We’ve spent a lot of time staying in the Lake Mead National recreation Area, and this time around we decided to check out Red Rock Canyon on the opposite side of Las Vegas, Nevada.
After we left Quartzsite, Arizona we headed back north to a familiar dry camping area in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. We stay there often when we need to catch flights out of McCarran International Airport since it offers everything we need for amenities and is close to Henderson, NV for everything else.
This is our second winter in the Las Vegas area and we haven’t even come close to exploring everything there is to see. We got a tip to check out Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area (RRCNCA) so we took the hour drive from Lake Mead to go check it out.
Red Rock Canyon NCA is a Bureau of Land Management property managed by the Southern Nevada Conservancy. The conservation area features a one-way 13-mile scenic drive with 26 numbered hikes and trails, a visitor center and gift shop, and several picnic areas.
There is a fee to enter RRCNCA, but if you hold an annual pass to Red Rock Canyon or an inter-agency pass (such as an America the Beautiful pass) entry is free (plus the $2 reservation fee). Current fees can be found on their website or on recreation.gov. The scenic drive is by reservation only, with timed entry passes available on recreation.gov or at the entry station. It is highly recommended that you purchase your timed entry pass ahead of time, since there are a limited number of passes available per hour and you may need to wait for entry if the limit is met before you get there.
Once in the park, stop at the Visitor Center first since the scenic drive does not loop back around to it. We stopped and collected Junior Ranger booklets and badges before beginning our drive.
Of the 26 hikes and trails we were only able to stop at three. We made our first stop at Calico I where we got to see a great horned owl specimen on display and get some pictures of the beautiful red rocks. We then made our way to the Willow Spring Picnic Area where we stopped to have a late lunch and explore the Petroglyph Wall Trail. From there we had planned to stop at the parking area at the Lost Creek trailhead, but the limited parking was full so we moved on.
Our final stop was at the Pine Creek Canyon trailhead. We explored the Fire Ecology trail and a portion of the Pine Creek Canyon trail before turning around and completing our hikes for the day.
Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area is absolutely beautiful and well worth the easy drive away from the Las Vegas metro area. We all enjoyed our hikes and the drive and even though we spotted some snow along the trails it still turned out to be a balmy 50 degrees F the day we visited in mid-January.
Have you visited RRCNCA? What did you think of it? We’d love to hear from you! Drop us a comment below or email me at alicia@simplejoyfuljourney.com. You can also find us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest @simplejoyfuljourney. And if you haven’t already, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter at the bottom of the page before you go. Have a great week!