River Mountains Loop Trail

Las Vegas Hiking Trail Featured in Article

Las Vegas Hiking Trail Featured in Article

Quiet thrills just beyond Las Vegas

Writer Robin Soslow wrote a fantastic article for The Roanoke Times called “Quiet thrills just beyond Las Vegas” that just happens to be about our favorite Las Vegas hiking trail.

She captured the essence of the River Mountains Loop Trail…

Las Vegas Hiking Trail Featured in ArticleThe River Mountains Loop Trail rings rugged peaks that rise about 15 miles southeast of Las Vegas. Completed in late 2012, this trail gives Nevada an earthy spectacle to rival its world-famous Strip, a free hiking-biking jackpot of million-dollar views: rolling hills, tunnels, the Las Vegas Bay, Lake Mead, Hoover Dam, even Strip casinos twinkling like gemstones in the distance.

Striking scenery along the 12-foot-wide asphalt path, which has earned designation as a National Recreation Trail, attracts leisure hikers, runners and cyclists. Its aridity and elevation changes draw competitive athletes. Train here and race terrain will feel like easy street. The RMLT is no longer a locals’ secret. “We receive inquiries from around the world about this trail,” said Mauricia Baca, executive director of the Outside Las Vegas Foundation.

Here’s one more example of Robin’s article about the River Mountains Loop Trail:

The landscape’s flocked with cactus, sunray flowers, swaying palms and the “Magic Tree,” a cottonwood near the mile marker 13 nicknamed for its ability to thrive in the middle of nowhere. Residents, most active early morning, include bighorn sheep, desert tortoises and skittering lizards. Midday, animal sightings will generally be dogs being walked on a leash. There’s Mojave Desert heritage, too, with interpretative signs — good excuses for water stops — and a historic pipeline that first brought water from Lake Mead to the Las Vegas Valley.

Check out the entire article about this wonderful Las Vegas hiking trail: Quiet thrills just beyond Las Vegas

Event Permit Matrix for River Mountains Loop Trail

Silverman Connector web

Silverman Triathlon bike portion of event

Because the River Mountains Loop Trail has become “found” and is popular for special group events we have had to develop a permitting process to handle events.

There are four permitting entities which have different requirements. Below is a permit matrix which will get you started.  We want everyone to enjoy the trail and we wish to prevent conflicts with multiple events planned for the same day and same segments/portions of the trail.

Also we can not have everyone applying their own version of trail markings on the trail so rules and guidelines are  now in place.  And one of the main reasons for permits is to not over permit the use of the trail such that the average Joe & Jane can go out on a Sunday trail ride with family and enjoy it.

The River Mountains Loop Trail is already home to several large Marathon and Triathlon events on an annual basis. The lead times listed in the matrix could be much longer if you require a specific date so we recommend you start early and contact all entities involved.

In order to best read the permit matrix click on the thumbnail images below:

Best Place to Ride a Bike in Las Vegas

We made it…..The Review-Journal’s  2011 Best of Las Vegas  “Best Place to Ride a Bike”  R.J.’s choice.   They didn’t list the entire trail, but that is probably because the writer-rider hasn’t ridden the entire trail system as yet.  I concur with this selection from Railroad Pass east to Boulder City as it has much to look at from a views point-of-view; plus you have the historic train rides on the weekend to look forward too.

Trail Bridge route to Boulder City from Railroad Pass

You will also see that the River Mountain Trail is selected as “Best Place to Hike”; this  is actually a different trail but shares a trail-head in Boulder City. This trail was built by the (C.C.C.) Civilian Conservation Corp. circa 1934 -1936 and is a six mile round trip hike to the top of Red Mountain in the River Mountains.  You will find a more detailed write up elsewhere in this BLOG.

A Destination Trail

Wildflowers and Lake Mead

Spring wildflowers line the River Mountain Loop Trail with Lake Mead in the background.

After posing the question on Facebook about whether the users thought the River Mountains Loop Trail was a “Destination Trail,” I have to concur that it is. My brief research doesn’t really define what a destination trail is so I’m setting out to determine what makes this a destination trail. So I went to Wikipedia and started with:

A Destination Hotel is a hotel whose location and amenities make the hotel itself a destination for tourists, rather than merely a convenient place to stay while traveling through or visiting the area for other reasons.”

So if I do a little word-smithing we get:

A Destination Trail is a trail whose location and amenities make the trail itself a destination for tourists.”

So in other words the trail itself is the primary reason for the visit or trip, and the amenities (the hotel, the restaurants, etc.) add to the reason to visit the trail. I have also heard the phase “World Class Trail.” Let’s explore some of the reasons why this trail would be considered a Destination Trail.

