Vegas to Reno via Death Valley & Yosemite (weather, visit)

[Miramar]

I'm coming over from the UK in November, and plan to drive from Vegas through Death Valley, and on through Yosemite to Reno over 3 days staying overnight in Vegas, Mammoth Lakes and S Lake Tahoe.

I would be grateful of any information on likely weather, places not to miss, places to avoid !, and anything else you may think useful.

I'm aware that I'm into CA, hope that's not a problem.

Dave

[olecapt]

Originally Posted by Miramar

I'm coming over from the UK in November, and plan to drive from Vegas through Death Valley, and on through Yosemite to Reno over 3 days staying overnight in Vegas, Mammoth Lakes and S Lake Tahoe.

I would be grateful of any information on likely weather, places not to miss, places to avoid !, and anything else you may think useful.

I'm aware that I'm into CA, hope that's not a problem.

Dave

You really can't get into Yosemite from that side in the winter. The road you have to take from Mammoth is closed from sometime like October until April or later. The pass there is just short of 10,000 feet.

It is the better part of a day to get around to the otherside.
So if you want Yosemite...no mammoth Lake.

Mammoth is nice also by the way. The mountain are the same. Though you do not get the spectacles of the Yosemite Valley.

[wonder66]

..when you visit Death Valley be sure and see the lowest spot in the US, the devils golfcourse and the pupfish.
Be sure and fill up every chance you get and carry good current maps and lots of extra water. November is a good time to visit Death Valley, and if you are going to camp there those burros make a lot of racket at night.

I was camped up in the mountains and a carload of French tourists woke me up out of my tent in a sheer panic. They had been driving lost all night and wanted to take gas out of my tank with an old dirty garden hose peice they found as they were on empty. I felt sorry for their terrified wives in the back and had a heck of a time calming them down. Told them to wait until light and then follow me to a gas station 29 miles away, and if they ran out of gas I'd fix the situation. They took off anyway in the middle of the night and made it on fumes.

Just think ahead several hours and be sure to have enough information as to where you are and where you are going, full gas tank and lots of water. Always better to have too much water than too little.