Summers are dry statewide. NOAA calls the southern deserts some of the nation’s hottest and driest areas
Camp gear for dry heat and cold height
Water containers come first. Death Valley averages under 2 inches of rain a year, the Park Service asks for a gallon per person per day plus a 5-gallon reserve, the Carrizo Plain has no water at all, and none of the four King Range campgrounds has potable water. Shade you bring yourself comes second.
Cooking is a permit question. Every campfire and gas stove fire on California public land needs a free California Campfire Permit, Anza-Borrego bans ground fires and requires a stove or a metal container with a bottom and sides, and the King Range applies campfire restrictions from about early summer through fall that in drought years can extend to camp stoves.
Vehicle camping gear works under a different constraint than backpacking gear. Weight matters less, but everything has to survive vibration and dust and pack the same way every time. Stores that understand the difference stock 12-volt fridges, water systems and kitchens rather than ultralight pots.
What they carry
0112-volt fridges and slides
02Stoves and kitchen systems
03Water storage, pumps and filtration
04Chairs, tables and shelter
05Sleep systems
06Lighting and power stations
How to choose camp equipment
Buy fewer, better things. Every item has to be packed, carried and cleaned.
01Buy the fridge for your power system, not the other way round. Ask about power draw and what battery it needs to run overnight.
02Pack it before you buy it. Bring the measurements of your cargo area or drawers.
03Favor gear that can be repaired and has parts available.
04Choose a kitchen you can set up in the dark, in wind, when you are tired.
What to have ready before you ask for a quote
Space and power are the limits.
01Vehicle and storage dimensions
02Your power system, if you have one
03How many people, and how long you stay out
04What you already own
05A budget range
Questions people ask
Do I need a 12-volt fridge?
For trips longer than a weekend, most people never go back. No ice to find and no wet food. It does need a house battery or a power station that can carry it overnight.
How much water should I carry?
Enough for drinking, cooking and washing between reliable refills, with a reserve. How much that is depends on the climate, the people and how you cook. Carry it low in the vehicle, and in more than one container.
Is a power station enough, or do I need a second battery?
A power station is simple and portable and suits lights, devices and a small fridge for a couple of days. A wired house battery charges while you drive and suits longer trips and bigger loads.
How high is California?
From Brawley at -113 feet to Mount Whitney at 14,494.
Altitude decides what your engine, your brakes and your lungs have to work with, and how late in the year the passes open.
-2,00002,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,000
Feet above sea level
Towns
Lee ViningOn US 395 at the eastern foot of Tioga Pass. When Tioga Road is closed there is no way to drive into Yosemite from this side of the Sierra.6,790 ft
AlturasOn US 395 in Modoc County. CA 299 leaves US 395 five miles north of town for Cedarville, where the Surprise Valley byway begins and ends.4,372 ft
SusanvilleOn US 395 in the northeast. BLM Eagle Lake Field Office and a Lassen National Forest office cover the ground east and south of here.4,194 ft
BishopThe largest town in the Owens Valley, on US 395. BLM Bishop Field Office and an Inyo National Forest office. Dispersed camping inside this field office is capped at 14 days a year.4,145 ft
Big PineOn US 395. The Forest Service calls it the nearest food, water or fuel to the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest. Big Pine Road east from here reaches Eureka Valley and Death Valley.3,988 ft
Lone PineOn US 395 below Mount Whitney. Movie Road into the Alabama Hills leaves Whitney Portal Road west of the stoplight, and the Eastern Sierra Visitor Center sits south of town.3,727 ft
KernvilleOn the Kern River. The Sequoia National Forest’s Kern River Ranger District office is here, near the west end of Sherman Pass Road.2,647 ft
RidgecrestBLM Ridgecrest Field Office, between the southern Sierra and the Mojave. The usual base for the Panamint and Searles country and the southwest corner of Death Valley.2,294 ft
BarstowWhere I-15 meets I-40. BLM Barstow Field Office and the headquarters of Mojave National Preserve. The natural place to service a vehicle before the desert.2,174 ft
BakerOn I-15 where Kelbaker Road heads south into Mojave National Preserve. The Park Service lists Baker as one of the nearest gas stations and says there is none inside the preserve.932 ft
Borrego SpringsRinged by Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, with the park visitor center at the west end of Palm Canyon Drive. Named an International Dark Sky Community.589 ft
NeedlesOn I-40 beside the Colorado River. BLM Needles Field Office, and the eastern approach to the Mojave Road by way of Piute Spring.495 ft
BakersfieldWhere CA 58 meets CA 99. BLM Bakersfield Field Office, which manages the Carrizo Plain National Monument to the west. Last full services before the plain.404 ft
BlytheOn I-10 at the Arizona line. The Bradshaw Trail is reached by driving west on I-10 to the Wiley’s Well exit and south past Wiley’s Well Campground.268 ft
Shelter CoveThe road end on the Lost Coast, about 22 miles from US 101 at Redway. King Peak Road and the other King Range back roads climb inland from the road that brought you here.144 ft
BrawleyBelow sea level in the Imperial Valley. CA 78 runs east from here to the Imperial Sand Dunes; the BLM’s El Centro Field Office is south.-113 ft
Passes, high roads and summits
Mount WhitneyThe highest point in California and in the lower 48. No road to the top14,494 ft
Telescope PeakThe highest point in Death Valley National Park, above Badwater Basin11,049 ft
Patriarch GroveBristlecone Pine Forest Scenic Byway: US 395 at Big Pine, by CA 168 and White Mountain Road, to Patriarch Grove in the White Mountains11,000 ft
Tioga PassTioga Road: Crane Flat in Yosemite to Tioga Pass and US 395 at Lee Vining9,945 ft
Sherman PassSherman Pass Road: The North Fork of the Kern River west of the pass to US 395 and the high desert in the east9,200 ft
North PassSaline Valley Road: CA 190 in the south and Big Pine Road in the north, through Saline Valley7,200 ft
Red PassTitus Canyon Road: Nevada Highway 374, the Daylight Pass Road, two miles east of the park boundary, west into Death Valley5,250 ft
King PeakThe highest point in the King Range, three miles from the Pacific4,088 ft
Pass, road and summit elevations are the figures published by the agency that manages them. Town elevations are the town’s or county’s own
figure where it publishes an exact one; the rest are from the U.S. Geological Survey (3D Elevation Program at the place’s official coordinates),
retrieved September 18, 2026. Every source is listed at the foot of the page.
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