Death Valley Badwater Road & Shoshone Entrance Re-opened After August and September Flash Floods

DEATH VALLEY, Calif. – Badwater Road and CA-178 opened on December 7. This provides direct access to Death Valley National Park from Shoshone, CA via the park’s southeast entrance. Some park roads remain closed as recovery continues from a series of flash floods in August and September.

“This opens up the southern end of the park,” said Superintendent Mike Reynolds. “People can now visit Ashford Mills and enjoy the popular hikes in Sidewinder and Willow Canyons.”

Many unpaved roads in the southern end of the park also reopened on December 7, including Harry Wade, Owls Hole, West Side, Trail Canyon, Hanaupah Canyon, Johnson Canyon, Queen of Sheba Mine, and Galena Canyon Roads. The National Park Service (NPS) warns drivers to expect rougher conditions than normal, especially on the 4×4 roads.

The popular 4×4 route through Warm Springs over Mengel Pass to Goler Wash is only partially open. No through traffic is allowed between Warm Springs Camp and Butte Valley until the road route is re-established by the NPS.

North Highway, Mud Canyon Road, Titus Canyon Road, Racetrack Road, and some other roads remain closed while debris continues to be removed and they are made safe for travel. More information on park roads is online: nps.gov/deva/planyourvisit/conditions.htm.

–www.nps.gov/deva-

Death Valley National Park is the homeland of the Timbisha Shoshone and preserves natural resources, cultural resources, exceptional wilderness, scenery, and learning experiences within the nation’s largest conserved desert landscape and some of the most extreme climate and topographic conditions on the planet. Learn more at www.nps.gov/deva.

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(From Death Valley National Park Service)

News Staff