Deborah Wall, Recreation

With the temperatures in our region finally cooling off, now is a good time to head out to Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. There are many canyons to explore in the park but Pine Creek Canyon should be tops on your short list.

Pine Creek Canyon is not only stunning geologically but has dense vegetation, a seasonally flowing creek and remains of an old homestead from the 1920s. The official trail, which includes a loop, is a moderate two-and-one-half miles, yet for more adventure and some rock scrambling there are plenty of opportunities to explore the upper reaches of the canyon.

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By Deborah Wall, Outdoors

One benefit of living in Southern Nevada is the opportunity to explore little-traveled backroads winding their way to uncrowded outdoor adventures. It’s too bad that heat discourages this activity in deep summer, but even then you can have a great time if you prepare carefully, start early in the day, and choose the right road.

One of the best for a summer jaunt is the Mormon Well Road, originally a pioneer wagon trail on what is now the 1.5 million-acre Desert National Wildlife Refuge. This gravel road starts about 26 miles north of Las Vegas, four miles east of U.S. Highway 95 near the refuge’s Corn Creek Field Station.

About 43 miles of this trail will bring you across the scenic Sheep Range to exit on U.S. Highway 93, the road to Alamo and points north, just a couple of miles south of State Route

A corral built by Mormon pioneers in the early 1900s can be found with a short hike from Mormon Well Road in the Desert National Wildlife Refuge. Photo by Deborah Wall.

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By Deborah Wall, Recreation

Big Bear Lake, Calif. is one of the closest high elevation destinations for Southern Nevadans seeking a summer getaway with cool temperatures.

In less than a four-hour drive from Las Vegas you will find yourself in an alpine setting about 7,000 feet above sea level, where summer daily-high temperatures average about 80 degrees.

Besides easy access, Big Bear offers more to do than many high-elevation locations. It’s especially good for active outdoor experiences; especially good for families with children.

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By Deborah Wall, Recreation

Hackberry Canyon is a hidden gem located in the southwestern section of the 1.9 million acre Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, Utah.

It is a bit off the beaten path but those who make the effort will be rewarded with a colorful narrow canyon complete with a perennial stream, flanked by lush vegetation.

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By Deborah Wall, Outdoors

After driving dozens of miles of remote desert road through the 1.6 million acre Mojave National Preserve in California people are often quite surprised when they come upon the Kelso Depot.

The Kelso Depot in the Mojave National Preserve in California houses a visitor center, museum and lunch counter. Photo by Deborah Wall.

Here is a railroad station large and elaborate enough to serve a small city, sitting virtually in the middle of nowhere, at a tiny desert crossroad. It’s not only one of the grandest buildings in the east Mojave but it also serves as the primary visitor center for the preserve, has excellent museum displays, and even offers a good place to get a light lunch.

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By Deborah Wall, Recreation

One of the quickest ways to get a complete change of scenery, and a stunning one at that, is to visit Black Canyon, the 11-mile stretch of the Colorado River that lies below Hoover Dam. This rugged canyon, where walls tower more than one thousand feet, is accessed by boat the easiest and seeing it at your own pace is one of the best ways to enjoy it.

Taking a boat upstream from willow Beach in Lake Mead National Recreation Area offers solitude, opportunities to see wildlife, points of historic interest and stunning views of Black Canyon. Photo by Deborah Wall.

The best place to start is from Willow Beach Marina on the Arizona side of the river, about a 20-minute drive south of the Hoover Dam area.

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By Deborah Wall, Outdoors Column

Many of us enjoy getting away from everything, if only for half a day or so, along one of the hundreds of remote gravel roads in our region. A good, quick trip this time of year is to Fort Piute, just over the border in California and in the extreme eastern part of the 1.6-million acre Mojave National Preserve.

A road trip here not only gets you into isolated territory, but also offers quite a lot to see when you get there. Some of it is historic; Fort Piute is itself the ruin of an old military outpost and nearby are American Indian petroglyphs.

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By Deborah Wall, Recreation

Southern Nevada has a few dramatic red sandstone areas but none so concentrated as in Nevada’s first and largest state park, Valley of Fire State Park.

Dedicated in 1935, the park was named for the sandstone’s hot-coal-red color, which comes from traces of oxidized iron. Wind and time sculpted the sandstone into formations of all sizes and fantastic shapes.

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By Deborah Wall, Outdoors

For lovers of the outdoors living in Southern Nevada, one of the rites of spring, or even late winter, should be spending a day or more in Death Valley National Park.

It’s only a couple of hours from Las Vegas, just across the California border, and temperatures are already averaging in the high 70s. Wildflower bloom in lower elevations is approaching its best in late February and can remain excellent into early April.

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The Huber Wash trail in the southwestern corner of Zion National Park. Photo by Deborah Wall.

By Deborah Wall, Outdoors

Not too many people venture to the lower-elevation region of Zion National Park. This area, in the park’s southwestern corner, is usually bypassed in favor of better-known hiking areas such as Zion’s main canyon.

But in the dead of winter, when snow and ice can make the park’s main trails unappealing, unsafe, or undoable, it’s an excellent alternative.

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