Once again, thanks to Nina over at Wheeling It, we had a tip on a really neat hike on the northwest side of Lake Mead. We’re really glad she included it in her “Top 5 Things to Do at Lake Mead”, because we really enjoyed it!
We took Lakeshore Drive to Northshore Drive, and the further we drove, the more beautiful the scenery got.
We followed the online directions to the trail, and it was a good thing we had them or I don’t think we would have found it. At mile marker 16, we turned off on the dirt road and saw a group of cars parked there.
The online directions indicated that we had a couple miles to go to get to the trailhead, and that high clearance vehicles should be able to make it there.
Our car isn’t exactly high clearance, but we figured we might as well drive in as far as we could! The road stayed pretty smooth, although it did get narrower as we approached the old Anniversary Mine.
There were several times when we thought about stopping, but around every curve the road just seemed to continue.
Finally we reached the end of the road!
This is it – we reached the trailhead – and we weren’t the only ones who drove all that way! All I know is that I sure wouldn’t have wanted to walk all that way from the main road!
It was fairly hot on Thursday, and we weren’t really sure how long the trail was, so we agreed that we would walk for 45 minutes, and then we would turn around.
We set off into the narrows!
The narrow slot canyon between towering walls offered both shade to keep us cool, and breath-taking vistas to keep us captivated!
There were plenty of places for the boys to climb the walls, and they took full advantage of the opportunities!
Areas like this just bring out the adventurer in them . . . they can’t resist it!
The slot canyon was very cool and interesting . . . and really enjoyable to hike in!
As we exited the narrows, the canyon opened up in front of us and became a dry wash. Some other hikers that we met along the way told us that in a big flash flood, the water can get 20 feet deep in the canyon!
We had only been hiking about 25 minutes when we exited the narrows, so after a short water break, we continued on through the canyon. We weren’t sure how far the canyon continued, but we figured we would just keep going until we reached our 45 minute cutoff, and then turn around and go back.
The boys found some more rocks to climb on . . .
and we took advantage of the beautiful backdrop for some pictures . . .
and the boys continue to play!
By the time we turned around, we were ready to get back into the coolness of the narrows!
A group of Canadian hikers caught up with us , and in addition to giving us a geology lesson on the area (this canyon was caused by flooding, not an earthquake), they offered to take a photo of the 4 of us.
It wasn’t too bad of a photo – even if it was at the end of our hike!!
We left the group behind, and made our way back to the car.
Arriving back at the car, Bryce’s hiking app told us that we had gone about 1-1/2 miles in 90 minutes . . . a pretty slow pace, but they were doing a lot of climbing and we stopped to talk to other hikers quite a bit!
It was a beautiful day, and a gorgeous slot canyon! We’re so glad we read about it and were able to find the trail! It was definitely worth the trip!
We really enjoyed that hike also. We were rewarded at the end of it with a few Big Horn Sheep up on the hill. Have a great time at Lake Meade.
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