Two Great Hikes for Members of Hiking Las Vegas

Recently I added one new hike and updated another hike for members of Hiking Las Vegas.com. The new hike I added was: Fletcher Peak via the North Loop Trail. I had completely overlooked that this route was missing from my website.

Very Scenic

The North Loop trail is very scenic in itself. A little over a mile in you come to a flat plateau where numerous weathered bristlecones stand. This is a great place to camp and take photos of evening and morning light on the bristlecones.

Once you turn off the the North Loop trail onto the path that leads to Fletcher Peak, the views are even better. Besides the weathered bristlesones, there are great views of the entire Cockscomb Ridge and Charleston Peak. You really should bring a camera on this hike.

Here's a video showing the turnoff for Fletcher Peak.  

Missing Register

The register is gone from Fletcher Peak. In fact two other parties did the hike on the same day as I did and emailed me they could not find the register.
If you do this hike and there's a register, please let me know.
Stats for the Fletcher Peak hike:

Distance: 7.25 miles — up and back

Elevation gain: 2,214 feet

Highest elevation: 10,319 feet

Time: 3 to 4 hours — up and back

Difficulty: 3

Class: 1

Bonanza Peak

This is a remote peak near Cold Creek, which is about 55 miles from Las Vegas. It's a trail hike except for the last .25 mile. Did you know there's only one peak in Mt. Charleston that has an official trail to the summit?( I will give the answer at the bottom of this post.)
We just did the hike on Saturday, the 13th of August. The wild flowers at the saddle were amazing.

Wild Horses

I have done this hike at least eight times and have always seen wild horses. This time we saw them just off the road. I did not count, but I must have seen 20 horses. It's pretty amazing to think in 2011 there are still wild horses in Nevada.

Stats for the Bonanza Peak hike:

Distance: 10 miles – up and back
Elevation gain: 2,300 feet
Elevation of Peak: 10,400 feet
Time: 5 to 6 hours – up and back
Difficulty: 3
Class: 1

Want to do these hikes and find the way to the summit? Stop searching the internet and become a member of Hiking Las Vegas where you can instantly download the best hiking guides/maps on the internet


Charleston Peak is the only peak the has an official trail to the summit.

Snow Storm in Charleston

On Saturday (5-30), I attempted to lead 18 hikers to Fletcher Peak in Mt. Charleston. It started out as a warm and sunny day. As we arrived at an overlook of the canyon we just hiked up, it started to rain a bit. It was still warm and the next part of the hike traveled through a wooded area that somewhat protected us from the rain.

Once to the saddle that lies between Fletcher Peak and the North Loop trail, things had changed drastically. The rain had turned into the sleet and hail. The sunny skies replaced with dark clouds with flashes of lightening. The sleet and hail replaced with cold, wet snow.

I made the decision to bail and get off the mountain as fast as possible. We retraced our steps down slippery slopes and through wet trees. Everyone by now was cold. My hands were gone... no feeling in them. We pushed on and eventually drop below the snow line. Once we reached the trailhead I looked at the thermometer in Kenny's car. It read: 48 degrees. I figured it was in the mid-thirties at the saddle, some 2000 feet higher.

What lessons can be learned from this?
1. Always have a rain jacket with you when hiking in higher elevations.
2. Be smart and descend when you see lightening.
3. Don't panic.
4. Fletcher Peak does not like me. Last year I got sick after eating some poison pineapple (inside joke), but I did get sick.