Mill Canyon was one hike which I had been hoping to take for 3 long years before finally accomplishing it. Not much information is known about the canyon, being that it is not covered in any guidebook and there has been very little discussion about it on the internet. And the information that was available was basically frightening to think about, because of two issues. The first issue has to do with mountain lions. I think just about every hiker like myself who does a lot of solo hiking in Death Valley has legitimate concerns about crossing paths with a mountain lion at some point. It's something I am actually prepared for, but would prefer not to have to deal with. In the perfect scenario, I would be hiking with a small group and all of us would spot a mountain lion from a distance, take a few pictures, and then the lion would scamper off to another place. Mountain lion attacks are rare in California, and I have studied all of the attacks in recent history and know that hiking solo is not the safest way to minimize the danger that they present. But getting back to Mill Canyon, an astounding 3 out of the 5 people we talked to when preparing for our hike through Mill Canyon all personally spotted mountain lions in or around the Mill Canyon area. That is a 60% ratio... definitely high enough for me to realize the foolishness of solo hiking Mill Canyon. Fortunately, several well known Death Valley hikers volunteered to join me, although only one of them could make it on the date in which I had open for the hike. During our hike we did not personally spot a mountain lion. However, we did find confirmed fresh mountain lion tracks, and I have included a picture of that below. In thinking about it, I figured out why mountain lions love Mill Canyon so much. There is an abundance of water, there is very little human visitation to the canyon (perhaps a few hikers a year), and there are always lots of places where they can hide everywhere in the canyon.
The second issue has to do with a 50 foot waterfall in the lower canyon. Those who had hiked Mill Canyon before me all reported that it was a nightmare to try to bypass the waterfall, whether they used the direct bypass below the fall, or tried one that was lengthy and on the ridges high above the canyon. As for the bypass, in all honesty I can say that it was one of the easiest bypasses I have ever taken to get around something. We tried the direct bypass which drops down to the left from the top of the waterfall. Sure, it was a little steep and caution was in order, but that was about it. We we were able to get from the top of the waterfall to the bottom in about 5 minutes. But others before us have found it harder, so keep that in mind if you end up doing this hike someday. I was joined for this hike by Patrick, a professional Yosemite mountain climber. We did the hike as a one-way journey, starting at South Pass and ending at Lake Hill. It was a great day and an amazing hike that we will never forget. Below I have included a Google Earth map which shows the route through Mill Canyon, passing all 3 springs which are labeled on topographical maps. Actually, the entire canyon had flowing water during our hike, which I have never seen before in Death Valley. And one final note of caution. If you are doing this hike as an out and back from South Pass in one day, be extremely careful that you don't get lost coming back up the canyon. There are a large number of canyon splits and the likelihood of getting lost coming back is very high.
The second issue has to do with a 50 foot waterfall in the lower canyon. Those who had hiked Mill Canyon before me all reported that it was a nightmare to try to bypass the waterfall, whether they used the direct bypass below the fall, or tried one that was lengthy and on the ridges high above the canyon. As for the bypass, in all honesty I can say that it was one of the easiest bypasses I have ever taken to get around something. We tried the direct bypass which drops down to the left from the top of the waterfall. Sure, it was a little steep and caution was in order, but that was about it. We we were able to get from the top of the waterfall to the bottom in about 5 minutes. But others before us have found it harder, so keep that in mind if you end up doing this hike someday. I was joined for this hike by Patrick, a professional Yosemite mountain climber. We did the hike as a one-way journey, starting at South Pass and ending at Lake Hill. It was a great day and an amazing hike that we will never forget. Below I have included a Google Earth map which shows the route through Mill Canyon, passing all 3 springs which are labeled on topographical maps. Actually, the entire canyon had flowing water during our hike, which I have never seen before in Death Valley. And one final note of caution. If you are doing this hike as an out and back from South Pass in one day, be extremely careful that you don't get lost coming back up the canyon. There are a large number of canyon splits and the likelihood of getting lost coming back is very high.
