Parking
Use the Artists Palette parking area on the one-way Artists Drive Scenic Loop. The National Park Service lists auto parking and vault or composting toilets at the site. Artists Drive has a 25-foot vehicle length restriction.
Overview
About Artist's Palette Wash
Artists Palette is a short, unmaintained lollipop walk into Death Valley's colorful badlands, the signature stop on the one-way Artists Drive Scenic Loop. This documented route is approximately 0.4 miles round trip and reaches vivid mineral-stained hills below the Black Mountains. The loop is a visitor exploration route rather than a maintained trail; the stored line follows the mapped wash and connecting paths for the customary circuit.
Why go
- Exceptional volcanic colors and Black Mountains views for a short walk
- Parking and primitive toilets at the Artists Palette pullout
- A compact lollipop route allows a focused visit without committing to a long hike
Heads up
- No maintained or signed trail; route-finding and uneven footing are part of the experience
- No shade or water, and desert heat can become dangerous quickly
- Brittle, crumbly hillsides are fragile and slippery
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Death Valley map
Full mapElevation597–728 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Best time to visit
Safety
3 active Death Valley alerts
- ClosurePark roads closed or hazardousPlan around multiple closed roads and use extra caution on damaged routes. - Paved roads: North Highway and Beatty Cut-off are closed due to flooding and debris from the October 22 storm.Official details
- ClosureSaline Valley Lower Springs closed after wildfireLower Springs at Saline Valley Warm Springs remains closed after the September 15 wildfire; stay out because the fire left safety hazards, including potential hazardous chemicals.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Death Valley Tour Guide
Your drive to Artist's Palette Wash, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Death Valley National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Death Valley audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
Artists Drive Scenic Loop and PaletteListen
“You'll soon see the turn for Artists Drive, a nine-mile, one-way scenic loop. It's a fun road with lots of twists and dips, so vehicles over 25 feet aren't allowed.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Death Valley Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Desolation Canyon: A Quieter Badlands Hike
- Furnace Creek Wash: A Dry Riverbed with a Punch
- A Roller-Coaster Drive Through Twenty Mule Team Canyon
- Mushroom Rock: A Hidden Roadside Oddity
- 130 audio storiesacross Death Valley’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Bighorn Sheep, Desert Tortoise, Coyote, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 36 trails, 114 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Artist's Palette Wash
RoutePark at the Artists Palette parking area and walk into the wash from the lot.
Park at the Artists Palette parking area and walk into the wash from the lot. Follow the mapped path east and northeast, climb gently through the colored badlands, complete the short loop among the hills, and retrace the approach to the parking area. The route is a lollipop loop, with the parking area as both start and finish. Optional scrambling and side gullies are outside the stored line and can be confusing.
Difficulty and TerrainEasy overall but unmaintained: expect sandy wash, gravel, loose volcanic rubble, and short…
Easy overall but unmaintained: expect sandy wash, gravel, loose volcanic rubble, and short uneven climbs. There is no maintained or signed trail, so route-finding is part of the experience. Avoid brittle slopes; stay on durable surfaces and turn around if footing or heat becomes unsafe. The route has roughly 147 feet of rolling elevation gain.
Access and LogisticsArtists Drive is one-way and begins 8.5 miles south of the Highway 190/Badwater Road junction.
Artists Drive is one-way and begins 8.5 miles south of the Highway 190/Badwater Road junction. The Artists Palette parking area is reached along the drive. The National Park Service lists parking and vault or composting toilets at the site. Vehicles longer than 25 feet are restricted on Artists Drive. There is no water or shade, so bring plenty of water, sun protection, and sturdy footwear. Allow about 30 to 60 minutes, depending on photos and careful footing.
Leave No TraceStay on durable surfaces where possible, do not climb or break the brittle colored hills, and…
Stay on durable surfaces where possible, do not climb or break the brittle colored hills, and pack out everything. Pets are not allowed on this route.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Death Valley
71 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
101 sightingsDesert TortoiseMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
458 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
28 sightingsFeral BurroMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
30 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
62 sightingsKit FoxMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Death Valley. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
