Ref - Wilson Cliffs & Cottonwood Valley

{Click on any image to view full size, then use the back button on your browser to return to this page}
This page last updated on 04/10/2018

(Fig. 01)

(Fig. 02)

Description - The Wilson Cliffs: The area called The Wilson Cliffs form the southern portion of the Spring Mountain Range. It is approximately 10 miles long and forms the western edge of Cottonwood Valley inside the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, north of NV-160. Starting on the northern end with Bridge Mountain and running south (refer to Fig. 02), the area of the Wilson Cliffs includes more than twenty mountain peaks and ranges including Mescalito, Magic Mountain, Juniper Peak, Rainbow Mountain, Cactus Flower Tower, Mount Wilson, Indecision Peak, Monument Mountain, Mountain Spring Peak, Black Velvet Peak and Windy Peak and Hollow Rock Peak, just to name a few. These cliffs are made up of red, pink, and yellow/tan sandstone mountains that rise abruptly off the valley floor. While Mount Wilson, at an elevation of 7,420 feet is the highest peak, the majority of the surrounding cliff and peaks top out at over 6,000 feet. The yellow and red Jurassic Aztec Sandstone that makes up the Wilson Cliffs Thrust Fault is more than 170 million years old and is part of the world famous Keystone Thrust system; a famous  geological curiosity which has it's strata turned upside down. Normally we would expect that younger strata are found on top of older strata, however, the Keystone Thrust defies common sense. The dark red streaks that run through lighter limestone layers are actually topped by older limestone strata. As with many of the exposed strata in this region, and much of mountainous Western North America the Keystone Thrust was 'constructed' by a process whereby huge tectonic plates shifted, ground into each other and did all kinds of things to mess up the clean geological sequence. For most of the Paleozoic Era, this part of the Southwest was under a deep ocean. Sediments accumulated over the vast time span resulting in the limestone formations that we now see. Today the sandstone in the Wilson Cliffs acts as a big sponge absorbing water either through rain or melted snow. In addition to the several canyons running between these mountain cliffs (refer to Fig. 02) that funnel water, water travels down through the sandstone emerges at the bottom at the valley floor, forming several springs and streams.

Description - Cottonwood Valley:  Divided by NV-160 (Fig. 02), Cottonwood Valley is almost ten miles long and nearly a mile wide, with the majority of valley located inside the boundaries of the vast Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, south of the fee area. This area encompasses a myriad of hiking and biking opportunities. The biking trails here are the best in Los Vegas. There are over 125 miles of interconnecting single-track and an 11 mile NORBA race loop here.  Portions of these trails are thought to have been originally created by the many wild burros in the area. Hikers, rock climbers, cyclists, and 4WD adventurers all coexist in this scenic area that showcases a set of large red sandstone peaks and walls called the Keystone Thrust.The thrust, called The Wilson Cliff's, is located immediately to the west of the trail system, and offers amazing views. Its canyons, most notably being Black Velvet Canyon, provide numerous hiking and rock climbing opportunities. Near the southern end, Red Rock Canyon’s Late Night Trailhead offers miles of hiking trails and is the main trailhead for many of the hikes along these cliffs and canyons. Located towards the northern end of the valley is the 500-plus acre Spring Mountain Ranch State Park, which also offers more than four miles of hiking trails. Just south of the park is the Bonnie Springs Ranch that offers a replica of an authentic 1880's mining town, horseback riding, hiking and more. On the extreme southern end of the valley, south of the Wilson Cliffs and NV-160, Cottonwood Valley Road offers various hiking opportunities in the Potosi Mountain range including a hikes to the Carol Lumbard Crash site and several old abandoned mines. On the east side of Cottonwood Valley Road there are trails leading to Bird Spring Peak offering outstanding views of the entire Las Vegas valley. If you follow the road to its end, you will come to the town of Goodsprings, Nevada. Depending upon where you drive and hike in this valley, you may be retracing the steps of traders and mule train drivers who traveled this area as part of the Old Spanish Trail as far back as the 1830s.

