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| Elephant Rock Loop (foreground) / Old Arrowhead Road (background) |
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| Clark Memorial above the Valley of Fire Wash |
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| Elephant Rock |
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| Starting out the Connector Trail (Seven Sisters in Background) |
The Arrowhead Trail or Arrowhead Highway was the first all-weather road in the Western United States that connected Los Angeles, California to Salt Lake City, Utah by way of Las Vegas, Nevada. Built primarily during the auto trails period of the 1910s, prior to the establishment of the U.S. numbered highway system, the road was replaced in 1926 by U.S. Route 91 (US 91) and subsequently Interstate 15 (I‑15). Small portions of the route in California and Las Vegas, Las Vegas Boulevard, are sometimes still referred to by the name, or as Arrow Highway. ~ Wikipedia
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| Old Arrowhead Road Trail Sign |
The debut of this new hike began at the Seven Sisters Picnic Area in the Valley of Fire State Park with nine hikers attending. The Seven Sisters are seven very large redstone outcroppings on the south side of the Valley of Fire Highway that runs east/west through the park.
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| Old Arrowhead Road |
The part of the Old Arrowhead Highway in Valley of Fire is an abandoned dirt road/trail that runs roughly parallel to the main VoF road for around 7 miles. This usually would require a car shuttle for an end to end hike.
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| Valley of Fire Redstone from Old Arrowhead Road |
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| Cheryl's Photo of a Happy Blogger! |
By beginning the hike at the Seven Sisters, the highway trail distance is cut in half with the inclusion of Elephant Rock Loop. Therefore, an out and back hike is feasible and enjoyable. There is another old road/trail that connects the Seven Sisters to a midway point of the Arrowhead Road. To find this trail, head southeast from the last picnic table on the east end of the area. Thus far, this trail is not very well worn but it is very clear once you are on it! Just over 1/3 of a mile from the picnic area, hikers junction with the Old Arrowhead Highway and turn to the left. The trail is well marked with old and new trail signs. The hike is filled with many ponderings of historic feels!
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| Reds, Greens and Chocolates |
The road/trail is dotted with many desert oak bushes, some mormon tea and a few cacti. With each wash crossing, there is a dip in the trail. Also, there is a small berm built across the trail at one point. Take the right fork here and don't ignore the berm!
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| Hikers enjoying a Perfect Day! |
Next up, there is a short hike in a shallow wash with a lonely red barrel on the bank. Afterwards, there is a large historic artifact junkyard and chainlink fencing protecting it. And, a very large rock outcropping that reminded each of us of a different kind of animal!
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| Mineral Deposits seeping through Surface of Road |
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| Descent to Valley of Fire Wash |
The following wash crossing is very wide. There are three trail signs in the area to guide hikers across. Make sure you don't miss this crossing. It will take you out of the desert scrub and into the colors of greens, browns and whites. As you wind through the hills, views of the immediate colorful area with backgrounds of the VoF redstone in the near distance are a sight to behold! The road takes you through softer terrain and part of the road is covered with white stains from mineral seepage. Winding down toward the paved highway, the red sandstone views neared. Just before reaching the pavement, we turned to our right to follow a small narrow wash down toward the large sandy Valley of Fire Wash.
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| Almost to Road Crossing |
Then, just before reaching the wash bottom, we turned to our right to climb a narrow trail up to the top of the embankment. At the top, there is a well maintained memorial to a guy named John J. Clark.
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| Small Wash to Big Wash |
Clark died here at this spot back in 1915. His story is explained on the informational sign in the photo below. (Someone needs to spell check the sign and, also, compare dates with the memorial. Tsk.)
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| Visiting the Clark Memorial |
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| Climbing up to the Elephant Rock Loop Junction |
We crossed the wash below the memorial and found a small path through the tall grass to climb up the other bank to the sign. From there, we crossed the Valley of Fire Highway and followed the wide road leading up the hill where it junctioned with the Elephant Rock Loop trail. This loop takes visitors around a grouping of beautiful red sandstone. A left turn on the loop led us to the north side climb. Views at the high point were fantastic! We could see the terrain where the Old Arrowhead Highway had traveled. Old CCC cabins are seen tucked into the redstone in the distance. And, the maintenance and utility barn of the park is also seen below next to the sandy wash.
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| Red Rock at the Loop Junction |
Down to the other end of the loop, we came to the east side fee station of the park. Here, we stopped for our break with the luxury of a restroom and a choice of shade or sun. After a nice rest, we started up the Elephant Rock Loop trail on the south side passing by the park's famous Elephant Rock.
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| View Back to Old Arrowhead Road Terrain |
I took a couple of required photos of the Elephant then we continued down the trail that runs very close along the paved highway. When it does cut back into the park side, we crossed a diminutive bridge that was once used in a Star Trek movie. (Captain Kirk's Bridge)
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| Climbing the North Side of Elephant Rock Loop |
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| Virgin Peak from Elephant Rock Loop HP |
When we came to the junction of the wide dirt road that turns to the left, we began the "back" part of the out and back portion of the hike. The only difference in route was that we didn't climb up the hill to Clark's memorial again. Instead, we entered the small wash directly from the large sandy Valley of Fire Wash and climbed up to the Arrowhead Road. Following the trail back to the connector junction was easily navigated. The only point where there might be a problem is at the connector junction. There are a couple of landmarks that might be of assistance to you but these would be best noticed when you are starting the hike and come to the junction the first time.
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| Snack Break at the Park's East Gate |
Maybe someday this junction will be better marked but, right now, it isn't obvious and there are no signs.
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| Starting out after Break |
On our way back through the desert, that same hiker with binoculars for eyes spotted a group of six bighorn sheep grazing about 50 yards away among the brush.
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| Elephant Rock |
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| Captain Kirk's Bridge on Loop Trail |
We had a great group of hikers today. Even though it was not a difficult hike, we kept a steady moderate pace for 6.5 miles and no one had any difficulties. The weather was absolutely perfect and, in the end, a few thin clouds came over and blocked some of the slight heat from the sun. This new hike is a keeper!
6.5 miles; 700 feet elevation gain; 3.25 hours; average moving speed 2.1 mph
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| Valley of Fire Wash Crossing |
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| Return |
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| Two of Group of Six Bighorns |
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