Golden Valley area (they could also exit south and south-east, but that would not help them get where they were going). West via Granite Wells Rd leads to Trona Rd, but it might have been possible to turn north, flank Trona Rd, and stay off the asphalt. Running alongside Trona Rd for a short distance would have dropped them into Teagle Wash. Heading north-east from there, and running up the east side of Searles Lake, would take them towards the Slate Mountains, this is the mountain range on the south-west side of Panamint Valley.
But, there is no way to get there without crossing the pavement of Randsburg Wash Road. This two lane paved road runs east from Trona Rd to the restricted areas of China Lake.
Once across Randsburg Wash Rd there are several possible paths most of the way to Ballarat without getting on pavement, but it all narrows down to one pinch point along highway 178 north of Trona. If they did not get on the asphalt here they would have had to drive along the shoulder?and that is a pretty narrow shoulder for a large section. There is a slight possibility they could have passed through Fish Canyon, but as rough as that would have been I would have expected a bit of video to be used, it would have made the rest of the trip look pretty tame.
After leaving Ballarat they traveled south down the east side of Panamint Valley, a decent dirt road most of the way getting a bit washboarded at times. Near the south end of Panamint Valley they turned east on Coyote Canyon Rd up towards Goler Wash Rd. This is the area they hit the rock ?step? were the Bronco broke its axle and was temporarily delayed. It looks like they camped to the east of Manly Peak, on the east side of Mengel Pass or in Striped Butte Valley. From there it is a fairly easy trek down Butte Valley Rd and Warm Springs Rd (where the pink teardrop met its fait) to the floor of Death Valley.
But, to get from the floor of Death Valley to the Nevada border you have to cross over either (or all three, depending on route) Highway 190 , Highway 178, or Highway 127. There is not any way around this that I am aware of. (I do not pretend to know every inch of each of these three roads, but I do not remember a strategicaly placed wash or underpass like structure that would have allowed them to pass under the road or combination of roads, without touching the surface. At least not one that did not drop you out in an area that would require crossing yet another road surface.)
From there one could go south of Pahrump NV and stay off pavement, but then you would still have to cross Highway 160. There is no way around that one either. From this point one might be able to make it to Mt Charlston NV without crossing asphalt, although I have not ever done that myself, so I am unsure.
So, I make it, at minimum, three major roads that had to be crossed during this trek, not the one minor road they showed in the program. And I would bet at one point they had to drive along 178, probably on the asphalt, for a significant distance.
By the way, the country they traversed in this episode is fantastic. If you get a chance I suggest you do the Coyote/Goler/Striped Butte route some day.
T!