Snow blanketed South Pass near the area where we parked:
View down Mill Canyon from South Pass towards Lake Hill and Panamint Dry Lake:
We turned off at South Pass and parked right at the beginning of the road up to Hunter Mountain. This was our first view as we began dropping down into Mill Canyon:
And another view about 1/2 way down. The scramble down was a bit steep, but relatively easy. There were faint trails to follow most of time as we switchbacked down:
Finally arriving on the floor of Mill Canyon:
The first thing we did was look down and notice a spring with very good water flow heading down the canyon:
Looking back up canyon at the point where we dropped in. We could see all the way up to the true head of Mill Canyon:
We were able to hike without any pressure, knowing that it was a one-way hike and we would be going downhill the entire day:
Most of the trees of Mill Canyon were bare, but their branches still provided a worthy obstacle to progressing through the canyon at times:
We soon realized that where we couldn't push our way through the branches, it was best to head up the hillside and bypass them, as we did here:
Three tall beautiful trees sitting in the middle of the canyon wash:
Continuing to follow the flowing spring in the next two photographs:
These are the mountain lion tracks I was telling you about earlier. They are claw markings from a cat that was moving briskly. Fellow hiker Patrick made the comment that "although we never saw the cat, I'm betting he had his eyes on us at one point." Very likely:
Two more pictures of the spring. It's amazing that the spring was flowing down the middle for the entire length of the canyon. I've never seen that before:
Another majestic tree with a snow-capped hillside in the background:
Check out this beautiful ice formation which has formed on a branch:
The first of quite a few small waterfalls that we would pass during the day:
Thick bushes and trees would crowd the narrow canyon wash on a regular basis, even more so the further we got down canyon:
We always seemed to have a window through the canyon to see the Panamint Mountains:
Another small waterfall with quite a good flow:
Joshua Trees were a regular feature while heading down:
Up until now, there were just dirt hillsides on both sides of the canyon. But soon we encountered the first of many rock walls, as seen in the next two pictures:
Steve next to a large group of Joshua Trees:
At times, Mill Canyon would make quick dramatic turns to the right or left. We found out that the easiest way to deal with this was to shortcut the turns by heading up the hillsides and hiking at a diagonal:
The next two pictures show the first significant waterfall that we encountered. Very easy to bypass and about 12 feet tall:
Check out how the canyon gets really narrow ahead as it enters a tight corridor:
Passing by two more significant waterfalls:
Look closely at the trail I'm following up in this picture and you can see that it is a clear path. The burros and wild cows who live in Mill Canyon maintain the bypass trails in the lower half of the canyon. They also destroy and trample on all of the vegetation:
To our surprise we came upon the ruins of an old building, which I'm going to refer to as the mill site:
The next six pictures give you a glimpse of just a few of the old rock foundation walls and artifacts which can be found around the mill site. There is more to see here. As usual, I purposely left some things out:
Hmm... does anybody recognize that peak far off in the distance? :) A very nice view of it from Mill Canyon:
Check out this massive pump/tank from mining efforts left behind:
The complexion of the canyon starts to change dramatically beyond the mill site ruins, as seen in the next two photos:
The next two photos show how thick the brush and trees got inside the canyon wash. Navigation became a lot slower for a while:
Heading into the gorge of Mill Canyon, which leads to the epic 50 foot waterfall:
As the water flows through the grass, it is making its way towards the edge:
And finally, the water plunges over this massive drop... a stunning visual sight in Mill Canyon:
Two more views carefully taken from the top of the Mill Canyon 50 foot waterfall:
And two pictures of Steve overlooking the drop-off:
Heading down the relatively easy but slightly steep bypass to the northwest of the waterfall. This is looking down the first section:
Continuing on to the second part of the bypass. Keep in mind that while we felt the bypass was easy, others have called it hard, so use caution and determine if you feel it is safe before trying it:
Looking back at the bypass after we had finished scrambling down it during a 5 minute journey:
First view of the two stage 50 foot waterfall of Mill Canyon:
The upper portion has a mossy drop-off, while the lower portion is just water flowing over slick rock:
And at the base is this pretty pool. You can see that a good amount of water is dropping into it:
Two nice views of the entire waterfall in one picture:
Looking up at the waterfall from a different perspective, you can truly appreciate that it is a two stage fall:
Four more unique views of Mill Canyon's crowning jewel. It's safe to say that this would be one of the park's top attractions if it was easier to reach:
The spring continues flowing down the lower canyon under this overhanging tree:
We soon met up with a few Mill Canyon residents, two burros and one wild cow. Earlier in the hike, we had passed by two other wild cows:
Looking back at the high framed walls of the lower canyon:
Preparing to exit the canyon just up ahead:
Check out the tracks in the sand of the canyon wash. Mill Canyon definitely receives a lot of visitation, but not from humans:
Reaching the mouth of the canyon and looking further to the south:
One final look back at Mill Canyon:
We next began hiking cross country towards the Panamint Sand Dunes. Because of the length of this report, I have included the rest of our hike at the bottom of the Panamint Sand Dunes page. This is a panoramic view out towards Lake Hill. Our second vehicle was parked on the Lake Hill / Big Four Mine Road just north of Lake Hill (click to enlarge panoramic photo):