Post Notes: Even though this area contains some of the most beautiful sites in all of Red Rock Canyon, there is very little information on the Internet describing either the Wilson Cliffs or Cottonwood Valley; and what little there is that can be found is merely small bits and pieces scattered over dozens of short postings. As I have visited this area on several occasions, and plan to do so again in the future, I created the map in (Fig. 01) and this page to act as a depository of information about the area that could be used as a reference in some of my existing and future posts. Running north to south, the numbered descriptions below coincide with the identified locations and numbered titles in the legend's found on the map in (Fig. 01). As I spend more time in this area, I will continue to add more pictures and hiking information about the cliffs, peaks and canyons found in the area.

------------- Icebox Canyon --------------

(20) Bridge Mountain – 7,003 Feet:  Bridge Mountain lies between Icebox Canyon to the north and Pine Creek Canyon to the south, and forms the eastern edge of a great escarpment called the Wilson Cliffs. Its dome, which is the high point on the mountain, is a naked block of white rock sitting above a maze of dramatic red and white canyons, forming the eastern edge of a great escarpment. Bridge Point sits just east of the dome. Bridge Mountain is the second highest peak in the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. It Named for a large sandstone arch near its summit. Bridge Mountain is one of the most impressive, most imposing and most elusive summits in the entire Red Rock NCA area. Although hidden from view from most of the Red Rock scenic loop behind neighboring Bridge Point, its monolithic summit block invites hikers and climbers alike when they finally see it.

------------- (7) Pine Creek Canyon (Fern Canyon) --------------

(19) Mescalito – 5,440 Feet: Mescalito is a striking pyramid-shaped formation that splits the Pine Creek Canyon. From the approach trail, Mescalito looks like a miniature version of its near neighbor, Rainbow Mountain. Both share similarly colored characteristic rock bands - grayish lower portions and redish upper regions.

------------- (7) Pine Creek Canyon (Fern Canyon) --------------

(18) Magic Mountain – 5,360 Feet:

(17) Rose Tower Peak – 5,020 Feet:

(16) Rainbow Mountain Peak – 6,801 Feet: (Rainbow Mountain is the one of the most striking and colorful of the peaks at Red Rocks. It's photogenic nature derives from the large bands of red sandstone that cap the upper portions of the peak. Although it may be one of the most brilliant peaks at Red Rocks. The summit offers outstanding views of nearby Mount Wilson and Bridge Mountain as well as the canyons in between.

-------------- (6) Oak Creek Canyon -------------

(15) Cactus Flower Tower – 6,356 Feet: A sub peak on Mount Wilson, this peak is Mount Wilson's little brother. Although there is extensive exposed rock, comparatively little activity has been recorded. The main cliff forms a high wall wrapping from the east to the northern side of the peak. The Blood Wall is a long reddish wall beneath the western ridge, high above Oak Creek Canyon.)

(14) Mount Wilson – 7,420 Feet: Mount Wilson lies between Oak Creek Canyon to the north and First Creek Canyon to the south. Mount Wilson is the highest peak in Red Rock Canyon. This is another summit that looks impossible without ropes, but there's a class 3 route through First Creek Canyon and a class 4 route through Oak Creek Canyon. All the above routes require physical agility and very good route finding skills. Each of these routes require long approaches taking 7 to 10 hours. As a result, the summit of Mt. Wilson sees only a handful of people each year.

(13) Indecision Peak – 6,431 Feet:

(12) White Pinnacle Peak – 5,550 Feet:

--------------- (5) First Creek Canyon ----------------

(11) First Creek Peak – 5,990 Feet: First Creek Peak is located slightly behind Indecision Peak. This 3-mile climb (from the Midnight Trailhead) follows First Creek up the canyon between Mt Wilson and Indecision Peak. As you approach the mouth of the canyon, the summit block can be seen with its distinctive brown knob sometimes referred to as the Hershey Kiss peak. Hiking directly up the canyon passing the Mt Wilson south bowl approach enroute, you experience an elevation gain of about 2,320 feet, making this a fairly strenuous climb.

(10) Indecision Peak a.k.a Mount Wilson South Peak – 6,420 Feet: Indecision Peak separates First Creek Canyon to the north and Sandstone Canyon to the south. It is the large mountain immediately south of Mount Wilson.

--------------- (4) Sandstone Canyon -----------------

(09) Sandstone Peak: Is located south of Sandstone Canyon.

