Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, Nevada


There are several red rock canyons, the one close to Las Vegas is the 5th most visited destination for rock climbers in the USA. We haven't climbed for about two years, but there are some friends there and we would like to see what they are doing and maybe try the rock again. 

Top Rope style

Level 10.10C

There are so many cars that all the parking spots are full, so we park on one side of the road. From the second parking area (calico II), our friends take us into a narrow canyon were we find more than 10 groups climbing "top-rope" style. Levels are from 10.7 to >10.10D and our friends are opening routes up to 10.10D. The routes are bolted and have solid ancors at the top. The rock here is redish sandstone. 

Artur and I try a 10.7. How good it is to feel the rock again on my hands! I am surprised of myself to be able to reach the top of my route, although I finish completely exhausted. Soon after that is gets too dark to keep climbing. 

We camp in the first-come first-served red rock canyon campground. There are still spot during the night, although it is almost full. There is water, but only pit toilets. The campsites have a big table covered by a sunroof, which may be great in summer. The night is very cold, below 0C, but there is no wind. The moon is appearing now as a thin crescent over the horizon.

Turtlehead Peak trail

The next morning, we hike up Turtlehead Peak, the highest of the park. We park at Sandstone Quarry parking lot. The hike is just 4 miles one way. It is flat the first half, and steep up the second half. The trail keeps dividing itself so that the mountain is full of trails with no clear direction. Lucklily, the Turtlehead peak is clear and we just hike in its general direction. One can't get lost there. 
In 1hour 20 min we reach the summit. It is after nine in the morning and we are alone when we get there. For 45 minutes we are enjoying the incredible view of Las Vegas and its casinos and the red rock mountains that surround us.


We arrive back at the car at noon, and it takes us a 14 hours drive to get home. Was it worth it? Yes, of course.

Telescope (11,049 ft; 3,367 m) & Wildrose (9,064ft; 2762m) Peaks, Death Valley 
(Cordada Rapel) 

Trail head

It is Thanksgiving weekend and we expect all the roads to be full of traffic, so we leave home at 4am in the morning, expecting to arrive at Death Valley around noon. Luckily we have been early enough to avoid the traffic jams, so we arrive at Thorndike Campground at 12:30pm. There is snow starting from the Charcoal Kilns, but we try to get as far as we can by car. The car gets stuck on the icy road a few hundred meters past the Thorndike campground. The road is steep and we are not far from the Mahogany Flat campground, so we turn around and park in a flat spot between the 2 campgrounds. We take our overnight gear and start walking around 1pm. It is cold (~4C), but the weather is stable and sunny. 

Telescope Peak Summit

In less than 2 hours we are at the spot where we planned to camp, approximately in the middle of the way up. It is early and sunny so we decide to leave the backpacks and summit today. We know that it will be dark after 5pm, but the way back is easy and we can do it with our headlamps. The trail is steeper and longer than we expected and the last 300m of elevation is riddled with switch backs, with plenty of snow and some ice. We don't carry crampons, but we are lucky to have taken the poles. I start  having altitude sickness after one hour of having left the backpack. I am getting a terrible headache and feeling dizzy, but the peak seems so close and so achievable! I keep walking, knowing that Artur is probably perfectly alright and needs to summit today. We arrive at the summit after sunset but still with daylight. It is really windy and cold. We put on everything we carry with us and hurry down after the obligatory summit picture. 
In 1hour 30 min we get back to our backpacks. It is completely dark - we have a moonless night. We walk down still 30 minutes more until we find the nice camping spot that we saw coming up. We set up our tent, prepare a hot dinner and finally rest. We are at more than 3000m altitude. We can still feel the altitude and the temperature has dropped to below freezing, actually outside the tent we are at -5C (23F). But then, the surprise, the moment than all mountaineers enjoy, the view that no picture can show: a perfectly moonless sky, with stars so shiny than seem closer to us, like if we could reach them. The wind is not blowing any more, the beauty is breathtaking. 

Telescope peak from the trail going down

Our tent in the morning

The next day, another blue sky and freezing temperatures. Luckily the water and gas were in our sleeping bag so they are not frozen. We have a hot breakfast, pack and hike down to the parking lot in ~2hours. 
The day is so beautiful and it is so early that we decide to hike Wildrose peak , a 8.5 miles round trip from the Charcoal Kilns parking lot.  


That peak is easy, pretty steep and it is extremely windy at the top. 
The trail is also longer than expected, with a long detour to the east before heading to the peak, but it is very easy to follow and we run into plenty of people, including kids. 

Wildrose Peak Summit

The view is quite spectacular, we can see Death Valley quite well. Worth coming up. Now, Las Vegas waits for us!