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Sawmill Trailhead Trails | Lee Canyon | Mt Charleston Wilderness, Nevada
↓ Narrative Guide ↓
Not Always Easy to Stay on Course on the Sawmill Trailhead Trails
The Sawmill Trailhead area is relatively new. Trails here are marked with a color-coded system. But at times the trails crisscross or even disappear, the directional signs can be missing when you need them, and the thick-forested areas can hide important reference points.
To complicate things, phones and GPS devices can go dark leaving you to guess where you are. But it’s a fun challenge…as long as you bring more water and allot more time than you think you’ll need. Because it can be a navigational challenge, start out on simple routes and gradually expand to longer loop routes. The Sawmill Loop and Blue Tree Loop are the most clearly marked, and so are good starters. You just may fall in love with this area!
Mapped Trails Below (Left to Right)
Enlarge Map Below for Full Dynamic View (click the map’s upper right square). The colors on the map approximate the colors on the trail signs.
- Sawmill Loop (Yellow – Small Loop at Trailhead)Â
- Mud Springs Loop (Green)Â
- Pinyon Pine Loop (Red)
- Rocky Gorge Loop (Dark Yellow)
- Blue Tree Loop (Blue)
- Deer Creek Catch Pen Loop (Lower Right)
Sawmill Trailhead Trails Transition Zone
You’ll enjoy a pretty amazing transition zone on the Northeastern slopes of the Spring Mountains. The higher elevations are clothed in Ponderosa Pine forests. As you descend on the Sawmill Trails, Ponderosa Pines give way to Junipers and Pinyon Pines, then finally to Yucca, Joshua Trees and Cacti.
Spectacular Views
Views are spectacular as there are many open areas from which you can see all the way to the Sheep Range to the Northeast. Angel Peak is to the East, Macks Peak and Northern Spring Mountains to the West. A great reference point are the limestone cliffs of Mummy’s Head, always pointing to the main trailhead. But again, there are long stretches on the Sawmill Trails in forested gullies where no reference points are visible.
All Trails Interconnected
All six trails are interconnected, so you can access them all from the main Sawmill Trailhead area on Lee Canyon Road. I video-documented all the trails, accessing them from the Sawmill Trailhead. However, there is a trailhead a few miles lower on Lee Canyon Road and a far trailhead on Deer Creek Road.
↓ Map Guide ↓
↓ Trail Finder ↓
Sawmill Loop
1.5 mi / Approx. 7,500 > 7,600ft
**Excellent Trail**
Blue Tree Loop
8 mi /Â 7,500 > 6,500ft
**Well Marked Trail!**
Deer Creek Catch Pen Loop
7-mi Main Loop 6,600 – 8,200ftÂ
20-mi Extended Loop
6,400 – 8-200ft
**Trails: Pathfinding Skills Helpful**
Mud Springs Loop Counterclockwise
12 mi / 6,500 > 7,700ft
**Trails: Pathfinding Skills Helpful**
Mud Springs Loop Clockwise
15 mi / 6,500 > 7,829ft
**Trails: Pathfinding Skills Helpful**
Pinyon Pine Loop
9 mi / 7,600 > 6,450ft
**Trails: Pathfinding Skills Helpful**
Rocky Gorge Loop
12 mi Extended Version: 7,600ft – 5,900ft (there’s an alternate 6-mi short version)
**Trails: Pathfinding Skills Helpful**