(08) Hidden Peak – 6,280 Feet: Hidden Peak is located to the west, directly behind Monument Peak.

(07) Monument Peak – 6,280 Feet: Consisting of three summits – the western summit (the monument) being the highest – a central summit – and the lowest, the eastern summit, considered by some to be a separate peak. Monument Peak, is a rugged, spectacular destination has a round-trip distance of about 10 miles. The elevation gain from trailhead to summit is about 2,400 feet, but you need to add around 300' to both going and returning due to dips in the route, so it's more like 3,000 feet. That sounds moderate over 5 miles, but about half the route is through a canyon bottom where there is only a very gradual elevation gain, so the real ascending part of the route is quite steep.

(06) Burlap Buttress – 5,598 Feet:  This relatively smaller peak lies north between Black Velvet Peak and the Monument.

---------------- (3) Black Velvet Canyon --------------

(05) Mountain Spring Peak – 6,641 – Located on the west side of the Wilson Cliffs escarpment, this fairly strenuous, 5-mile round-trip hike is accessed from Highway 160 near the town of Mountain Springs. The hike starts near the edge of the Rainbow Mountain Wilderness Area and heads east to the crest of the Spring Mountains Range. Following the crest north to a fork in the use-trail, the route continues north following the crest of the ridge to the summit. Views from everywhere along the are grand and include the La Madre Range to the north, Las Vegas and every mountain range to the east, to Mt. Potosi in the south. From the summit, the 360-degree view one of the best in all of the Red Rock region -- truly spectacular.

(04) Black Velvet Peak – 6,234 Feet - Black Velvet Canyon could well be called the crown jewel of Red Rocks. Black Velvet Peak soars over 2,000 feet above Black Velvet Canyon. The black, varnished rock is of the highest quality and its walls host a high concentration of excellent and longer trade routes. The Black Velvet Ledges stop casual hikers from continuing through the canyon. Once beyond the ledges the route continues through a brush free wash before heading south out of the canyon and across the limestone. The route returns to the sandstone for an unforgettable scramble to the peak. With walls over 2,000 feet high, the canyon receives little sunlight and as such can be quite a bit cooler than other areas.

(03) Whisky Peak – 5,160 Feet: This small peak is a sub peak on the eastern edge of Black Velvet Peak

---------------- (2) Mud Spring Canyon --------------

(02) Windy Peak – 6,245 Feet – Windy Peak stands between Black Velvet Peak and Hollow Rock Peak. One of the most beautiful peaks, Windy Peak is a fine desert peak that gets a surprisingly high amount of visitation, no doubt owing to a well-traveled use trail that can be followed virtually all the way from the “trailhead” to the summit. Nestled between Mud Spring Canyon and Windy Canyon, Windy Peak is the first peak to the south of the well-known Black Velvet Peak. The round-trip numbers for this class 3 variation are in the ballpark of 2,200 feet of gain and 6 miles

------------------ (1) Windy Canyon ---------------------

(01) Hollow Rock Peak – 6,128 Feet – Located near the very southern end of the Wilson Cliffs, Hollow Rock Peak is a relatively little-known sandstone peak. With a scenic, sometimes challenging route to the summit, a class 4-5 summit block, and excellent views, this is a peak to check out, especially for those seeking solitude. Although the peak is less than two miles from a paved road as the crow flies, its isolation from the Scenic Drive and the fact that high clearance, if not 4wd, is recommended for the driving approach provide extra assurance that the masses will not be on or around this peak A large crack in the summit block is what earns the peak its (unofficial) name.This fairly strenuous, 5.2-mile round-trip hike is located on the west side of the Red Rock Canyon escarpment. Access is from Highway 160 near the town of Mountain Springs. The hike starts near the edge of the Rainbow Mountain Wilderness Area and heads east to the crest of the Spring Mountains Range. Following the crest south to a highpoint, the route turns east and descends to the top of the sandstone escarpment. After bit of easy 3rd-class scrambling on sandstone, the route climbs to the base of the summit block. Views from the actual summit require a bit of 4th-class climbing, but views from everywhere include the La Madre Range to the north, Las Vegas and every mountain range to the east, to Mt. Potosi in the south.

[Return to Previous Page]