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 Wallace Canyon Loop
(Spring Mountains NRA)

Wallace Canyon Loop - This moderately strenuous hike visits the site of an old plane crash even though there is very little of the plane left in this location. The rest of the route uses other area recreational and game trails to loop back around to the Upper Bristlecone Trailhead. The entire loop is 6 miles with 1900 feet of elevation gain.

Waterfall Canyon
(Red Rock Canyon NCA)

Waterfall Canyon - The hike begins from the Willow Springs picnic area inside the Red Rock scenic loop. The out-and-back route follows Rocky Gap Road for about 1.5 miles before turning into the narrow canyon that generally has water flowing from it across the road. Hiking in the canyon is difficult making the short hike moderate to moderately strenuous in nature. The route is mostly rock scrambling with a series of waterfalls that can be climbed. Total distance, depending on how far into the canyon one goes, is generally around 4 miles with 1000 feet of elevation gain. This hike can be made into a loop hike by ascending to the small canyon via the Upper Red Rock Wash.

Out and Back on Rocky Gap Road

Partial Loop Up Wash & Down Road

West Leg / East Leg
(Bootleg Canyon, Boulder City)

West Leg / East Leg - This is an easy to moderate hike of 4 miles located within the Bootleg Canyon bicycle park. The trailhead is located at the end of Yucca Road in Boulder City where the base of the zip line is located. The loop can be done in either direction up one side of the main canyon and down the other. There is 600 feet of elevation gain.

White Domes & Fire Wave
(Valley of Fire State Park)

White Domes Trail - This trail is located in the Valley of Fire State Park at the end of the paved road that leads into the park past the Visitor's Center. It is a 3.5 mile easy to moderate hike which passes by an old movie set and travels through slot canyons and visits a sandstone formation named the Fire Wave. There is around 400 feet of elevation gain. The views of the park and beyond are colorful and unique.

White Owl Canyon
(Lake Mead NRA)

White Owl Canyon - An easy out-and-back hike only 2 to 3 miles in total distance, the trail head is located about 3 miles from Lake Las Vegas on Lakeshore Scenic Drive. The route drops from a paved parking area (33 Hole turnout) onto ground formerly covered by the waters of Lake Mead, then turns into a narrow caliche canyon that was also underwater at one point. Within that canyon are the remains of rodents and other small animals captured and eaten by the owls who frequent the high ledges within the canyon. Total distance hiked depends on how far the participants wish to go in the drainage beyond the canyon.





White Owl Canyon (Long Version)
(Lake Mead NRA)

White Owl Canyon (Long Version) - This moderately strenuous loop hike uses the trailhead located at the old unusable Lake Mead Marina. A trail leads out along the shoreline where the lake has since dried up. White Owl Canyon comes next then a long walk up a wide sandy drainage. At a saddle near the base of Bighorn Butte, the route turns right into another wash that takes you back to the trailhead. An optional scramble through Hippie Canyon where more owls roost finishes the hike. 8 miles and 1000 feet of elevation gain.

White Rock Hills Loop
(Red Rock Canyon NCA)

White Rock Hills Loop - One of the signature hikes in Red Rock, the starting point is at the Willow Springs picnic area. The moderate loop can be done in either direction, which is generally influenced by the starting time and the temperature. If going in a clockwise direction, the hike starts on gravel roads for about one mile before becoming a dirt trail at a marked junction. The trail takes you around the backside of the small range to the highest point, then descends to the White Rock Springs parking area and around the front side to the starting point. Total distance is 6.4 miles with 900 feet of gain.

Counter-Clockwise Loop

White Rock / Sandstone Quarry Loop
(Red Rock Canyon NCA)

White Rock / Sandstone Quarry Loop - This moderately strenuous loop hike can either be started from Sandstone Quarry or from the pull-off at the beginning of the gravel road at Mile Marker 6 on the scenic loop. If started from the second location, the route follows the gravel road to the upper parking area, then takes the Keystone Thrust Trail to the backside of Cactus Hill. When that trail crests a hill and starts down toward the thrust fault area, continue straight across a rock border. A combination of an old jeep road and trail bring you close to the La Madre Mountains, and a right turn takes you down into a wash and a rock-strewn drainage. This drainage soon connects with a main wash heading toward Sandstone Quarry. From this spot, a 2-mile segment of the Grand Circle Trail will bring you back to the starting point. Total distance is 7 miles with a net vertical gain of 1500 feet.

