Thanks Kevin - good info. We'll see what happens with the weather - I'll bring the spikes and hope that any snow isn't too deep. I did this once in late summer a few years back, and from what I can recall it was a pretty easy stroll up until the last mile or so. Good weather link, too.
The road to the kilns is one of my favotite "fun" drives in California (CA 168 to White Mountain is # 1). Last summer on the way to the Sierra I detoured and took my family up and down that road for the first time (my wife hates roads like that but my daughter is a coaster junkie, so she loved it). On our way up we were passed at a pretty good clip by a group of 6 Vettes on their way down (they clearly knew a "good" road too). On our way back down, we ran into this on the side of the road:
From the skid marks on the road, the dude lost it coming out of a turn and spun into the rocks on the side of the road. His Vette buddies clearly took him away and there was no blood in the interior, so he must have been alright. I've wondered since how he explained that to his insurer . . .
Surprise Canyon is one I've always wanted to do, but the length of the hike and the distance from my usual camp at Texas Spring has always had it on the back burner. Same story with Titus Canyon to Leadfield (ville?). I'd really like to hit a ghost town this year on a hike, so one of these two will probably make the itinerary. So far John and I have landed on Corkscrew, Wildrose, DV Buttes and Monarch Canyon, as well as the obligatory ramble around the Badwater Basin when it's comfortable and not hell on earth. Other hikes we're considering are the Albatross crash site, Little Bridge Canyon, Sheep Canyon, Willow Canyon, Darwin Falls and Virgin Springs Canyon. Any other recommendations are welcome.
Since I'm usually doing 5-7 consecutive days of hiking on these trips, the trick is ensuring I don't put two strenuous hikes back-to-back. I'm playing with the idea of camping at Stovepipe Wells this year to cut down on the daily driving, but I've never pulled into that campground or checked out the Stovepipe Wells General Store. I've definitely enjoyed having the Furnace Creek General Store near Texas Spring. When we hit the park in a couple of weeks we'll probably check it out before we automatically set up in the Furnace Creek area.
