Old Arrowhead Trail in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada
Old Arrowhead Trail in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada, traverses the park East-West, just as Prospect Trail traverses the park North-South. It is part of an original 1915 era road from Las Vegas to Salt Lake City. The Western trailhead is located just beyond the West park entrance (near the Bee Hives); the Eastern trailhead is located just beyond the East park entrance (near Elephant Loop). Route details: 13.6 miles RT. Sketchy trail, fairly level but overall descends a gradual wash for 6.8 miles. Click image or title above for more…
Pinnacles Loop Trail in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada
Pinnacles Loop Trail, featuring a hidden valley of brilliant fiery red pinnacle rock formations, is a great initial exposure to the wonders of Valley of Fire State Park. Entering the pinnacles is like entering another world. A balancing rock stands out, apparently defying the laws of gravity. I became obsessed with this rock as you can see in the video on this page, trying to figure out how it could possibly remain on its perch. Route details: 4.5-mile loop trail; **Not always clear where the trail is, but just circle the large central hill** Click image or title above for more…
Prospect Trail | Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada
The Prospect Trail in Valley of Fire State Park spans much of the park from near the West entrance to the White Domes Loop at the end of the Mouse’s Tank Scenic Drive. Not only does it span much of the park, but it also offers one of the widest variety of rock formations and colors seen on any other trail in the park from the 200 million-year-old red Azetc sandstone formations also seen on Pinnacles Loop, Fire Canyon, Mouse’s Tank Trail the Bee Hives and Atlatl Rock to the white sandstone formations seen in locations such as White Domes and Silica Dome to the variety of colors seen on the Rainbow Vista Trail to the red and white striped display seen on Fire Wave Loop. Route details: 11 miles RT; **Good trail – a bit sketchy in places.** Click image or title above for more…
Rainbow Vista Trail, Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada
The Rainbow Vista Trail in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada is a quick 1.0 mile trail with two main features. The “rainbow” part of the name is mostly at the beginning of the trail with rock formations colored in shades from white to brown to red. The “vista” part of the name refers mostly to the grand Fire Canyon overlook at the end of the trail. Route details: Approx. 2mi RT; **Path through hills.** Click image or title above for more…
Silica Dome | Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada
Silica Dome in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada is just a very fun experience offering a combination of trail hiking and light but exciting rock climbing on an amazing surface. Silica, from which Silica Dome get’s its name, is the major constituent of sand. The dome itself is composed of very pure nearly white silica in rock solid form. Apparently, you do not want to breathe in the silica dust because it is a lung carcinogen and exposure can result in the disease of silicosis. Route details: 2mi RT Wander Around and On the Dome. Click image or title above for more…
White Domes Loop Trail in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada
White Domes Loop Trail in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada is a relatively easy but totally amazing 1-mile loop trail featuring colorful red Aztec sandstone that was originally sand dunes 200 million years ago in the Jurassic age of the dinosaurs. Another feature of the loop is an abandoned Hollywood set from the 1966 American western film “The Professionals“. Route details: 1-Mile Loop; **Decent trail, some stairs.** Click image or title above for more…
Anniversary Narrows, Muddy Mountains Wilderness, Nevada
Anniversary Narrows in The Muddy Mountains Wilderness of Nevada is one of the most beautiful slot canyons in the state. If you’re into slot canyons, Anniversary Narrows is a must see no matter where you’re from. The intricate turns in the canyon along polished rock walls carved into millions of unique shapes lit up by a narrow slit 100s of feet above change in color with the advance of the sun throughout the day. It’s like wandering through a magical maze with a new, unexpected view beyond your wildest imagination around every turn. Route details: 10 mi RT; **Some Trail, Some Wilderness** Click image or title above for more…
Muddy Mountains Wilderness Northwestern Panorama, Nevada
A high point on the third ridge from the Muddy Mountains Wilderness Northern border offers a great panoramic view of the Muddy Mountains Wilderness. This is a good place to get the big picture of this wilderness 1/3rd the size of the state of Rhode Island. Route details: 6 mi RT, **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…
Horse Thief Canyon Loop | Mt. Wilson | Black Mountains | Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Arizona
This adventure has got to win an award for variety of terrain including 6 miles of unpaved roads, traversing a few miles up the entire length of a rugged mountain canyon with beautiful springs, an 800 foot scramble up the avalanche slope side of the canyon, a short class 3 rock climb and a descent down a 2-mile ridge with incredible views of Lake Mead, Potosi Mountain, the Rainbow Mountains, La Madre Mountains Wilderness, Mt Charleston Wilderness, Gass Peak, the Sheep Range, Frenchman Mountain, Fortification Hill, the Hoover Dam area, and additional points to the South and to the East. Route Details: 16mi | 1,536 > 5,446ft; ** Some Road, Mostly Wilderness** Click image or title above for more…