Adventures from Kyle Canyon to Fletcher Peak
See also:
Fletcher Peak Adventures from Deer Creek Road
Overview | Fletcher Peak Mummy Mountain Circuit | Mt. Charleston Wilderness | Spring Mountains, Nevada
Action Packed Adventure
Beautiful Scenery
There’s a lot of action packed into this remarkable day of wilderness immersion! You’ll ascend a nice trail through beautiful
Ponderosa Pine forests. Then, in the majestic
Bristlecone Pine zone, passing the 4,000-year-old ancient
Bristlecone Pine called “
Rain Tree“. Continue your ascent to
10,284ft Fletcher Peak for incredible views of
Kyle Canyon, the
La Madre Mountains,
Las Vegas Valley and points beyond. Then descend, retracing your way back to
Rain Tree.
Steep Approach Slopes
Pass
Mummy Springs and leave the nice trails for a one-mile pathless wilderness traverse in
Bristlecone Pine country along the
Eastern slopes of Mummy Mountain. Now, head straight up! Still, in pathless terrain, ascend a wash that is steeper than you might have imagined, and it gets steeper with each step! The trees you pass along the way reveal the steep angle of the slope. The wash ends at the base of the even steeper
Mummy Mountain Eastern cliffs.
Weaving Through Cliffs
Find a narrow weaving gully as you ascend
Mummy Mountain’s Eastern cliffs, steep, but not beyond a class 3 rock scramble (except for one 15-foot scary vertical ledge! Once on the ledge, it’s a simple walk to the summit. You’re on
Mummy Mountain, forested with the most ancient, weirdly sculpted
Bristlecone Pines. The views at the summit are even more spectacular than those of
Fletcher Peak summit.
Steep Return Descent
Now, descend the steep
West slopes of Mummy Mountain (a bit gentler than the East slopes and cliffs). On the way pass through a
Quaking Aspen forest to reach the
North Loop Trail. Take that trail to the
Trail Canyon Trail and then back to the
Trail Canyon Trailhead where you began. Wow! This will be an incredible, unforgettable adventure!
Important Prerequisite for This Adventure
Note that this is a fairly extreme adventure due to the distance, relentless incline and decline on a loose rock surface, elevation gain, and a few rock scrambles. Be sure to do the
Mummy Mountain West adventure before attempting this more extensive adventure. That adventure will help guide your way down the
West side of Mummy Mountain.
How Long Might This Adventure Take?
To give you an idea of timing, it took 2 hours to summit
Fletcher Peak, 6 hours to get from
Fletcher Peak to
Mummy Mountain Summit, and 2 hours to descend from
Mummy Mountain Summit back to the
Trail Canyon Trailhead. I believe I could cut off 2 hours from the
Fletcher Peak to
Mummy Mountain stretch and went on to do that in the
Fletcher, Mummy, Lee Peak adventure. Still, even at 8 hours, this circuit takes me longer than the entire
Mt. Charleston Loop, which I have made in less than 7 and a half hours.
Best Time of Year for This Adventure
Stick to the Summer months. These altitudes are refreshingly cool compared to the Summer heat in the
Las Vegas Valley, where people are roasting in 115 degree weather! Avoid the Winter months, where temperatures at these altitudes can easily plunge below zero, and the steep surfaces are caked with ice!
Directions to Start Point | Fletcher Peak Mummy Mountain Circuit | Mt. Charleston Wilderness | Spring Mountains, Nevada
Your adventure will begin at the
Trail Canyon Trailhead in the
Mt. Charleston Wilderness. To get there, head up
Hwy-95 North from
Las Vegas, take a left at the
Kyle Canyon exit, continue about 20 miles up
Kyle Canyon to
Charleston Village, pass a fire station continuing straight where the road bends to the left. You’ll arrive at the
Trail Canyon Trailhead parking area (same parking used for
Mary Jane Falls). In all, it’s less than 40 miles from the
Las Vegas Strip.
↓ Narrative Guide ↓
Narrative Guide | Fletcher Peak Mummy Mountain Circuit | Mt. Charleston Wilderness | Spring Mountains, Nevada
Trail Canyon Trailhead To Fletcher Peak Summit
Getting to
Fletcher Peak is pretty easy. Ascend the
Trail Canyon Trail, take a right 2 miles up at the
North Loop Junction, circle around the East side of
Mummy Mountain to
Rain Tree and take a right towards the
North Loop Trailhead. In about 1/8th mile where you pass a huge fallen tree that crosses the trail (the portion over the trail has been sawn off and cleared away) take a right toward
Fletcher Peak. There is no trail marking pointing to
Fletcher Peak. You just have to know that this is the place to turn right toward
Fletcher Peak. Though it seems like a long distance with a huge incline, the stretch from the
North Loop Trail to
Fletcher Peak is quick, around a mile! Be sure to look back during your ascent for a unique and beautiful view of
Mummy’s Toe.
Fletcher Peak itself, unlike
Charleston Peak, is covered with a beautiful
Bristlecone Pine forest. It’s the only peak in the
Charleston Wilderness where I have seen deer. Note how the trees are sculpted into a multitude of unique shapes beyond the ability of the greatest artists. While there are peaks with more spectacular views, you will get a great view of
Harris Mountain,
Griffith Peak and the saddle between.
The La Madre Mountains, Sheep Range and
Gass Peak are also in view.
Fletcher Peak is one of my favorites. One could enjoy an entire day there.
