Cleopatra Wash - 2/4/14

Cleopatra Cove at Lake Mead NRA

Ancient Volcanic Walls and Spires

 Ten hikers made the long trek up to MM 30 on Northshore Road in Lake Mead NRA. They turned right precisely at the mile marker onto Boathouse Cove Road, a high clearance small dirt road. Around the 2 mile or so mark, there is a large open area where we pulled our 3 cars aside and began our hike down Cleopatra Wash.

 This wash has a complicated geologic past. For a good explanation of why this wash carries the name "Cleopatra," either go to the Bird and Hike or Summitpost web site. For now, suffice it to say that this area was formed from the Cleopatra- Hamblin paleovolcano during the Mesozoic era and the thin walls and spires that border the wash were formed over time after the volcano became extinct.

One of the Easier Dry Falls

 The interesting green rock within the wash is called breccias. This was formed when ash began covering volcanic rocks that already existed in the area. We hiked quickly down the gravelly wash meeting up with several dry falls. There were only a handful of spillovers that were difficult and slippery. All of these obstacles had a trail that led up and around the hot spot. Half of our group today were non-plussed by the difficulty ratings and took each scramble as they came.

Just a Little Too High and Awkward for Kay

 When we got down to the end slot, most of the group dropped down to view the high fall at the end. Many of the hikers, today, were new to the route and we were happy to oblige them with showing them around. Afterwards, we all went up over the saddle. The trail up to the saddle seemed to have been torn up by previous hikers. At the top we saw burro or horse manure. Not sure if there were horses on this trail ... I hope not!

Breccia Rock formed from Old Volcanic Rock Covered with Younger Ash

Steep Down Climb to Cove

 From the saddle, the climb down to the cove is also very steep unless you use the trail over to the right that takes a little longer. Three hikers decided to take their break at the top of the hill where they could overlook the cove and lake. The remaining seven hikers went on down to take their break at the water's edge. The lake was a beautiful and calm blue today and the water level was further out than during last year's hike.

Taking a Break at Water's Edge

 Carefully, each hiker made the trek up and over the saddle to return to the wash. The sun was higher in the sky and had warmed up everything splendidly! Unfortunately, the hike up the gravelly wash was taxing and the sun's heat was just one more thing to make the trip a little more uncomfortable. Nevertheless, the wash appears different from the other direction so we enjoyed the scenery as we climbed. As we passed, we noted the rock formation of Cleopatra high up on the north wall.

Cleopatra Spire Rock Formation from Wash

 One by one, we climbed up the last (or first) dry fall. The gravel was beginning to get old. The only thing left to do was get back to the cars. Thinking that we knew the correct wash to take, we neglected to look back as we came to a many wash junction on the way down. Oops! Hilariously, we were crawling all over the washes and ridges at one point while we looked for the road, wash and/or cars!

We found the road and then the cars just as the last hiker ... the one with the GPS ... came hiking in. He laughed! Anyway, we always have a good time.

7 miles; 1200 feet elevation gain; just under 4 hours of hiking; around 2 hours of driving out and back from the meeting location

Taking a Small Step Up

Ancient Volcanic Spire

White Owl Canyon / Shoreline Loop - 2/3/14

Mr. & Mrs. Great-Horned Owl in Hippie Canyon

Las Vegas Wash from Shoreline Trail

River Mountains Trail

Our hike today began at the old Las Vegas Marina and Boat Ramp on Lakeshore Road about two miles southeast of the Lake Mead NRA fee booth at Lake Mead Parkway. We drove down to the bottom of the ramp and began hiking down by the Las Vegas Wash that appeared as a strong flowing river. The peninsula that we walked out on used to be under Lake Mead so it was strange to be out there walking on dry land!

Las Vegas Wash

We hiked over to the Shoreline Trail and started following it along the lake quite some distance from the water.

Shoreline Trail

Someone has done a very nice job making this trail. It is lined with rock and is a smooth dirt path as seen in the photo to the left. Eventually, we came closer to the lake water and continued around until we approached the 33 Hole Parking and Picnic Area. Before we got to the trail that climbed up to the pavement, we turned left and hiked out onto a plateau above the lake. Back when the lake water was much higher, this area, "Turtle Cove," sheltered many turtles that you could see from the plateau.

Lake Mead Backwater

Now, there are still interesting things to see on the plateau such as veins of gypsum in the rock, gargoyle-like rock protrusions along the edge of the plateau and very nice views of the lake, fishermen, fish and waterfowl. While we were there, we saw a rather large bird "fishing" overhead. At first, we thought it might be a bald eagle. Its head was white. But, after further study, we have come to the conclusion that it was an osprey.

Plateau Points of Interest

At any rate, it was exciting to watch the large bird swooping in for the kill!