  • It’s a 34-mile paved loop trail, non-motorized, and 12-foot wide.  Suitable for street bikes, mountain bikes, jogging, running, hiking, walking, roller-blades, 5-k’s, 10-k’s, marathons and triathlon and even horse-back riding.
  • It’s both a rural and urban trail connecting the communities of Henderson, NV. and  Boulder City, NV. to Lake Mead National Recreation Area and Hoover Dam via connecting Historic Railroad Trail.
  • It circles/loops around the River Mountains which is full of wildlife year round and wildflowers in the spring, offers unobstructed views of Lake Mead, numerous mountain ranges, and of course the one and only Las Vegas.
  • Speaking of wildlife the River Mountains is home to one of the largest and most productive Desert Big Horn Sheep populations in the Western USA.
  • The trail is also a trip into and through history of Southern Nevada. Kiosks and waysides along the trail system tell the story.
  • Speaking of amenities one will find five (5) different hotels and resorts connecting to the trail system, something for everyone’s taste.
  • The trail also connects you to other destinations along the way such as Historic Downtown Boulder City; Lake Las Vegas Resorts; Hoover Dam; Wetlands Park Trail system; and multiple trail connections into the Henderson Community and  Las Vegas.

Wow. I just sold myself on a trip to visit the River Mountains Loop Trail and I only touched on some of the big reasons. I like the scenery, the views, the peace and quiet, the huge wide open spaces and the solitude one experiences along the trail. There is something for everyone’s trail needs.

Where else in the world can you jump on a bike and ride on a trail system and see two of the world’s engineering marvels at the same time? I’m referring to Hoover Dam and the Tillman – O’Callaghan Bridge.

Hoover Dam & Tillman – O’Callaghan Bridge construction 2009

Burkholder Trail Connection

Burkholder Trail is now complete and connects up with the River Mountains Loop Trail.  Connectivity – Linkage – are two key phase words in the trail building community.  Trails need to go somewhere….connect to other trails and link you and me together.   October 2010 the Burkholder Trail was completed and accepted into the Henderson trail system.  The trail follows Burkholder Road from it’s intersect with Lake Mead Parkway east until it connects with the Loop Trail at the northeast corner of the SNWA River Mountains Water Treatment facility.  From Burkholder Trail you can link up with Heritage Park & Senior Center, Basic High School, connect to the Lake Mead Parkway Trail, connect to Morrell Park on Major Ave., Robert Taylor Elementary School, Valley View Recreation center and commercial shopping at Burkholder and Lake Mead Parkway.

Burkholder Trail from Lake Mead to Racetrack Rd. is on the south side of Burkholder Dr. and is landscaped and lighted for night-time travel.  At Racetrack Rd. your crossing is a striped cross-walk then crosses to the north side of Burkholder and continues as a 10-ft paved trail without landscaping and lighting as most of the right-of-way is on federal Bureau Of Reclamation (BOR) managed lands.  The other thing you will note is the trail is all uphill from Lake Mead Parkway starting out on a gentle grade and gradually increasing the further east you go east; of course it is all downhill going from RMLT west.

Burkholder Trail

Burkholder Trail looking northwest toward Lake Mead Parkway Oct. 2010

But connectivity doesn’t end here. The Burkholder Trail links up with the newly completed Lake Mead Parkway Trail system.  When complete Lake Mead Parkway Trail will run from Boulder Highway east all the way to Lake Mead National Recreation Area which means connection back to the River Mountains Loop Trail and connection to the Wetlands Connector Trail and more.

Silverman Aid Station “Wild West” Theme

Nov. 7th, 2010  Silverman Aid station #10 – The River Mountains Trail Partnership once again sponsored Bike Course Aid Station #10 at the 100.0 mile mark on the 112-mile bike course for the full Triathlon.  The station was located at old Vegas Trail and Foothills Dr. where a connector trail drops riders off the RMLT on to Foothills.  This year we had a great team of volunteers show up (over 30) and many worked the station all day from set up at 8:00 a.m. to clean up at 4:30 p.m.  As the photos will show we had a wild west theme to help create fun and a theme to inspire our riders as they came throught the station.