Fletcher Peak to the “Delta Wash Canyon” (aka “The Fingers“) at the Base of Mummy Mountain’s Eastern Cliffs
Descend
Fletcher Peak to the majestic, 3000-year-old Bristlecone Pine
Rain Tree. Turn right toward
Mummy Springs. You won’t see gushing water, but rather a wet ledge. In the Winter it turns thick, sculpted ice! The trail looks like it ends at the base of
Mummy Springs but continue straight through the bushes to find the trail resuming. After about 100 yards there is a hard switchback. Make the turn, then immediately leave the trail and head up the ridge through the pathless wilderness, hugging the right side of the ridge and gradually traveling to the right until you reach the wash at the base of that ridge. Head up the next ridge and cross it, making a similar descent to a second wash. Head up the following ridge and cross it making a similar descent into what I call the “
Delta Wash Canyon” (aka “
The Fingers“) below the Eastern Approaches to
Mummy Mountain. Throughout this wilderness leg of the journey continue to weave around rocks, cliffs and fallen trees along a route that seems logical. You will see very faint signs of a trail now and then to reassure yourself that you’re on track. Also, be guided by the observation that you’re tracking along parallel to the base of
Mummy Mountain, always above to your left.
Delta Wash Canyon to the Southeast Summit Approach Canyon
Delta Wash is a wide canyon composed of three washes that begin close together at
Mummy Mountain’s Eastern cliffs, then spread out as they descend the slopes below (like an upside-down river delta). Take the middle wash up to the cliff base. Then, turn left and proceed about 1/8th mile to the
Southeast Mummy Mountain approach canyon. In the video I took the left wash toward a false dead-end canyon and ended up having to ascend
Mummy Mountain twice: Ascending the dead-end canyon, then descending back to the base of the cliff and traveling along the cliff base to ascend the Southeast approach canyon. Far better if I’d headed up the middle wash and turned left at the base of the cliff toward the correct Southeast approach canyon. However, the video shows what it’s like to ascend the dead-end canyon and see the view at the top, then descend back to the base of the cliff, turn left and navigate to the correct Southeast approach canyon.
Upper South East Approach Canyon the Mummy Mountain Summit
Just before the Southeast approach canyon reaches the base of the vertical upper cliff below the summit, turn right, proceed along a rather narrow shelf for about 100 feet, then climb a truly scary 15-foot vertical rock wall exposed to a 100-foot drop! As you top the rock wall you’re immediately scrambling up loose rock that slants down to the very edge of the rock wall, hoping that you don’t slip and slide back down over the edge to a 110 foot drop and almost certain death! This is where having a more experienced, skilled climbing buddy with a rope would be a great help!
However, after successfully scrambling up to the base of the summit cliff you’ve pretty much made it! Take a right, it’s an easy 150-foot walk along the base of the cliff to a comfortably wide upper ledge, then another 100 yards to the edge of the summit cliff. Take a left around the edge of that cliff for an easy ascent to
Mummy Mountain Summit. Congratulations! I’ve taken this route twice and may not take it again! In a subsequent adventure I ascended the
3rd (most Western) delta wash and found it to be less scary. It was steep, but with no significant exposure. I prefer the
most Western delta wash ascent!
Mummy Mountain Summit
Topping that last rise to realize you’ve made the summit of
Mummy Mountain is an incredible feeling! There’s a huge sense of accomplishment plus relief in knowing the hardest part of the adventure is now behind. And, the summit is spectacular with the best 360-degree views of the day! There’s
Kyle Canyon below to the South with all its high points:
Harris Mountain,
Griffith Peak,
Charleston Peak and
Lee Peak. Beyond, you can see all the way to
Telescope Peak on the West side of
Death Valley! To the North are the
Sheep Range and
Gass Peak. To the East is the
La Madre Mountains and
Las Vegas Valley and points beyond.
In addition to these views is the wonder of being on such a large, beautiful summit area, the largest summit in the
Mt. Charleston Wilderness. You could put a football field or two on this summit! And the summit is dotted with ancient, sculpted
Bristlecone Pines that create a terrain unlike any I have seen before. I once made a complete
Circuit of Mummy Mountain Summit in order to spend more time taking it all in.
Descent from Mummy Mountain Summit to the Trail Canyon Trailhead
You’ve got a few descent choices at the summit. You could retrace your way down by the route you just ascended. To me both mentally and physically, that was overload at this point. I had not yet explored the steep steep
descent down the Western delta wash slope, so that was unknown. Later, I took that route, but not today! At this point the most welcoming route was the familiar, friendly descent route down the
West side of Mummy Mountain to the
North Loop Trail. This kept me in happy victory mode!
Begin descending the
West side of Mummy Mountain through the V-shaped canyon (see the
Mummy Mountain West page). This is where it’s a good thing to have taken that descent route before. It’s not so easy finding the exact descent channel from above, so prior experience is important. At the summit opening to the V-shaped descent channel, be sure to notice a beautifully framed view of
Charleston Peak. Also, notice the beautiful, wild
North ridgeline of Kyle Canyon between where you are standing and
Lee Peak. I took that in the
Fletcher, Mummy, Lee Peak adventure…an extension of this adventure. It’s a magical stretch!
At the base of the V-shaped canyon, you’ll connect with the
Mummy Mountain West Trail. This is an unmarked, but nice climber’s trail that will take you along the base of Mummy’s cliffs and around to the steep descent slope above the
North Loop Trail.
Soon you’ll reach the upper ridge of that steep descent slope I call
The Horrifying Half. It’s a half-mile plunge down a scree slope, but actually not nearly as difficult as the terrain you’ve already navigated.
At the top of the slope you have a choice of turning right and staying on that upper ridge toward
Lee Peak, Charleston Peak and beyond, or head down the slope to join the lower
North Loop Trail. For this adventure proceed left to the
North Loop Trail /Trail Canyon Trails junction, passing through a significant
Quaking Aspen forest. Then take a right on the
Trail Canyon Trail and head back down to the
Trail Canyon Trailhead where you began.
