Badwater 16: The Best of Death Valley
Join us for this 3 day Adventure around Death Valley.
Riding begins Saturday Morning in Panamint Springs CA.
Recommendation: You should arrive Friday night and stay in either Panamint Springs or Ridgecrest
About the ride
This is a 3 day Dual Sport ride to explore the best of the back parts of Death Valley.
We will spend each night in a hotel, so we will have a support truck to carry our overnight gear.
The ride will have options of routes to take depending on the level of difficulty that you would like and the weather conditions. This is an intermediate level ride, not a difficult ride. This is not a good ride for beginners. The distances can be long. There will be about 1/3 pavement depending on your choices.
Think Scenic Explorer's Ride!
Full Ride Description
Do this ride yourself: Purchase Rider Packet and GPS microSD Card for this ride
Note: A Full Rider Packet consists of printed ride descriptions and paper ride maps and a custom GPS microSD card for your Garmin or BMW GPS unit.
Badwater 16 Self Guided Ride Packets: The SD Cards and maps cover the complete trail with all the route options
Badwater 500 16 Choice (Scroll Down Menu)
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Free Shipping
Notes: I suggest you plan and order early. Normally I ship within a week. But sometimes I run out and it can take me several weeks to get new cards and maps. And sometimes I am out riding and building new adventures so that can be hard too. I list the Option for 2 SD cards because many riders like to carry a backup card or a cheap backup GPS in the event of unforeseen circumstances.
Hotel Info
You will need to make your own motel reservations per below
Make your reservations early as space can be limited
Friday: Panamint Springs CA Panamint Springs Resort (775) 482-7680
Saturday: Pahrump NV Best Western Pahrump (775) 727-5100
Sunday: Beatty NV Stagecoach Motel (775) 553-2419
Monday: Last day of the ride, you go home.
Note: The Panamint Springs Resort may fill up early. Some riders may elect to stay in Ridgecrest then wake up early and travel to Panamint for the ride start at 7am Saturday morning. Others may consider camping at Panamint.
View the ride maps below
OK since many of you might like to study more detail about the ride, below are the ride maps.
I put these ride maps on the web page because I know a few of you love looking at the ride detail and dreaming about the ride. At first glance these maps do not look so impressive, but they are way cool. If you click the Earth or Satellite tab and start zooming in, you can see the ride in incredible detail. I have spent a ton of hours sorting through the details of the ride for each day, so for those of you that enjoy this sort of thing, well enjoy!
Legend:
The Blue lines are MAIN routes
The Red lines are Harder routes
The Green lines are Easy options
How does the ride navigation work?
This is a self-led GPS ride; all riding is on your own. You are responsible for your own riding. You will be given a GPS map file and instructions on how to use your Garmin GPS unit. People will hook up in small groups of less than 6 riders and tend to ride together. You are not encouraged to ride alone. You are responsible for your own riding and yourself. (see my ride Navigation Video)
Note from me, gpsKevin
My goal for this ride is simple: great riding. So you can count on great routes and places to ride.
But in addition: the ride is about discovering new places, meeting new friends, seeing new parts of Death Valley.
Thanks
gpsKevin
FAQ's
Q: What bike will I (gpsKevin) be taking on this ride?
A: I will ride my 2015 WR250R or my 2013 KTM690
Q: How much stuff can I load into the support truck?
A: Please only bring one small overnight bag with your street clothes. No Gas or Oil as the gear is stored inside my van.
Q: Would this be a good ride for new riders?
A: No, this ride is for intermediate and experienced riders only. The riding has easy route choices and tough route options. Each evening we will study the following day's choices. You will find lots of supportive people at the ride.
Q:What will the weather be like this time of year?
A: In January, the weather is often nice, could be a little cold in the morning and in the mountains. But sometimes there can be rain and snow. Some years the snow in the mountains is a problem. Snow can force us to change our routes. Come prepared with extra gear for cold and wet.
Q: Where can I park my truck for the weekend?
A: You can make arrangements with Panamint Springs resort to park and store your vehicle of $5 per day. See the attendant at the gas station.
Q; What do I do if I don't have a Garmin GPS?
A: Buy one, you need it, we will show you how to use it. You can get a great one for $100 bucks. ( See gpsKevin's gps recommendations)
Q: Is the riding really on my own?
A: Yes, but almost everyone hooks up and rides with a friend, or a new friend.
Q: What fuel range is required for this trip?
A: Day three you will need to carry enough gas for 150 miles.
Are you right for this ride?
When something goes wrong on a ride, would your riding friends say that you are more likely to need help or more likely to give help? You should be in the more likely to offer help camp. This ride is filled with riders that are more likely to give help, so most of the time the riders never need help. Additionally there is all the normal stuff, come prepared to maintain your bike, fix your bike on the trail, repair flat tires, deal with bad weather and rain and make a joke or two.