Titus Canyon is off the list for the season, and the Forest Service wants to change how much of the backcountry is open to vehicles by default. Here’s what moved this week across the corridor.
Titus Canyon Road shut through spring for flood repairs
Death Valley National Park closed Titus Canyon Road on October 2, and the repair work is expected to run through May 2027. Crews are adding rolling dips to shed stormwater, armoring wash crossings with rock and stabilizing an eroding stretch near Red Pass, damage that dates back to the 2022 and 2023 floods.
What it means for us: that takes the park’s best-known one-way 4×4 run out of any fall or winter plan. Build your Death Valley loop around the other backcountry roads and check the park’s conditions page before you go.
Source: National Park Service, Sep 28
Roadless and travel rules could reshape forest access in Nevada and Arizona
The Forest Service has proposed repealing the 2001 Roadless Rule, which bars new roads and logging on about 44 million acres nationwide, and revising the 2005 Travel Management Rule so forest land would be presumed open to vehicles unless marked closed. Nevada has nearly 3.2 million acres of inventoried roadless forest land; Arizona has more than a million.
What it means for us: nothing changes on the ground yet. If both go through, expect more open forest roads over time, and a real fight over which ones.
Sources: The Nevada Independent, Oct 4 · AZPM, Oct 6
Campfires are back on Nevada state lands in Clark and Lincoln counties
The Nevada Division of Forestry lifted fire restrictions on October 1 for state lands, parks and recreation areas in Clark and Lincoln counties, including Valley of Fire, Big Bend of the Colorado, Cathedral Gorge, Kershaw-Ryan and Beaver Dam.
What it means for us: fall at those parks is campfire season again. Federal land next door runs on its own rules, so nearby BLM or Forest Service ground may still differ.
Source: FOX5 Las Vegas, Oct 2
Panamint Valley Days runs November 13 to 15 near Trona
Cal4Wheel’s annual run is based on Slate Range Road just north of Trona, CA, with trail runs Friday through Sunday ranging from scenic to hard. Registration is $75 per vehicle for members and $100 for non-members, and a California campfire permit is required.
What it means for us: it’s one of the easiest ways to run the Panamint and Slate Range country with a group that knows it. Pick the scenic runs if you’re newer to the dirt.
Source: Cal4Wheel
Overland Expo sets 2027 dates, SoCal in March and Flagstaff in May
Overland Expo West returns to Tuthill County Park in Flagstaff, AZ, May 14 to 16, 2027. The SoCal show comes first, March 13 and 14 in Costa Mesa, CA.
What it means for us: Flagstaff is the big one for desert Southwest drivers, and SoCal gives the California side a closer spring option. Both are worth a calendar hold now.
Source: Overland Expo