Telescope (11,049 ft; 3,367 m) & Wildrose (9,064ft; 2762m) Peaks, Death Valley 
(Cordada Rapel) 

Trail head

It is Thanksgiving weekend and we expect all the roads to be full of traffic, so we leave home at 4am in the morning, expecting to arrive at Death Valley around noon. Luckily we have been early enough to avoid the traffic jams, so we arrive at Thorndike Campground at 12:30pm. There is snow starting from the Charcoal Kilns, but we try to get as far as we can by car. The car gets stuck on the icy road a few hundred meters past the Thorndike campground. The road is steep and we are not far from the Mahogany Flat campground, so we turn around and park in a flat spot between the 2 campgrounds. We take our overnight gear and start walking around 1pm. It is cold (~4C), but the weather is stable and sunny. 

Telescope Peak Summit

In less than 2 hours we are at the spot where we planned to camp, approximately in the middle of the way up. It is early and sunny so we decide to leave the backpacks and summit today. We know that it will be dark after 5pm, but the way back is easy and we can do it with our headlamps. The trail is steeper and longer than we expected and the last 300m of elevation is riddled with switch backs, with plenty of snow and some ice. We don't carry crampons, but we are lucky to have taken the poles. I start  having altitude sickness after one hour of having left the backpack. I am getting a terrible headache and feeling dizzy, but the peak seems so close and so achievable! I keep walking, knowing that Artur is probably perfectly alright and needs to summit today. We arrive at the summit after sunset but still with daylight. It is really windy and cold. We put on everything we carry with us and hurry down after the obligatory summit picture. 
In 1hour 30 min we get back to our backpacks. It is completely dark - we have a moonless night. We walk down still 30 minutes more until we find the nice camping spot that we saw coming up. We set up our tent, prepare a hot dinner and finally rest. We are at more than 3000m altitude. We can still feel the altitude and the temperature has dropped to below freezing, actually outside the tent we are at -5C (23F). But then, the surprise, the moment than all mountaineers enjoy, the view that no picture can show: a perfectly moonless sky, with stars so shiny than seem closer to us, like if we could reach them. The wind is not blowing any more, the beauty is breathtaking. 

Telescope peak from the trail going down

Our tent in the morning

The next day, another blue sky and freezing temperatures. Luckily the water and gas were in our sleeping bag so they are not frozen. We have a hot breakfast, pack and hike down to the parking lot in ~2hours. 
The day is so beautiful and it is so early that we decide to hike Wildrose peak , a 8.5 miles round trip from the Charcoal Kilns parking lot.  


That peak is easy, pretty steep and it is extremely windy at the top. 
The trail is also longer than expected, with a long detour to the east before heading to the peak, but it is very easy to follow and we run into plenty of people, including kids. 

Wildrose Peak Summit

The view is quite spectacular, we can see Death Valley quite well. Worth coming up. Now, Las Vegas waits for us!