Name: Mount Charleston day trip guide
Brand: Greg’s Guides
SKU: mount-charleston
Price: 4.00 USD
Availability: InStock

Suggested times, not bookings

Your day at a glance

8:00 amLeave the Strip
9:00 amSpring Mountains Visitor Gateway
10:15 amLittle Falls from the Cathedral Rock Trailhead
12:00 pmLunch at The Retreat on Charleston Peak
1:15 pmDeer Creek Road and Desert View Overlook
2:15 pmLee Canyon: Skyway, meadows and Lower Bristlecone
4:15 pmReturn to the Strip

Highlights

Worth the trip

A short canyon walk to Little Falls in upper Kyle Canyon
Wide Mojave views and Atomic Era history at Desert View Overlook
Lee Canyon's meadows and the Bristlecone Skyway chairlift

What’s in the guide

Detailed stop guidance, rules, practical pitfalls, a route map, Google Maps, Waze and Apple Maps links and weather alternatives. Read it online any time, or keep it offline in the Greg’s Guides app for iPhone and iPad. See an example guide →

Plan for the conditions

Expected seasonal weather

From late spring through mid-October the canyons are much cooler than the Las Vegas Valley, with sunny mornings, dry air and strong high-altitude sun. In July, August and early September monsoon thunderstorms often build over the peaks in the afternoon, with lightning, hail and sudden runoff in washes. By October mornings are crisp and cold, and the first snow can come in late fall. High winds can knock out power on the mountain. These are seasonal expectations, not a forecast for your travel date; check the NWS forecast for the mountain the evening before and the morning of your trip.

Admission and parking are separate. Check current conditions before departure.

Another good day

More Nevada day trips

See every Nevada guide →

Rounded red and cream sandstone of the Calico Hills rising above a pale desert slope dotted with low shrubs, with grey limestone peaks behind under a lightly clouded sky

Desert scenic drive & short hikes

Las Vegas Strip → Red Rock Canyon Visitor Center → Calico Tanks → Pine Creek Canyon → Spring Mountain Ranch → Red Spring Boardwalk

Red Rock Canyon

A desert day 30–45 minutes from the Las Vegas Strip: the one-way Scenic Drive through Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, a scramble up to the Calico Tanks rain pool, a creekside walk into Pine Creek Canyon, a picnic at Spring Mountain Ranch State Park and the Red Spring boardwalk in the late light.

9–10 hour day·About 2 hours of driving in total, including the 13-mile Scenic Drive

Best: Mid-October to November, and March to April

$4 USD

A two-lane road winding through cream and orange sandstone toward a ridge of deep red rock under a pale cloudy sky

Desert scenic drive & short hikes

Las Vegas Strip → Atlatl Rock → Visitor Center → Mouse's Tank → Fire Wave → White Domes → Elephant Rock → Northshore Road

Valley of Fire

A desert day from the Las Vegas Strip to Valley of Fire State Park: Ancestral Puebloan petroglyphs at Atlatl Rock and in Petroglyph Canyon, the striped slickrock of the Fire Wave, the White Domes slot canyon and Elephant Rock, with an optional scenic return along Lake Mead's Northshore Road.

8–10 hour day·About 2½–3 hours of driving in total

Best: October–November and March–April

$4 USD

Aerial view of Hoover Dam's pale concrete curve wedged in a red-brown desert canyon, with the arched Memorial Bridge crossing in front and the blue Colorado River below

Engineering landmark & desert history

Las Vegas Strip → Hoover Dam → Memorial Bridge walkway → Boulder City → Railroad Museum → Historic Railroad Trail → Boulder Beach

Hoover Dam & Boulder City

A road trip from the Las Vegas Strip to Hoover Dam: an early guided tour inside the dam, the walkway across the Mike O'Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge high above Black Canyon, lunch in the dam-builders' town of Boulder City, an old railway museum, a walk through the 1930s railroad tunnels above Lake Mead and a late stop at the lakeshore.

9–10 hour day·About 1 hour 45 minutes of driving in total

Best: All year; best October–April

$4 USD