A Weekend Trip to Mt Whitney and Death Valley National Park with Kids
Mt Whitney is the highest point above sea level in the contiguous 48 states, Death Valley is the lowest point below sea level – and they sit about an hour away from each other. If you know me and my husband it won’t surprise you to hear that our response to learning this was; “of course we have to drive up and see both in a weekend.”
The highest point of Mt Whitney is 14,505 feet.
The lowest point of Death Valley is Badwater Basin which sits at 282 below sea level.
As you drive between the two you go up and down and up and down mountains. The altitude is posted every time you go up or down 1000 miles. We found this endlessly entertaining.
Our family’s biggest altitude change was about 8,500 miles above sea level to 282 feet below sea level – which we did in one day. I mean, that’s pretty cool, right?
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A Weekend Trip to Mt Whitney & Death Valley
Our trip was kind of a loop. We drove north east from San Diego to Mt Whitney, spent the night, drove South into Death Valley, camped for a night, and then drove back Southwest to San Diego. Below are the parts we loved and a few things we learned along the way.
Read Also: 5+ Kid Friendly Day Trips from San Diego
TO DO.
I think you could spend a whole week in this area if you really like hiking and camping, but a few days is a good amount of time. The different landscapes are fascinating and offer a good range of hiking and other experiences. Below are our favorites.
Things to do at Mt. Whitney & Lone Pine CA with Kids
MT WHITNEY NATIONAL PARK WEBSITE
Mt Whitney can certainly be a trip of it’s own. Many people hike up to the camp, sleep in a tent for the night and then climb the rest of the way to the summit and back down the next day for a long and exhausting weekend. My husband and his dad actually did the entire thing in one day many years ago for an exceptionally exhausting day.
If you want to climb to the peak you need to apply for a pass ahead of time.
With our seven year olds, we didn’t feel ready to summit a mountain so we just did a day hike. You can hike the first few miles without a pass and that was plenty for us.
We got to see Mt. Whitney. We got to experience the upward climb and learn the term “switchbacks”. We got to hop across a couple of creeks – obviously the best part. And we got to see the beautiful scenery.
I think my favorite part about visiting Mt Whitney was watching the sun set. The sun drops behind the mountains well before actual sunset and it is breathtakingly beautiful.
We stopped at Alabama Hills which lies between Mt. Whitney and Lone Pine (a quick drive from Lone Pine on the way to Mt. Whitney) for sunset. The kids got to climb around on boulders and we watched the sun set and explode across the sky.
Things to do in Death Valley National Park with Kids
I was completely surprised by how much we all loved Death Valley. My daughter described it at the “best trip ever!” and she’s not wrong. It was an awesome weekend.
Heading into the park from Mt. Whitney you will pass a ranger station (stop to pay your entrance fee there!) and then the Mesquite Sand Dunes.
These appear out of nowhere which I found fascinating. Our kids loved running up and down them and trying to sled down the sand dunes. Being Midwesterners, we brought actual sleds but we saw a lot of people having success with boogie boards as well.
You do have to hike up and down a ways out to get to steep enough dunes to sled, so I wouldn’t recommend sledding for kids under 5. Just running around on the sand is fun too – especially after you’ve been in the car for a while. (Our favorite dune sledding experience was in White Sands National Park which I also highly recommend!)
Our next stop was the Ranger Station by Furnace Creek. My twins love getting their National Park Passports stamped and adore the Junior Ranger Program at the parks. This is a free program at the National Parks. Just ask at the Rangers’ desk for a Junior Ranger activity book and they’ll tell you what to do from there.
Also Read: How to Make the Most of Your Fourth Grade National Park Pass
My kids liked learning about the different desert animals. Some Junior Ranger Programs you complete as you’re traveling around the park, but this one you could do just in the little museum at the Ranger Station in Furnace Creek.
Badwater Basin is the lowest point in the continental United States. It is a gorgeous place to watch the sun rise or set.
We watched the sun set here on our first day and it was beautiful. My one regret is that we didn’t get there much before sunset and I would have enjoyed walking out and exploring a little more before it started to get dark.
Golden Canyon was our favorite hike in Death Valley. We did that one first thing the morning before we drove back.
My kids loved the random boulders to climb and we were all fascinated by the different kinds of rocks we saw along the way.
Things I Was Grateful I Remembered to Pack:
- Warm layers. Both Mt Whitney and Death Valley were chilly in November, especially in the evening.
- Hats. We wore sun hats during the day in death valley and winter hats from about 3pm on.
- National Park Passports for stamps at the Sierra Nevada Ranger Station in Lone Pine and at Death Valley.
- Rock Guide. My kids are obsessed with the different kinds of rocks and had all kinds of questions. I remembered shockingly little from college Geology. This book was helpful.
- Â Soap and hand sanitizer. The bathrooms weren’t terrible at either, but there was no soap at most.
- Stargazing App. This isn’t something I really packed, but I have a stargazing app called NIGHT SKY on my phone and it was an awesome resource at night in Death Valley. The sky was clearer than I have ever seen and we could see a trillion stars in the sky. Either the app or some sort of stargazing aid is helpful if you don’t know the names on your own.
- Sleds. I was on the fence about packing them but our kids had so much fun sledding on the sand dunes. If you don’t have sleds we saw a boy scout troop with boogie boards sledding as well so that looked like another good option.
STAY.
Mt Whitney/Lone Pine
We left San Diego early on Saturday morning and drove straight to Mt Whitney. By the time we had hiked a little and eaten it was almost time for bed.
We spent one night at the Comfort Inn in Lone Pine, the town at the foothills of Mt Whitney. It wasn’t spectacular, but it was clean, offered free breakfast in the am, and was a perfect location.
Camping in Death Valley
Camping in Death Valley was an awesome experience. I wish we had had enough time to spend another night.
Growing up, I always went camping in the Northern part of Wisconsin which is like spending the night in the untouched North Woods of Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Joshua Tree was my first desert experience. It felt a bit foreign to me at first but I loved it! This was our first desert camping experience and it made me appreciate the desert even more. The night sky was amazing.
My kids are avid campers. They have loved everything about it from helping set up the tent, to learning camping skills, to walking to the bathroom with their flashlights from the time they were toddlers.
Read Also: Essential Tips for Camping with Toddlers
Our twins are 7 years old now and they are actually a huge help setting up the campsite. Our tent is awesome, but it can be a bit of a beast to set up. However, with four pairs of hands it was set up quicker than ever.
This is our little desert campsite. The sky at nighttime was incredible! I know I’ve said that a few times now, but really it was probably my favorite part.
Good Things to Know:
- Make sure to reserve your campsite ahead of time! We booked ours about three months in advance and it was already filling up.
- Check the average temperatures before reserving a campsite or planning a trip. In November, the weather was perfect for hiking during the day and sleeping at night, but the desert has huge temperature swings during the year!
- There is a shop with some basics and you can buy wood in Death Valley at the same shop as well.
- We stayed in the tent only part of the Furnace Creek campsite and loved the location. This campsite also has flush toilets but no showers or soap at the sinks.
EAT.
- Pizza Factory in Lone Pine was our one restaurant experience. They made good pizza in front of you and were able to accommodate our son’s dairy allergy with a cheese free pizza covered in toppings.
- The rest of our food was carried in a cooler from home. Sandwiches. Hot dogs and baked beans for the campfire. S’mores supplies, of course. Trail mixes, bars, string cheese, and cereal mixes. You can read more about our favorite camping foods in our Camping Trip to West Virginia.
