This State Park is located about 45-minutes outside Las Vegas. If you forget to fill up your tank, there’s a Chevron at the exit and the prices were 10c cheaper than Vegas. If you’ve been to Red Rock Canyon this is a must stop. It truly is Red Rock on steroids.
Check list:
– Bring water. Lots of water. No really, bring water!
– Bring antibacterial gel or something to use if you need to use the outhouse to pee. There’s toilet paper but no sink.
– Wear good shoes. There’s a lot of walking, and many are not on pavement but on dirt/ sand/ rocks.
– Bring water while you’re hiking. Carry the bottle or bring a backpack.
– If it’s sunny, wear a hat and/ or sunglasses
– Sunscreen if you don’t want to get fried. The sun reflects off the sand and rocks.
We left Vegas around 9:30, and I was kicking myself for having such a late start. It was getting to be 80-degrees which is tolerable, but still considered “EXTREME” weather by the park…. so BRING WATER. There’s no stops to fill up water except at the Visitor’s Center which is by the East Entrance. You will need to stay hydrated. If you forget to bring water, drive directly to the Visitor’s Center (about 10-15 minute drive from the West Entrance) and buy some!
We entered the West Entrance and paid the $10 entrance fee. They do take credit card (Visa/ MC). They provide you with a map of the Park, along with other informational papers.
The first stop was Beehives.
We continued onto the Atlatl Rock followed by the Arch Rock located next door. The Atlatl Rock is where the petroglyphs are. The site is near the parking lot, but you do have to climb stairs to see the petroglyphs.
The Arch Rock is right behind the Atlatl Rock, and its a tiny version of the “Arch” in Utah. In my opinion, we could have skipped it. Afterward, we continued toward the East Entrance, and found the Seven Sisters.
We made a stop at the Visitor’s Center and continued on White Domes Road, with Rainbow Vista as our next stop.
We turned off onto Fire Canyon Road for a great view of the 2-colored canyon.
We made it all the way to Fire Wave, and walked just a little bit of it before turning back. The heat was too intense and we didn’t make it all the way there.
The map tells you how far the point of interests are located, and give fair warning that if you’re not prepared to go hiking, avoid certain trails. We knew we would not get to all the locations, but did visit about 80% of the spots. We missed out on Elephant Rock, Mouse’s Tank, The Cabins, and the Fire Wave (as it was posted it took about an hour to hike, and not advised in extreme heat). I’ll be coming back to Vegas in October and hope to revisit the places I missed.
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