A Weekend in Valley of Fire
Las Vegas is only a 45 minute flight or a 4 hour drive from my doorstep, so it’s one of my favorite easy weekend getaways…but recently I decided to venture off the Strip to Valley of Fire State Park.
Less than an hour from Las Vegas, you can find 40,000 acres of bright red Aztec sandstone and gray/tan lime stone in this otherworldly desert location.
I started my weekend with a trip to the visitor center which provides great information and history on the park, including geology and ecology. The visitor center has helpful maps and excellent hiking recommendations. It’s also a great spot to go to if you need to refill your water bottles as it can get dangerously hot here in the Summer.
It’s impossible to pick favorites here, but one of my personal picks might be Elephant Rock...which you guessed it... looks like a giant elephant made of red rocks! I actually discovered Valley of Fire while scrolling through Instagram one day, I happened on a photo of this awesome rock formation and I thought, ‘Where is this? I want to go here!’
Elephant rock is super easy to get to from the parks east entrance. It’s less than a third of a mile hike from the main parking area, and it’s even visible from the main road too.
Another spot I really love is Arch Rock. This stone arch has been created by thousands of years of erosion. It’s one of the few places in the state park you’re not allowed to climb because it’s so fragile…but it’s incredibly beautiful and worth the visit.
If you need a shady area to stop and eat, Seven Sisters is a great spot to rest for lunch. There are plenty of picnic tables between the seven tall boulders and it offers beautiful sandy desert views. There was even a small wedding reception here the afternoon we visited (so cute!).
I was impressed with all the trails and hikes one can explore here. While we saw plenty of people on the roads and at the visitor center, it never felt crowded or “touristy”…in fact there were many times we didn’t see people for miles/hours, which gave this trip a fun “private adventure“ vibe.
Atlatl Rock was the only place I found slightly crowded, which was understandable because one side of this huge boulder has metal stairs you can climb to see the petroglyphs and rock art left behind by Anasazi Puebleu farmers and the Basket Maker people.
Nate and I found a great little hike between the Fire Wave trail and Duck Rock (yep a giant rock formation that looks like a duck) where we set up the rig and explored. There was an abundance of wildlife, from jackrabbits to lizards to butterflies…although we didn’t see any of the famous bighorn sheep or tortoises on our trip.
After our weekend in Valley of Fire, I’m convinced you could come here for the day and get a great overview of the park, or spend a week exploring all the trails and beautiful rock formations.
There are a few things to keep in mind when planning your trip... The park is open from sunrise to sunset and there is a $10 entrance fee per vehicle. The visitor center is open daily from 8:30 to 4:30 PM. There are two campgrounds available for overnight adventures, and one of my favorite facts about the Valley of Fire is pets are welcome (yay) as long as they are kept under your control on a leash.
Have you been to Valley of Fire before? If so, what’s your favorite spot in the park?
