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Mosaic Canyon Area
 Mosaic Canyon
is one of the most unique and beautiful canyons not only in Death Valley, but in
all of the Mojave Desert. It's one of our favorites!
The hike up Mosaic Canyon is the one that we recommend to people who don't
have much time to spend in Death Valley. It is not only easy to get to by
standard vehicle but, within a short distance from the parking lot, you are
experiencing some of the most beautiful canyon scenery that Death Valley has to
offer! With the many sedimentary layers exposed by hundreds (or thousands)
of years of erosion from flash floods, the canyon walls are breathtaking!
There is a lot of rock polishing that has gone on here, too (and still does),
with smooth-as-glass surfaces.
The down-side to this easy access is that there are
usually plenty of other people there with you. The canyon is big enough to share but if you want a hike with
solitude, try Fall Canyon or
Surprise Canyon. There are two neighboring
canyons near Mosaic to explore also, Grotto Canyon and Stretched-Pebble
Canyon (see below), but you need some rock climbing skills for them.
Whether you have an hour or an entire day to spend, be
sure to include Mosaic Canyon in your plans for exploring this section of Death
Valley.
Things To See:
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Breathtaking and
unusual geology including polished rock, breccia, sedimentary layers
and more! |
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Great views of the
Death Valley floor |
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Dry waterfalls and
whirlpools |
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Vehicle Class |
Road Type |
| A |
1 |
| B |
1 |
| C |
1 |
| D |
1 |
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 Getting There
The dirt road to
Mosaic Canyon is well-maintained and easy for all types of vehicles.
Located just to the west of Stovepipe Wells Lodge/Village, look for the dirt
road that heads south, up towards Tucki Mountain. See the
Introduction for detailed
directions to Stovepipe Wells.
From Stovepipe Wells:
From the pavement just west of Stovepipe Wells
Lodge on S.R. 190, turn south (up) onto the dirt road. Go 2.4 miles, up
the big Mosaic Canyon alluvial fan, to the dirt parking lot. At the
parking lot, you have gained almost 1,000 feet in elevation.
About Mosaic Canyon:
The waters that carve this canyon come from Tucki Mountain which is part of the
Panamint Mountain Range. One of the most unique features of Mosaic Canyon
is the polished
rock of the canyon walls. It looks like the rocks have been mixed with
cement and gives the canyon its mosaic look and name. This mosaic effect
is called breccia [glossary]. Breccia is created when small rock fragments are bound
together in natural cement. You can see an example of it in the left,
center side of this picture. Mosaic Canyon has two main types of breccia.
One is mostly a pale yellow color and made up of chunks of Noonday dolomite and
marble. Look for an example of this on the east side of the canyon just
before the narrows. The other type is mostly gray in color and contains a
wide variety of rocks. The walls have been polished smooth by years of mud flows
and flash floods from the summer thunderstorms. As you stand in the
canyon, particularly the narrowest parts, it is easy to imagine how fast the
water must flow each time there is rain in the mountains above.
Typical of the canyons in Death Valley, the colors are
beautiful. The marble of the dry whirlpools and waterfalls have been
polished to a slippery finish so, as you admire their beauty, watch your step!
Some of the waterfalls you will climb narrow to chutes of only a few feet wide
but none are difficult. Look for the rusting remains of a railing and
metal steps on the east wall as you go through the first set of narrows (dry
waterfalls). They were put there, at one time, to help hikers make it up
what was once a steep waterfall. As a sign of how Mother Nature is
constantly changing the landscape, you will see that she has filled in that
section and they are no longer necessary.
After each narrow passage, the canyon widens into an open
wash. After the second set of narrows, there is a long corridor that
dead-ends at an 18-foot dry waterfall. You have come about 1.5 miles at
this point. This is as far as we have been (ran out of daylight) but the
canyon does continue on. According to Hiking Death Valley (see
References), there is much to see beyond this point but some rock climbing is
required. Each section has its own scenic rewards. To see more
pictures of this beautiful canyon and get more details about the hike,
 see the
Mosaic Canyon Hike & Photo Tour.
Neighboring Canyons
Mosaic Canyon has two neighboring canyons; Grotto
Canyon to the east and Stretched-Pebble Canyon to the west. There is a
dirt road to the mouth of Grotto Canyon but the mouth of Stretched-Pebble Canyon
is a 1.2 mile walk from the pavement of S.R. 190. Both of these canyons,
however, require rock climbing tools and experience. If you are not rock
climbers (like us), there isn't much to see at either of these canyons because
you just can't get into them. So, because we were not able to explore the
canyons for ourselves, the information we give here is based on what we
have heard or read and not from personal experience like our other writings. If you are a rock
climber, however, read on!
 Grotto Canyon
Grotto Canyon is another unique canyon and, as the name implies, it contains several
"grottoes". A grotto is a cave that's been created by rushing
waters. It is interesting to note that, although the flash floods and mud
 flows from the Tucki Mountain carve both Grotto and Mosaic canyons, Grotto
doesn't have the kind of breccia that Mosaic does.
We quickly encountered an obstacle that we, as non-rock climbers,
were not able to navigate and had to turn around. According to Hiking Death Valley (see
References), however, this
canyon is a little
slice of heaven for the rock climber!
Getting There
The road to Grotto Canyon is dirt and may be passable
by a standard vehicle for the first mile but we recommend either 4WD or at least
a high clearance vehicle. Otherwise, plan to walk the 2.0 miles to the
entrance of the canyon.
From Stovepipe Wells:
Go 2.4 miles east on S.R. 190 and look for a dirt
road on the south side of the road - opposite the main parking area for the sand
dunes. Watch carefully because, as of 2002, there was no sign marking the
road and you can easily miss it.
Stretched-Pebble Canyon
Stretched-Pebble Canyon ("stretched-pebble" being
a geologic term for a type of rock) also requires rock
climbing experience and, therefore, we have not ventured far into it. To
get to the mouth of the canyon, you must first hike up the alluvial fan 1.2
miles without a trail. The beginning of the canyon is very narrow and has
some interesting geology. Less than a mile into the canyon,
however, you will need to negotiate a 15 foot, dry waterfall and, further up,
another 15 foot waterfall. This canyon is even more remote than Grotto
Canyon and, therefore,
it is less visited. Again, if you are a rock climber and interested in
exploring this canyon, we recommend reading Hiking Death Valley (see
References).
Getting There
As mentioned above, there is no road to this canyon so you will need to park off the highway.
From Stovepipe Wells:
Go 3.3 miles west on S.R. 190 and park off the
highway. Hike south (up) the alluvial fan towards the mouth of the canyon.
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Last updated
March 03, 2007.
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