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Artist's Drive In Death Valley National Park Reopens To Visitors

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Published Date

November 15, 2015

The road leading to Artist's Palette at Death Valley National Park has reopened/Kurt Repanshek

It took nearly a month, but Artist's Drive in Death Valley National Park is back open for visitors to tour. But the reopening Saturday didn't come easy.

Park crews removed an estimated 8,000 tons of debris that was deposited along the road by a torrential rainstorm on October 18. And once they removed the debris, the crews had to bring in 360 tons of material from the Badwater Road to help with repairs.

Artist's Drive is a scenic loop road through multi-hued volcanic and sedimentary hills in Death Valley National Park. Artist’s Palette is especially photogenic in late afternoon light. The 9-mile paved road is one-way and is only drivable with vehicles less than 25 feet in length. The drive is accessible from Badwater Road, approximately ten miles south of Furnace Creek.

Recovery work in the park since the rainstorms has been slow. According to a park release, crews have managed to reopen just 1.5 miles of road south of Badwater. Another 8.5 miles of road remain closed by storm debris.

At Scotty's Castle in the northeastern corner of the park, removal of debris from behind the hacienda and stables has been completed, while crews continue to remove mud and silt from the plaza behind the visitor center, unpack curatorial collection and historic objects, and conduct archaeological assessments of the area below Scotty’s Castle.

As of Friday the 13th, the Scotty’s Castle Road/Bonnie Claire Road remained closed to the public: Approximately five miles of road access to Scotty’s Castle has been destroyed. A temporary one-lane dirt road has been graded to provide access for work crews. Twenty Mule Team Canyon Road was destroyed by floodwaters, while the West Side Road remained closed due to debris.

For details on the storm and its aftermath, read Death Valley Storm Recovery By The Numbers.

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