White Rock Loop is a versatile hike

Deborah Wall/Special to ViewColorful sandstone cliffs are found along the White Rock Loop Trail in Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. Advertisement

Year after year, Las Vegans polled in the Las Vegas Review-Journal's Best of Las Vegas survey pick Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area as their favorite place to hike. If the poll narrowed it down to a single trail in Red Rock, the White Rock Loop might be the choice.

Its popularity results partly from versatility. It's a satisfying six-mile loop, but also can be taken in smaller doses. This trail will take you around the perimeter of the White Rock Hills with excellent views of the surrounding La Madre Mountains.

The entire loop is a bit long for children, but there are no dangerous drop-offs, if you stick to the main trail. The trailhead on the Red Rock Scenic Loop is about 4,900 feet in elevation, and there is an elevation gain of about 900 feet, so temperatures might be 10 degrees or more cooler than Las Vegas. But this is an exposed hike with very little shade, so a sunny day on this route can still be very warm.

Since it's a loop hike, you can start in either direction, but I recommend you do it counterclockwise, which feels a little less strenuous because you'll encounter most elevation gain early in the hike, while you still are fresh.

From the signed trailhead, walk north. Look on your left, up on a small rise, for a roasting pit. A little more than a century ago, American Indians still used such pits to cook the hearts of agave plants, which grow in the surrounding hills and are marked by tall, flowering stalks. Unfortunately, this pit isn't well defined because people have trampled on it, but you still can see the blackened remains of the leftover rock and ash on the ground and the faint mound shape.

The trail is well worn and easy to follow, except in a few places during the first half-mile, where it crosses a few small washes. Ordinarily, there are obvious paths across the drainages, but after a heavy rain or flood, you might have to scout upstream to find the trail on the other side.

From the trailhead, it is a steady ascent of about 575 feet over the first one and one-third miles to the saddle, which marks the highest elevation of the hike.

At the saddle, you will find a spur trail on your left, marked by a cairn. Sure-footed adults who are willing to do some rock scrambling can take this path up the sandstone bluff to vantage points commanding spectacular views of the La Madre Mountain range to the north and west. This area is known to be frequented by desert bighorn sheep, so be on the lookout for movement while on your rest stop.

Once you backtrack down the spur to the saddle, the trail gradually descends into La Madre Spring Valley and the west side of the White Rock Hills. After about 11/2 miles, you will reach a junction where the route turns left onto an old gravel road. But for an excellent side trip, go right instead, and follow the road for 0.7 miles to La Madre Spring, a perennially flowing, spring-fed stream with a small pond.

If you're skipping the side trip, or after returning from it to the junction, follow the old road about a half-mile to Rocky Gap Road -- the main route to Pahrump in days of yore -- and go left. In about 20 yards, you will come to Red Rock Wash. The wash usually is dry, but it is a major drainage in the park and likely to be impassable during or after heavy rains. Continue down the gravel road for about a half-mile to the Willow Springs Picnic Area.

A little below the parking area, look for the sign marking the point where the trail leaves the road and heads east. A little more than two miles farther along, you'll see another spur trail on your left that brings you down to White Rock Spring. There is a bench where you can relax, watch for wildlife and listen for birds before heading up the trail a mere 0.10 miles to the parking area where you started.

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