Escape to La Madre Spring Trail

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When you're a little sick of the city and need an outdoor experience, but your schedule allows only a short time for the cure, a mild winter afternoon on the La Madre Spring Trail can be your pleasant prescription.

It takes you through a pinyon-juniper woodland surrounded by the signature sandstone and limestone hills and mountains of Red Rock Canyon Conservation Area. The hike will lead you to a perennially flowing, spring-fed stream and a small pond, man-made in the 1960s.

This 3.4-mile, round-trip hike is a moderate one with an elevation gain of about 600 feet, which is spread fairly evenly over the entire route. If you have children, they can come along safely; they'll enjoy it and there aren't any major drop-offs or obstacles along the main route for parents to fret about. Very young hikers, though, might struggle keeping balance on the uneven rocky surface along the way.

From the Willow Springs Picnic Area, which serves as the main parking area for this hike, walk up Rocky Gap Road, a rough gravel jeep trail, for about one-half mile. This road once was called the old Pahrump Highway and also the Potato Road, and was a major route to Pahrump for about 50 years starting in the early 1900s.

After one-half mile, you will cross Red Rock Wash -- usually dry, but a major drainage in the park. After crossing the wash, continue up the road about 20 yards and you will see the sign that marks the official La Madre Spring trailhead on your right.

The elevation at this junction is about 4,800 feet, so expect temperatures to be around 10 to 15 degrees cooler than in Las Vegas. Also, the main section of the trail lies directly west of the White Rock Hills, which, on winter mornings, block the sun until about 10 a.m.

From the signed trailhead, head up the now-abandoned jeep road, which will bring you high on the west bank of Red Rock Wash. This is one of those trails that is very rocky in places, so you might be more comfortable in sturdy-soled hiking boots instead of lighter-tread sneakers or trail-running shoes.

Along the trail, you will be within a pinyon-juniper plant community, which in this area includes scrub oak, Mormon tea, sagebrush, manzanita, Mojave yucca and prickly pear cactus.

About one-half mile after leaving Rocky Gap Road, you will come to a signed junction. To the right is the White Rock Loop Trail that circles north around the White Rock Hills and back to the Willow Springs Picnic Area, about 6 miles in total. For the La Madre Spring hike, however, you continue straight ahead.

Travel about 0.3 miles farther and you will see an obvious and wide spur trail on the right. This 20-yard side trip takes you to see an old house foundation. I paced it out to be about 55-by-30 feet. There are still some remains of the old floor tile where some very strong glue has held it in place through our desert cold and heat for about four decades.

Back on the main trail, there is another short spur trail on the left where you can find another foundation of about the same size.

Continuing up the main route about 0.4 miles farther, you will arrive at the official end of the trail, marked by an interpretive sign. From here, look down the embankment and you will see the pond and dam surrounded by Baltic rush, bulrush, reeds and other water-loving plants. La Madre Spring itself is located upstream.

This area makes a lovely place to have lunch or just relax on the wide flat areas and listen and watch for birds and other wildlife. It is a favorite watering hole for desert bighorn sheep and mule deer, often seen here in mornings and evenings.

Although this ends the official hike, you can continue upstream on a well worn, yet narrow path within the confines of a pretty canyon, and about one-half mile farther, you will come to the remains of an old miner's cabin. This area was privately owned until 1975, when the Bureau of Land Management acquired the land. Along the way, you will have to do many stream crossings, but it is easy to avoid getting wet because the stream is usually only a couple of feet wide.

The most pleasant part of hiking upstream is the sound of the water as it flows through the constricted drainage within the thick, yet low vegetation that canopies the stream. There are also a few small waterfalls to enjoy. Watch your footing as this canyon receives very little sunshine, so surfaces remain wet or even icy longer than elsewhere. Two weeks ago, I found many areas of slippery ice and snow patches in the north-facing areas along this route.

For this hike, even if you wait until warm weather to take it, you will want to wear long pants as there are many burrs or stickers, rocks and other hazards for bare legs. Also, bring your own drinking water; on a short hike like this one, it's less trouble to bring plenty from home than to carry and use filters or chemicals.

If rain threatens, come back another day, because of flash flood danger in Red Rock Wash and the other small drainages you will encounter. Since you will access this trail via the 13-mile Scenic Loop Drive, keep in mind the park is operating under winter hours and is open 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily through Feb. 28, with extended hours in spring through fall.

Deborah Wall is the author of "Great Hikes, A Cerca Country Guide," published by Stephens Press. She can be reached at Deborabus@aol.com.