White Rock Springs Peak
(Red Rock Canyon NCA)

White Rock Springs Peak - To get to the starting point, drive the Red Rock scenic loop for 6 miles and turn right on the gravel road to the parking area about 1/2 mile away. The moderately strenuous out-and-back route starts up the drainage on the east side of the peak to a cairn, then climbs onto the boulder-strewn ridge that runs to the peak. There is some exposure as the boulder scrambling intensifies in the latter half of the climb. The secondary peak can be achieved with a reasonable amount of difficulty. The primary peak, however, is much more difficult with some serious exposure. Total distance for the out-and-back hike is 3 miles with 1000 feet of elevation gain. A somewhat longer loop hike can be achieved by dropping down from the secondary peak area to the back side of the hill.

Wild Horse Loop
(Spring Mountains NRA)

Wild Horse Loop - The start of the hike is the North Loop trail head on Highway 158. The trail climbs for about 1.4 miles to an open area with views toward Las Vegas. This is before the steep switchbacks going toward Raintree. At the far end of the meadows, a cairn or large bristlecone marks the beginning of a trail that goes along the side of a ridge toward the west. After about 1/4 mile, the trail turns sharply downhill and drops into a broad drainage. Toward the end of the drainage, the trail passes through a narrow slot canyon before exiting onto Highway 158 a short distance north of the starting point. Easy to moderate hiking distance is about 3.5 miles with 1000 feet of elevation gain. An alternate route would be to junction with an intersecting trail at the bottom of the small switchbacks. This trail will take hikers over to Wild Horse Ridge to descend above the canyon.

Descent Through Wild Horse Canyon

Descent On Wild Horse Ridge

Wildhorse Pass via Picture Canyon
(Desert National Wildlife Refuge)

Wildhorse Pass via Picture Canyon - This pass is located between Picture Canyon and Little Joe May Canyon. To hike up to this saddle through Picture Canyon, the trailhead is located on Cow Camp Road past the Black Hills Pass next to a Cave that can be seen from the high clearance road. Picture Canyon's entrance can be seen from the trailhead and there is almost 2 miles of desert to hike to get there. Once in the canyon, the impressive tall walls welcome hikers up through the gravel wash. Since this area is of great cultural significance, care must be taken to not disturb its history. The hike to the pass and back is 9 miles with 2100 feet of elevation gain. Much of the hike climbs up through the gravel wash with one or two significant dry falls to either negotiate or find a way around. It is considered a strenuous hike.

Willow Arch (aka Window in the Cliff)
(Spring Mountains NRA)

Willow Arch - The start of this hike is located at the northern trailhead for the Bonanza Trail, about two miles beyond the community of Cold Creek on a high clearance gravel road. The 9-mile out-and-back hike climbs through 55 switchbacks to reach a saddle overlooking Pahrump with California beyond in the distance. Rather than following the trail from the saddle, the route turns right and heads across the top of the ridge for about 1/2 mile. This stretch is very difficult, involving climbing over some slightly exposed rock outcroppings and hiking side slope on areas of loose scree. At the terminal point is an arch that encloses a 30-foot wide hole in the cliff. The total strenuous climb is about 2000 feet.




Wilson Peak
(Red Rock Canyon NCA)

Wilson Peak - The least strenuous routes to Wilson Peak are up the back of the escarpment from either the mile marker 1 or mile marker 3 spur road from Lovell Canyon Road. There are a few routes that climb up the front of the escarpment but these are difficult and highly exposed. The strenuous hike is approximately 8 miles with 2500 feet of elevation gain.

Windy Peak
(Red Rock Canyon NCA)

Windy Peak - To access the hike, take Highway 160 to Mountain Spring Summit Pass Trailhead. Start on a gravel road that climbs for 3/4 mile to a radio relay tower before turning into a trail that takes you to a saddle. Turn left and follow the trail to a large hill about one mile away. Turn right at a fork, traversing to the red and cream colored sandstone mound. From this point, a route involving rock scrambling with one exposed area takes you to the peak. The view is magnificent. Total distance for the moderate to moderately strenuous out-and-back hike is 5 miles with a vertical gain of 1650 feet. A nearby burned ridge may be used in the descent.

Windy Peak via Grapevine Canyon
(Red Rock Canyon NCA)

Windy Peak via Grapevine Canyon - Climbing up the front of the escarpment is always the tougher way to go but Windy Peak may be the easiest of these sort of routes. A trailhead near Lone Grapevine Springs can be reached with a high clearance vehicle. From there, a steep trail out of the canyon leads up to an intermediary level. Then a steep sandstone scrambling route ensues. Totals for this strenuous climb is 4.5 miles with 2000 feet of elevation gain.