Osprey Fishing above the Lake

We circled the plateau and came down to begin our hike over to White Owl Canyon. We could see the canyon entrance in the distance and there is a trail that leads there. When we got to the entrance, we stopped and encouraged everyone to be as quiet as they could. Sixteen hikers quietly marched into the canyon filled with water-rounded corners. We anxiously looked up at the known roosting spots and nest areas. No owls! Not even a nest.

White Owl Canyon Approach

We hiked on through the canyon continuing through two different culverts; one under Lakeshore Road and one under the River Mountains Trail. We took our morning break here before exiting the wash via an old mining road that led up the hill to the right where we connected with a section of the River Mountains Trail. We walked easily along the paved path that used to be the lakeshore road for about 0.7 miles.

Culvert Under Lakeshore Road

Views of the Lake Mead, Lava Butte, Rainbow Gardens and Lake Las Vegas could be seen from the path. One bicycle passed us during this time.

Group Shot Exiting White Owl Canyon Area

At the 0.7 mile mark, the group split into half. Eight hikers continued out the paved trail and found the boat ramp and the cars. The other eight hikers dropped down into Hippie Canyon, a red dirt and rock crevice that dipped below the road. After various contortions while scrambling, we got through the tightest part of the canyon and found the great-horned owls that live here. Both the male and female were perched high up on the wall of the canyon and posed for our cameras for 5-10 minutes. What a wonderful experience!

From this point, we hiked down the canyon to connect with the Shoreline Trail very near the boat ramp. The hike was just under 5 miles with 550 feet of elevation gain.

Culvert Under River Mountains Trail (Lakeshore Road Bridge Beyond)

Squeeze Play in Hippie Canyon

Brittlebushes in Bloom as We Exit Hippie Canyon

Tanks Discovery Examined - 2/2/14

Top of Phase I Hill View

Exclamation Point Tank

 Six hikers wanted some Sunday Scramble exercise so we went to the Sandstone Quarry trailhead in Red Rock Canyon NCA for a four mile loop that was half Tank Discovery Scramble and half new routes incorporated into the original hike. We began by hiking up the wash to the arch turnoff. Along the way, we noticed that the manzanita is blooming in this area. The cold snap that we are now experiencing may put a stop to that! We turned right and headed into the sandstone hills.

Under the Arch

 The arch was new for Scott. It's always fun to show people new stuff. So, we took a moment to crawl up underneath the arch and check out the redbud trees that are still baring their winterized limbs.

Descending Off of Phase I Hill

From the arch, the hike continued up the sandstone crack and zigzagged up to the top of the hill. This woke our hearts up fast! We overlooked the park then descended down to the Calico Tanks Trail but quickly began another ascent (new to the hike) up to the ridge saddle. Not surprisingly, there was already a pretty good trail that led us up through the rock and we ended at the base of the Phase I Hill. Before us laid the shallow crack that bisected the sandstone ridge.

Traversing from New Ascent to Saddle to Upper Ridge Climb

 We followed the crack trail past the back of Rooster Rock and connected with the original Tank Discovery Scramble route when we turned right to begin our upper ridge climb.

Climbing to Upper Ridge

 On the upper ridge, we inspected the large deep tank on the left side then hiked over and found the Exclamation Tank full of water as seen in the second photo of this entry. There is water in all the tanks but with this exception, the tanks are not nearly full. Next, we dropped over to the right side of the ridge and took the brushy traverse down and up to the big rock fall below the sunken tank above. Instead of climbing up the rock fall, we traversed over to the Long Pool area below Calico II Peak.

View from End of Lower Calico II Peak

 We passed a half full Long Pool and hiked over to Lower Calico II where we had our morning break. It was interesting how pink the sandstone appeared to be under the overcast skies.

View of New Peak and Krafft Mountain from Near High Point of Hike

 After the break, we faced the most challenging section of today's route. Finding our way up a crack to the top of the wash route that we use between Calico II Peak and the main Calico Tank was fun and interesting. On the way, we noted a large cave that we would like to explore someday. (Just not today!) To the right, this is a photo of two of today's hikers climbing out of the crack and up to the high point above the targeted wash. We marveled at the view of the main tank far below then descended the wash down to the Calico Tanks Trail.

Little Slot Canyon

 The steps of the Calico Tanks Trail were accommodating even though it didn't really seem like hiking! So, we made our way over to the small beautiful white slot canyon and passed a small arch up to the left.

Climbing Up Hill Behind Little Slot Canyon

 Here, we decided to climb the rock hill past the little arch. It was a fun scramble and just before we reached the top (always leave more for another day!) we turned to our left and began a descent through three levels to the large gravel wash that we rarely use. Once in the wash, we were home free, connecting back onto the Calico Tanks Trail all the way out to the cars. A short but fun workout and, now, we are ready for the Super Bowl!

3.7 miles; 1300 feet elevation gain; 3 hours

Coming Off of Hill into Gravel Wash

Hiking Out