Trips
Nevada Rocks
Slots—not that kind—petroglyphs, and
sinuous rivers call for a near-Vegas experience
By Cliff
Ransom
Map By Trails Illustrated
|
BAG HAYFORD PEAK
Itching to scale the 54-foot (16.5-meter)
volcano in front of the Mirage hotel? Instead, drive north on U.S.
Route 95 to the lightly visited Desert National Wildlife Range
(
desertcomplex.fws.gov/desertrange),
which is home to 9,912-foot (3,021-meter) Hayford Peak, the highest
summit in the Sheep Range. Hike five and a half miles (8.8
kilometers) from the end of the rough Hidden Forest Road and camp
beside a broken-down bootlegger's cabin, where spring-water is
available. Then continue one and a half miles (2.4 kilometers) up
limestone slopes to Hayford's summit.
On clear days, views
stretch west into California and south as far as Lake
Mead.
BROWSE PETROGLYPHS
The art
collection at the Bellagio can't hold a headlamp to Sloan Canyon, a
sacred Indian site and home to more than 1,700 petroglyphs. To
reach the canyon, which was designated a national recreation area
last year (702-515-5000), drive south from the DNWR, turning off
Route 15 onto the power-line road east of Wheeler's RV park, then
continue south on a dry river wash. (You need a 4WD vehicle.) The
central gallery, with images of bighorn sheep, cowboys, and
cactuses etched into its ruddy basalt, is only a half-mile
(0.8-kilometer) hike from the parking area. Afterward, retire to
Boulder City's Boulder Dam Hotel ($89 and up; 702-293-3510), built
to house dignitaries who came to marvel at Hoover Dam. Stroll to
Carlos' Mexican Cafe to dine on steaming zucchini-and-pine-nut
burritos (702-294-6640).
PADDLE DEEP CANYONS
In Black
Canyon on the Lower Colorado River, a half hour southeast of
Boulder City, paddlers wind between thousand-foot (305-meter)
sandstone walls, past hot springs and side canyons. Kayaks rule
at this time of year, when personal motorcraft are banned. Rent
your boat at the Willow Beach Marina ($65; 928-767-4747), the
put-in for the 10.2-mile (16.4-kilometer) trip to the base of
Hoover Dam. You can camp on any beach; Gold Strike Canyon, just
short of river mile 63, offers the unique chance to pitch a tent
beside a piping-hot waterfall. The natural sauna cave nearby is a
partially sealed hot spring.
THREAD THE VALLEY OF FIRE
After paddling
out in the morning, follow Lake Mead's winding Northshore Road past
Overton Marina, then follow Park Service Road 109 to explore St.
Thomas (
www.nps.gov/lame). The Lazarus of a
ghost town was inundated by Lake Mead in 1938 but has recently
reemerged from the depths thanks to the persistent drought.
Before heading back to Sin City, check out Valley of Fire State
Park (www.parks.nv.gov/vf.htm),
where the one-and-a-quarter-mile (2-kilometer) White Domes Trail
threads an 80-foot-deep (24 meter-deep) slot canyon (18 inches at
its narrowest) (56 centimeters) that opens up for scorching sunset
vistas.
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