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The Campground: Back in June I spent the week camping, four-wheeling, and hiking with my friend Harvey Smith at Spring Valley State Park. At about 194 miles north of Las Vegas and about 18 miles north of Pioche, Nevada, it is more than three hours from Henderson. Taken from our campsite, the view in (Fig. 01) above is a late afternoon shot of the hillside and ridge just behind the site. Including the drive up and back, found and visited more than a half dozen different locations that provided hiking and photographic opportunities that were new to both of us. |
The Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge: On the way up to the campground, we made a couple of stops at the Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge that boarders the western side of US-93. Having driven past the Lower Lake and the meadows surrounding Middle Pond, we decided to make a stop at the refuge’s headquarters where we spent nearly an hour walking around taking in the scenic views and observing the abundant wildlife. We then drove around the refuge’s upper lake where we observed a variety of birds, ducks, turtles, bullfrogs, rabbits and lizards.
Delamar Ghost Town: Our next stop was the old mining town of Delemar, Nevada. Long since a ghost town, we spent the entire afternoon here roaming through old mine shafts and hiking amongst its many ruins. This was a fascinating place that we would both like to make a return visit to sometime in the future.
Pioche & Calliente: In addition to exploring Spring Valley State Park, we spent the next several days taking trips to mines in and around the towns of Pioche NV - Summary Visit Page and Caliente, Cathedral Gorge State Park, Kershaw-Ryan State Park and Rainbow Canyon Scenic Drive.
Ash Springs Rock Art Site: We wrapped the trip up with a stop on our return to the Ash Springs Rock Art Site. With more than 15 different panels, this is one of the largest petroglyphs sites in the Pahranagat Valley. There were at least four more worthy stops along this route that we could have made if we had more time; plenty for a return trip sometime in the future.
