Greenwater Valley Backcountry Camping

Loved this spot! Was able to access it with my Prius and it was a great spot for stargazing. It got pretty cold over night with the high wind gusts but was manageable. Bring layers for the night time! I wish I would t downloaded that part of the valley ahead of time. There is 3G service by the visitor centers but I couldn’t get anything to load. I was barely able to send/receive texts.

I choose a dispersed camp site about 2 1/2 miles from the junction with Dante’s View Road where there is a place to drop a trailer before driving on to Dante’s View. After unhooking my camper, I saw three National Park Service employees nearby so I walked over to talk to them. They were looking the dispersed campsites on this road that had been used for many years. They told me that it was only legal to camp in this area no more than 50’ from the center of the road. Beyond that was designated wilderness. I had chosen a spot that had obviously been used by many campers but it encroached on the wilderness area so I moved to a legal spot. During my time there, I was the only camper who had complied with this legal requirement. I saw one of the NPS employees the next day and he acknowledged that the many campers along this road were almost always camped on land that was designated wilderness. He said that the NPS is in the process of figuring out how to deal with these violations. He believes that the many spots that have been used for many years in the wilderness will be blocked off and that the NPS will start enforcing this rule. In defense of the people who were in violation, I would never have known about the issue had I not approached the NPS employees. Also, another camper said that an NPS employee at the visitor’s center told them that they could camp in any spot that looked like an established spot without mentioning the boundary for the wilderness area. This is a good place to camp and I was able to camp legally with a 25’ travel trailer and full-size pickup. The road is a bit rough with washboarding, but it wasn’t an issue for my rig. The night skies were beautiful and the area was quiet with very little traffic. The elevation is around 3400 feet and it rained during the night on 3/23/2023 and the temperatures must have dropped below freezing because raindrops froze on my truck.

We arrived on a Sunday and had the place to ourselves. No other campers within view. Campedium coordinates take you to the first pull out after the 1 mile mark. We went another 0.1 to 0.2 miles out and found a flat pull around spot. Plenty of spots further down the road also. Later in the week we had several neighbors but all the sites are very spread out. Super quiet. Road was washboard but nothing bad. Made it with our 44' fifth wheel.

No cell service at all but starlink worked great and allowed for remote work.

The only downsides were it could get pretty windy at times and there was also a decent amount of used toilet paper blowing about from previous campers but YMMV based on what site you pick.

This is a great Boondocking option with easy, close access to Death Valley. Plenty of room to spread out, but we were surprised they had several established spots rocked off. We found cheaper fuel in Beaty, Nevada than the $9.99 diesel in the park. Also in Beaty, you can check out the ghost town of Rhyolite. Very well preserved.

When you arrive at Greenwater, (I was never really sure we made it to ‘Greenwater’…….could have just been Furnace Road camping, also on Campendium), DO NOT miss the left turn from Dante’s View Road onto Furnace Creek Wash Road about 8 miles off the main road. You’ll know it’s the correct road because there is trailer parking on your right. That trailer parking is there because trailers SHOULD NOT go beyond that point. We did, and it was a few miles of nail biting with nowhere to turn our 44 foot Momentum around. My husband, who just knows everything will work itself out, just kept driving…….🤣. Happy to say, there is one more trailer parking area about 1/4 mile from Dante’s peak. It was a tight turn around, but it got us heading back down the hill. So, don’t miss the turn, but if you do, DON’T PANIC!

Expect no cell service anywhere in Death Valley. We picked up some slow service at the visitor center, but not enough to be useful.

Death Valley was beautiful. Worth the trip.

Great Death Valley dispersed sites along Furnace Creek Wash Rd. Sites are just off the gravel road starting 1 mile in. 6-8 decent sites very separated and private. We stayed in a site with two medium sized rigs with room for more. Decent road, beautiful high desert valley, and privacy make this a great dispersed site. Don’t expect any cell service as there is none!

GPS Coords: (36.2530660, -116.6515680)

I stayed here for a week and used it as a home base. I had a 33' Motorhome and a car. I saw much of the park. It was Thanksgiving time and a bit chilly but not bad. There were days in the high 60's. Dante's View is nearby and there is cell service there if you need it but this place is great for being isolated. Dark at night and the stars are beautiful!!! Very little traffic on Furnace Creek Wash road this time of year.
Here's a link to my video describing this in more detail:
https://youtu.be/oGQV-27F1Is