Waterfall Canyon Route

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Nearby Essentials

Gas: Chevron & Terribles
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Common Questions

Distance:: 1.71 miles
Class:: Class 2
Dogs:: This is a dense vegetation area, so be sure to check dogs for ticks, splinters, etc.
Route Style:: out & back
Trail Condition:: Primitive
Tags:: scramble, seasonal water, wilderness
Difficulty:: Easy
Parking:: On Rocky Gap Road or at the end of the Willow Springs lot.
Restrooms:: No
Reception:: No
Access:: From the Willow Springs parking lot.
Good to Know:: It's undoubtedly tricky navigating up this so-called 'ravine'. Is it worth it? Definitely! Trickles of water transform into a ten foot plus waterfall engulfed in gorgeous terrain.
Why:: Hiking up delivers striking views of the Keystone Thrust behind. There's several unique turnouts along the way up Rocky Gap Road. One of which even has a picnic table. Additionally, chance encounters with motorcyclists and off roaders zooming along this treacherous road. Yes, this is also a road for highly equipped trucks, etc.
Wildlife Probability:: Though this is a very rural area. You'll be largely on the Rocky Gap Road where animals will most likely never be. In the actual Waterfall Canyon—unknown.
Trailhead coordinates:: 36.16120, -115.49886 — Map

Waterfall Canyon is undoubtedly among the lesser visited destinations in Red Rock Canyon Las Vegas. It follows a small canyon nestled a short distance from the start of Rocky Gap Road. The waterfalls aren’t huge like in other places of the park. The difference is nearly everywhere else, many water sources are seasonal. The big ones depend greatly on snow and perhaps even rainfall. This trail however provides constant small to medium sized waterfalls far more frequently than other locations.

Depending on your vehicle, you’ll either park at the very end of the Lost Creek–Willow Springs lot, or venture a short distance up the very rocky road to find a spot to park that’s out of the way of hikers and other drivers. This is the entrance to the Rocky Gap Road and the beginning access point for the Waterfall Canyon route. You’ll most likely see very well equipped Jeeps and trucks occasionally trekking through here. This is also the way to North Peak and Bridge Mountain.

Waterfall Canyon Route — Geology and Solitude

Hiking through Waterfall Canyon is very rugged. There’s giant slabs of limestone that’ll eventually lead to tanks ranging from 2–4’ deep. On a hot summer day, one could bask in these tanks amidst natural spring water. It's a fascinating region. Vegetation dense and rich in adventure.

In this very region numerous types of archeological discoveries were made ranging from clothing to graves among places used for religious and cultural importance by the Nuwuvi people. Mt. Charleston specifically is seen as a place of inception for said peoples and their modern descendants—the Southern Paiutes.

They believed they were the moral, spiritual, and cultural stewards of these mountains which were/ are places of power. Where energy flowed through water, springs, steam, and rain; materialized in snow. Tool making, ceremonial dance and healing sites all have profound histories here in addition to rites of passage—histories that add even more weight to the experience of the Waterfall Canyon route. This area of Red Rock Canyon Las Vegas is yet again, a unique, highly adventurous, and extraordinary place.

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