The GPS: A Fatally Misleading Travel Companion
In remote places like California's Death Valley, over-reliance on GPS navigation systems can be a matter of life and death.
Each summer in Death Valley, a quarter-million tourists pry themselves from air-conditioned cars and venture into 120-degree heat to snap pictures of glittering salt flats. They come from all over the world, but many have the same traveling companion suction-cupped to their dashboard: a GPS.
But when dozens of abandoned dirt roads lie between you and that destination, things can get tricky. That's what Donna Cooper, of Pahrump, Nev., discovered last July on a day trip to Death Valley.
After a long day, Cooper and her family asked "Nell," the GPS, for the shortest route back to their home.
"Please proceed to the highlighted route," Nell said.
'Running In Circles'
But what came next did not compute. The GPS told them to go 550 feet, then turn right, Cooper says.
"Well, at 550 feet it was like a little path, and then it was like, go a quarter of a mile and turn left. There was nothing there. She had me running in circles for hours and hours and hours," she says.
Death Valley Ranger Charlie Callagan says Cooper is not the only visitor who's relied on GPS and been seriously lost. It happens a couple times a year now.
"And they'll usually volunteer it themselves. You know, it's like, the GPS told me to go this direction," Callagan says.
Meanwhile, he says, he's been asking himself, what exactly is going on? Why is the GPS going astray? Then, he had an idea.
To explain, he drives out to a lonely corner of the valley. A line pops up in the corner of my GPS screen. Supposedly, it represents a road about to intersect the one we're driving on. But looking out the window, there is no other road.
"That road there no longer exists. It's been probably 40 years, but somebody ended up driving on it because it showed up on their GPS," Callagan says.
A Fatal Error
Two summers ago, a mother and son on a camping trip had GPS in their car and got stuck on an abandoned mining road for five days.
"She barely survived. The boy did not survive," he says.
Callagan wondered if part of the problem was that out here, GPS companies might be relying on old maps with roads that have long been closed.
To test his theory, he went online and checked if the road where the little boy died was on any of the maps used by major GPS companies, like Google Earth, Navteq or TomTom.
Maps Of Death Valley - News
Death Valley Ranger Charlie Callagan has been working with GPS companies to update the road maps in the area, to prevent travelers from winding up on closed and abandoned roads. Death Valley Ranger Charlie Callagan has been working with GPS companies
It was believed that the large number of old dirt roads shown on GPS maps, many of which haven't technically existed as roads for over 40 years, was adding to the problems. And so Death Valley Rangers have enlisted the help of the GPS map companies,
Notably, one Senate district stretches from Rancho Cordova down the eastern edge of the state to Death Valley. But given that so much of California's population growth over the last decade has occurred in the south and along the coast, it is inevitable
Some state Senate districts around Sacramento stretch all the way to the Oregon border or south to Death Valley, creating challenges for any politician seeking the office. AP writer Judy Lin contributed to this report.
The city will move from the 12th District to the new 8th District, which runs from the San Joaquin Valley to Death Valley. Koller said he would have preferred the 12th District to be drawn closer to communities of interest.
All The Roads Look Alike « The Death Valley Journal
All The Roads Look Alike
Unlike our modern paved thoroughfares where every street, nook, and cranny is signed, this territory out here is slightly different. Sure, the paved roads in DVNP are well signed as expected, for many average motorists drive them every year, but the backroads are a different story. There are literally hundreds of outback intersections where having an excellent map or three could be our only hope. Some roads do not even show on the best maps, leaving us to do our best to figure it out on the spot. To their credit, the National Park Service does sign quite a bit of the dirt road system out here, yet signs still come up missing, likely at the hands of souvenir hunters or vandals.
One thing that is outstanding in the hinterlands is the wonderful sign system the National Park Service has for remote attractions. For example, we will find excellent explanatory signage for spots like Skidoo, The Racetrack, Leadfield, and the Charcoal Kilns. One notable example of good road signage is on the Westside Road, where the NPS has erected wooden signs for each of the canyons that take off to the west into the Panamint Range. The farther we drive from the main tourist areas however, the less chance we will have of seeing a sign anywhere. Study the maps well before leaving for the backcountry! Getting lost in Death Valley National Park is not a hard thing to accomplish – but getting found is! All the roads look alike, especially when you are in an advanced state of panic!
Maps Of Death Valley - Bookshelf
A FalconGuide to Death Valley National Park
A FalconGuide to Death Valley National Park directs you to thirty of the best drives and hikes in this immense and diverse area, showing you where to go and ...The Explorer's Guide to Death Valley National Park
Maps MAP 1. Introduction, Main Points of Interest MAP 2. Death Valley Fault Zones MAP 3. Southern Death Valley MAP 4. South-Central Death Valley MAP 5. ...Hiking Death Valley National Park, 36 Day and Overnight Hikes
"Hiking Death Valley National Park" describes thirty-six hikes that will lead you to scenic spots within the park, including salt flats, canyons, mining sites, ...Death Valley in '49, An Important Chapter of California Pioneer History
The man Williams made for them a map of the proposed route and explained it ... and fattest teams in Salt Lake valley; then they selected good provisions, ...Chronology of the Death Valley region in California, 1849-1949, and place names of the Death Valley region in California and Nevada, 1845-1947, an index of the events, persons, and publications connected with its history
Wheeler Survey, Map Sheet 65D; Russell Crowell, Miners Map, Death Valley, July, 1903. Nelson Range: A low range in T 16 S, R 40 E, MDM, connecting the Inyo ...Daily Note Directory
Map of Death Valley National Park, California/Nevada
Map and Aerial Photograph of Death Valley National Park, California/Nevada
Death Valley National Park map - Death Valley National Park ...
Official NPS map of Death Valley National Park. Shows all roads (paved and unpaved), 4 wheel drive
Death Valley, CA Map | MapQuest
Our interactive map of Death Valley, CA lets you view traffic and satellite images, find local govt and businesses, and print or send driving directions to your phone.
Death Valley National Park - Maps (U.S. National Park Service)
Death Valley National Park maps available from Harpers Ferry Center. ... California Division of Tourism state map with access routes to Death Valley National Park. ...
T H
Death Valley Junction. Amargosa Opera House. To Pahrump. and Las Vegas ... use this map for hiking or backcountry road travel. Detailed maps are available at the ...