Silverman Aid Station Wild West Theme 2010

Our first rider showed up at 11:00 a.m. and buzzed through the station without need of aid….a few minutes later the next three or four had passed through. By 11:30 a.m. we had a steady flow of riders all from the half-triathlon ride.  At times we had 20 volunteers on the line offering energy bars, gel, water, Gatorade, bananas in a repeat  series in case they missed the first hand-off.  By early afternoon the wind pick up and blew from the southwest directly into the riders face creating a headwind on a long uphill climb. We started seeing cramping issues among the riders.  During the course of the day we saw about five (5) riders drop out at our station, two for mechanical problems, three were physically done for…

Volunteer Cowgirls 2010

Volunteer Cowgirls 2010

Let’s Move – Outdoors on the RMLT

Michelle Obama  is in Nevada at the  Redrock National conservation Area  promoting the administrations new get the fat off our kids by outdoor activities.  When I was a kid it was called play…”go outside and play with your friends until dinner”.   The idea is a good one… but we as a nation, as a community, as families have got to change our ways. It is all about healthy living, which is a lifestyle change for all too many Americans.

RMLT Family outing on trail with dogs, kids on bikes & stroller 2010 jeh

We didn’t have TV’s or iPods, cell phones, commuter games, DVD’s …Cd’s etc.etc.  We had friends and played outdoors….we rode bikes, go-carts, we played “Cowboys & Indians”…we played army & G.I Joe.  We even had P.E. and recess at school.   But now the local school district did away with recess, to save money and time; P.E. is no longer required in Junior High or High School but an elective.  Kids all (too many) have cell phones, iPhones, iPods, etc. and they text all day.   No wonder they are getting fat…no physical activity.  I won’t even start on fast food & energy drinks…..Who to blame???  Just look in the mirror and we have our answers.   I keep having these images of how science fiction movies depict ‘aliens’….beings with big heads small pale weak bodies….hmmmm.all brain power and no physical exercise….is this what we are to become if we don’t change our ways???

What is the answer???  “LET’S MOVE…” is a good start.  Get off the couch…turn off the TV/Computer etc. open the door and go for a walk…take the kids…take the dog.  Better yet head for a local park, a local trail.    Hey, kids….you can use the River Mountains Loop Trail and pretend you are early settlers moving into Las Vegas “The Meadows” via a wagon train.  Look for sources of water, shelter, food, etc. Try it, you’ll like it.

For me the best day on the trail is to see a family outing using the trail….small children on little bikes with helmets and mom & dad maybe pushing a stroller or walking the family dog on a leash, of course.  These are good days and ones to promote over and over again.  Happy Trails means Happy days and better living…. so Let’s Move…

Trail Vegas….while at Camp Vegas for Summer Camp

Curious???? Check out Las Vegas Convention and Visitor Center…..or tune back here in a day or two and learn more.  Camp Vegas…..an adult Summer Camp.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/photos/2010/apr/29/71935/

Las Vegas is promoting Vegas as Camp for Grown-ups this summer…..all centered around pool parties and pool time.  May we suggest hittng the trails early in the morning for a run. hike, or bike ride then hit the pools mid-day for coolness.  Bring your bike or rent one locally for a fun day on the trail.  Vegas gets hotter each hour the sun is up so during summer camp in Vegas we suggest trail time early….even befor the sun comes up.  Of course Vegas is known for being the hottest after the sun goes down.

Remember “CAMP VEGAS – FOR GROWN-UPS” ….

Bicycling Routes, Lanes, Trails on Google Maps “How to Find”

April 2010 – How do I find the River Mountains Loop Trail?  Where are the trail heads? Where are there connecting trails and bike routes or lanes?  Where can I see photos taken along the trail? Google Maps has the answer.  I have enclosed a power point presentation which hopefully walks you through the process.  It is still a work in progress, but it gets you out there on the trail.  Once you master this you can go anywhere across the country and try it out.

Step one:  get to Google and select Google Maps.  Step Two: Select Satellite (my preference)  Step three: search maps for ‘River Mountains Loop Trail, Henderson, Nv. 89015’    Step four:  select more and on the drop down menu click on photos & bicycling; green lines should appear indicating trails and bike routes along with photo icons.

Now the fun begins. To view the photos, place your cursor over a photo and click; photo opens with title and owner; click on by nevhiker(owner) or view in Panoramio to see larger photo and more…

Trail Heads:  To find trailheads and other points of interest go to the “New” button in green, click and a drop down of new features appears; scroll down and enable “What’s Around Here?” Little dots and buttons appear along with a listing down the left side of your screen.  you can move around the map and along the green trail and different points of interest and trail heads will appear.  click on a lettered button or a round dot to see what is there. The example in the Powerpoint (slide three) shows trail head information for “Historic Railroad & River Mountains Loop Trailhead“.  From this pop up you can get directions, link to web site, read reviews or write them, plus get additional information(slide 4).

Finally try it out and experiment  on your own and enjoy.  It is a great trail tool. Reminder Google is Beta testing this feature so it could change at anytime or even just go away.

Link  Powerpoint:  RMLT google maps – trails-bicyling march 2010

Google maps Bike Routes & Trails