Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Turtlehead Peak Framed by a Sandstone Formation on Calico Tanks Trail
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Be at Sandstone Quarry Parking Area by 9am Weekends or Risk Having No Parking
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Trailhead Sign for the Calico Tanks Trail
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Historic Sandstone Quarry Operated from 1905 to 1912
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Quarried and Transported Sandstone Blocks Weighing 10 Tons
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
The Sandstone Blocks Were Carved Right Out of the Side of the Hill
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Shortly Beyond the Quarry the Trail Splits. Calico Tanks Right. Turtlehead Peak Left.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Entering a Magical Forested Climate Zone Leading Into the Calico Tanks Canyon
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Rising Sun Ahead. Most Pictures Will Be Taken Looking Back for Better Lighting.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Amazing Sandstone Formations Seem to Defy the Laws of Physics.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Many Plants and Trees So Artfully Placed Would Make a Bonsai Gardener Proud.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Turtlehead Peak is Often on the Horizon. More Bonsai Trees!
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Red Rock from Iron Leaching Up Through Ancient, Frozen Jurassic Sand Dunes.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Loved the Bonsai Trees! Dunes Are 145-201.3 Million Years Old.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Looking Back Toward the Keystone Thrust Cliffs in the Distance.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Amazing Artistic Colors and Shapes. Unique Scene on Planet Earth.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Well-Marked Trail with a Few Steep But Manageable Inclines.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Many Inclines Have Sandstone Stairways.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
More Artistic Sandstone Stairways. The Natural Art Here is Incredible!
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Higher Perspective of the Keystone Thrust Cliffs: El Bastardo Mt. to the Right.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Distant Keystone Thrust Cliffs Are in the La Madre Mountains Wilderness.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Arrival at the Largest Calico Tank. Tank Empty in October. Come Next Spring!
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada Upper Calico Tank Full in Spring Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Reeds Remain as Memory of Pond
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Spectacular View at Trail Summit is Always There! Las Vegas Valley Background.
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Red Rock Canyon, Scenic Drive Pullout #2, Visitor Center, Blue Diamond Mt
Calico Tanks | Red Rock NCA, Nevada
Better Shot of Blue Diamond Mt. Framed by Calico Cliffs
Turtlehead Peak Framed by One of the Sandstone Formations on Calico Tanks Trail | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Be at the Sandstone Quarry Parking Area by 9am on Weekends or Risk Having No Parking | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Trailhead Sign for the Calico Tanks Trail | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Historic Sandstone Quarry Operated from 1905 to 1912 | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Quarried and Transported Sandstone Blocks Weighing 10 Tons | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada The Sandstone Blocks Were Carved Right Out of the Side of the Hill | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Shortly Beyond the Quarry the Trail Splits. Calico Tanks Right. Turtlehead Peak Left. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Entering a Magical Forested Climate Zone Leading Into the Calico Tanks Canyon | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada As the Sun is Rising Ahead, Most Pictures Will Be Taken Looking Backwards! | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Amazing Sandstone Formations Seem to Defy the Laws of Physics. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Many of the Plants and Trees So Artfully Placed Would Make a Bonsai Gardener Proud. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Turtlehead Peak is Often on the Horizon. More Bonsai Trees! | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada The Red Rock is from Iron Leaching Up Through the Ancient Now Frozen Jurassic Sand Dunes. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Loved the Bonsai Trees! Dunes Are 145-201.3 Million Years Old | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Looking Back Toward the Keystone Thrust Cliffs in the Distance. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Amazing Artistic Colors and Shapes. Exactly Repeated Nowhere Else on Earth. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Well-Marked Trail with a Few Steep But Manageable Inclines. Always a Good Hold, Minimal Exposure. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Many of the Inclines Have Sandstone Stairways. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada More Artistic Sandstone Stairways. The Natural Art Here is Incredible! | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Higher Perspective of the Keystone Thrust Cliffs: El Bastardo Mt. to the Right. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada The Distant Keystone Thrust Cliffs Are in the La Madre Mountains Wilderness. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Arrival at the Largest Calico Tank. The Tank is Empty in Late October. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada You'll Have Better Luck Finding the Tank Full of Water in the Spring Before Summer's Heat. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada However, the Spectacular View at the Trail Summit is Always There! Las Vegas Valley Background. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada View Down into Red Rock Canyon. Scenic Drive Parking #2, Visitor Center and Blue Diamond Mt. | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Better Shot of Blue Diamond Mt. Framed by Calico Cliffs | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada Upper Calico Tank from the Summit Viewpoint | Ash Canyon to Calico Tanks | Calico Basin and Red Rock Canyon, Nevada | David Smith | Las Vegas Area Trails

Overview | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada

The Calico Tanks Trail in Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area is an artistically beautiful 5-mile out and back hike along a great trail through calico hills. The altitude gain is about 500ft and most of the steeper stretches up the sandstone have sandstone stairways.

