Panamint Valley Saline Flats Dispersed Area

This massive dried lakebed stretches for miles beneath the towering Panamint Range, offering some of the most isolated dispersed camping in Death Valley’s orbit. The flat, hard-packed alkali surface can accommodate dozens of rigs with massive spacing between camps. No shade, no water, no facilities — just endless white expanse under a star-drunk sky. Wind can be brutal, and dust storms are common.

Access via Panamint Valley Road (paved) then any of several informal tracks onto the flats. Best avoided during summer heat and winter storms. The surface is generally solid except after rare rains, when it becomes impassable muck. Popular with astronomy groups during new moon phases.

Alkali flat camping under Panamint peaks