01 Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada, Overview
Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Nevada and Arizona offers multiple recreational opportunities from climbing desert mountains and hills, canyons, ridges and plateaus with spectacular views to hiking, biking, boating, kayaking and swimming to picnicking and camping and much more. Don’t miss the great interpretive center at the Southshore Road Park entrance. We’re systematically exploring both popular and largely unknown adventure destinations and adding these to LasVegasAreaTrails.com. Best time of year for adventures here: Mid-Fall to Mid-Spring. When temperatures in the Las Vegas Valley rise above 75-80 degrees these destinations can become uncomfortable and even dangerous. However, during the Winter months expect comfortable mid-day temperatures around 60-70 degrees. Follow thumbnail images to view the details you will need to plan your adventures here. Follow thumbnail images to view the details you will need to plan your adventures here. Click image or title above for more…
Arizona Hot Spring | Liberty Bell Arch | Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Arizona
Arizona Hot Spring is a natural hot spring nestled in a narrow slot canyon about 1/4th mile above the banks of the Colorado River. It’s a popular hang out for many fans of the hot spring who make it a day adventure. Liberty Bell Arch is a pretty impressive natural arch spanning an open area beneath that actually has taken on the shape of the Liberty Bell. Route details: 8-10mi | 1,536 > 661ft; **Mostly Good Trail** Click image or title above for more…
Black Mesa, Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada
Black Mesa in Lake Mead National Recreation Area has a huge relatively flat summit over a mile in length from North to South. From the Southern Summit one can see one of the best views of Lake Mead to be had from any point in the area (except Fortification Hill). Black Mesa has no real marked and established trailhead. However, the route I took started at a pull-out about mile 10.5 on Northshore Road in Lake Mead National Recreation Area just a few hundred feet before the crossing of the major wash that skirts the West side of Black Mesa. Route details: 4mi | 1,538 > 2,198ft; ** Wilderness, No Trail** Click image or title above for more…
Bowl of Fire SE Detail | Lake Mead NRA, Nevada
Detailed Views of Unique Sandstone Formations in the SE Bowl of Fire, Lake Mead NRA, Nevada. Locating this particular formation was like finding a needle in a haystack! Click the image or title above for more details.
Callville Summit Trail, Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada
Callville Summit Trail is a great way to experience the area around the Lake Mead shoreline in a brief 1-2-mile excursion. You’ll get an idea of hiking conditions in desert terrain without committing yourself to a more extensive remote adventure. Hiking conditions include navigating loose rock, sudden drop-offs, high desert heat and other conditions unique to low desert adventures in the Southwestern U.S. Route description: 2-3mi | 1,229 > 1,500ft; ** Rabbit Trails – Take Your Pick** Click image or title above for more…
Fortification Hill | Lake Mead National Recreation Area | Arizona
Fortification Hill on the Arizona side of Lake Mead, like Black Mesa across Lake Mead on the Nevada side has the most incredible view of Lake Mead to be found anywhere. From the flag-topped summit you can see the full panorama of Lake Mead minus the Overton Arm stretching below, the Mt. Charleston Wilderness including Griffith Peak, Charleston Peak, Fletcher Peak and Mummy Mountain, the Rainbow Mountains on the West side of Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Potosi Mountain, Hoover Dam, Mt. Wilson, the Muddy Mountains and many other features in Nevada and Arizona. However, getting there involves 4WD roads. Route details: 4mi | 2,313 > 3,717ft; **Mostly Trail – Sometimes Faint** Click image or title above for more…
Frenchman Mountain Overlooking Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada
There is no more commanding view of both the Las Vegas Valley and Lake Mead National Recreation Area than the summit of Frenchman Mountain, Nevada. From the summit one can look down on the Las Vegas Strip, across to the West to the Rainbow Mountains on the far side of Red Rock National Park, the La Madre Mountains and the Mt. Charleston Wilderness. To to Northwest one can see Gass Peak and the Sheep Mountain Range. To the Northeast one can see the Muddy Mountains and then gaze East and Southeast to see the Jimbilnan Wilderness, Virgin Ridge, Gold Butte, Lake Mead and the Hualapai Mountains. Route details: 5mi | 2,184 > 3,972ft ** Excellent Trail/Service Road** Click image or title above for more…
Gold Strike Heights North | Hoover Dam Area | Lake Mead NRA, Nevada
Explore the terrain above and around Gold Strike Trail including Hoover Peak in the Hoover Dam area of Lake Mead NRA, Nevada. Click the image or title below for details.
Hamblin Mountain, Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada
Though Hamblin Mountain in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area of Nevada is only 3312ft in elevation, it is positioned in a location that provides an incredible view hard to match anywhere else in Southern Nevada. This is in part due to it having 849ft prominence and being the highest point within 2.72 miles. The summit affords one of the best views of Lake Mead down to the Hoover Dam area and up towards the Overton arm. Route Details: 7mi | 1,965 > 3,291ft; **Some Trail, Some Wilderness** Click image or title above for more…
Historic Railroad Trail | Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada
The Historic Railroad Trail is about a 10-mile out and back adventure in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Nevada. This trail is a side trail branching off from the 31-mile River Mountains Loop Trail and spans the distance from the Lake Mead Visitor Center to Hoover Dam. You could combine this trail with a tour of Hoover Dam and a walk across the old memorial bridge. The well-graded path, with it’s very gradual inclines and descents makes for an easy hike or run. Route details: 5 mi RT | 200ft Elevation Gain/loss; **Wide, Graded Railroad Bed** Click image or title above for more…