Points of Interest at the Summit Area

As if the beauty of the surroundings all along the way were not enough, there are a few additional rewards at the upper end of the hike:

  • 2 scenic ponds surrounded by Calico cliffs (the Calico Tanks): Note that these are likely to be dry in the Fall due to high Summer heat. The best time to find water in the tanks would be Spring.
  • A spectacular view at the very summit of the trail: From this view you can look down through Aztec red sandstone cliffs into a portion of Red Rock Canyon including Scenic Drive Viewpoint #2, the Red Rock Canyon Visitor Center, Blue Diamond Mountain and portions of The Rainbow Mountains to Potosi Mountain at the South end of the Spring Mountains. To the Southeast you can see portions of the Las Vegas Valley and the Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area in the distance beyond.

In addition, make it a point to turn around often during your ascent along the trail to see views of the Keystone Thrust cliffs on the Northern border of Red Rock Canyon and Turtlehead Peak.

Best Time of Year to Hike the Calico Tanks

Spring, Fall and Winter are the best time of year to hike The Calico Tanks Trail. Summer temperatures can reach 115 degrees or higher, though in the morning or evening hours you could hike The Calico Tanks during the Summer.

Best Time of Day to Hike the Calico Tanks

If itโ€™s a weekend day, be parked at the Sandstone Quarry Trailhead by 8:30 or 9am or risk not finding a parking spot. There is no overflow parking on the Scenic Drive, so if the parking area is full when you arrive, you are out of luck.

Trailhead Directions | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada

From I-215 in Summerlin at the Red Rock Casino, take Hwy 159 (Red Rock Canyon Road) West toward the mountains. Red Rock Canyon is the 2nd turnoff to the right, about 4 miles after leaving Summerlin. You will need a reservation to enter the area and gain access to the scenic drive. Once on the scenic drive, the Sandstone Quarry parking area is the 3rd parking area beyond the visitor center.

Adventure Description | Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada

Trailhead to the Calico Tanks Split

From the Sandstone Quarry Trailhead take the well-marked trail toward The Calico Tanks. Take time to view the historic Sandstone Quarry, then continue up the trail. You will immediately cross a wash. Incidentally, that wash would lead you all the way to the Keystone Thrust cliffs and over to the neighboring Calico and Brownstone Basins to the East, but thatโ€™s another story. Cross the wash to continue on the Calico Tanks trail. Soon there will be a split in the trail. Take the right split for the Calico Tanks. The left split goes to Turtlehead Peak, another awesome destination.

Calico Tanks Split to the Large Calico Tank (Pond)

Soon youโ€™ll cross the wash again heading for a band of white sandstone hills to your right (East). As you reach the sandstone hills you find yourself immediately in another climate zone. Gone is the stark desert zone at the base of Red Rock Canyon. Instead, now you are passing through a forest of tall trees on either side and continuing up a beautiful sandstone calico canyon.

By the way, the sandstone all around you is composed of ancient 201.3 million- to 145-million-year-old Jurassic era โ€œfrozenโ€ sand dunes. The reds are caused by iron leaching up through the soil. Look around at the hardy bonsai-like trees as you go, and how artistically they blend in with the surrounding sandstone. There are countless photo-opps on this amazing little trail!

Large Calico Pond to the Trail Summit

Youโ€™ll know when you have reached the overlook at the very summit of the trail. Itโ€™s not far beyond the large calico tank (pond). Youโ€™re suddenly at the edge of a cliff and if you do not have advanced rock-climbing skills, and gear, you should stop here. You can, however, ascend to a high point for a spectacular view!

Summary
Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada
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Calico Tanks | Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada
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View detailed directions and a video for this artistically beautiful 5mi out and back hike to a large pond surrounded by sandstone cliffs and a spectacular viewpoint at the trail summit.
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LasVegasAreaTrails.com
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