Teutonia Peak, Mojave National Preserve, CA

Hiked April 4, 2026. I've hiked Teutonia Peak in the past, although I only found two entries of previous visits on my blog. My first visit was blogged here.

It's a short hike, listed as three miles roundtrip, but measuring a little longer than that on my Alltrails recording. I forgot to turn the recording off when I got back to the car, but my recollection was it was near four miles by the time I got back.

I was still tired from my last Black Mountain hike, the day before, so, despite the short distance, I was pretty tired doing this one.

Not sure when my actual last visit was here, but it's been a while. There was a major fire in August 2020 (the "Dome Fire.") that killed many Joshua tree, and had the area closed for an extended period. Then, following a relatively brief reopening, the road was closed for rehabilitation. Apparently, that project continues. But, for now, the section of Cima Road from I-15 to the Teutonia Peak trailhead is open and in excellent condition. It's wider and smoother than it was, and now there's a nice, small, paved parking lot at the trailhead, with room for about eight cars.

From I-15, the Dome Fire damage wasn't that obvious. Joshua tree were singed, and, yes, some were killed. But most seemed to be standing and surviving.

The view as I headed south on Cima Road was quite different. Along the way, and at the trailhead, the Joshua tree forest was completely devastated. In some areas, nothing stood. In others, only a few dead skeletons stood. The effect was dramatically different from previous trips, when you walked through a lush (for the Mojave Desert) forest of Joshua tree, pinyon pine, and juniper.

Despite the turned forest, the shrub-height growth was good. Pretty good showing of wildflowers. Not rolling hills of flowers, but that's pretty rare in the Mojave Desert. But lots of individual plants, and a good variety.

I'm pretty sure this shot is actually from my Black Mountain hike (which I haven't blogged yet), but I did see several beavertail cactus in bloom in the Mojave Preserve, as well.

There were also a number of "King Cup" or "hedgehog" cactus in bloom. They're the last shot and the third from the last shot in this post.

The other splash of red were the Indian paintbrush, which seemed especially scarlet in color.

Elsewhere in this posts were some more desert dandelion and Dorr's (purple) sage. Then there area few plants I'm not sure about, although my plant identfication app seems confident.

The trailhead for this hike is about 13 miles south of I-15. There are no restrooms or other NPS facilities along the way, and none at the trailhead. There is a Shell station just south of the freeway. Also, normally, the Valley Wells rest area is just a few miles west of Cima Road, on I-15, but it's been closed for reconstruction for a while, and does not look like it will be opening any time soon (this, as of April 2026).

Dogs are allowed on leashes on the trails. No drones!

All paved roads are officially open, but there were cone along the way, and a sign warning of dropoffs adjacent to the road. Flooding during the winter has apparently cut close to the road, so if you go of the pavement, you'll slide off and drop a bit, which would be bad for you and your car. There's a large electric sign and occasional orange cones to warn you of that.

Kelso Depot visitor center is closed, but, even when it was open in recent years, no food was available in the Preserve.

Ah, an evening primrose. :D Other common plants may have been tackstem, brittlebush, and tidy tips, goldenbush, desert marigold, and a few banana yucca.

This was Hike #17 for the year. Hike #16 was Black Mountain, in Sloan Canyon NCA (not yet blogged). Hike #15 was the Mount Wilson Trail (again) to First Water. Those both still need to be blogged, too.

Sloan Canyon NCA - Petroglyph and Cowboy Trail Loop

Hiked March 23, 2026. Fourteenth hike of the year.

Apparently, I lied about blogging Hike 12, next. Had some issues getting the right photos uploaded.

This is a place I frequent, because of the combination that it's near Las Vegas, of moderate length (not too long, not too short), and very rewarding, on account of the petroglyphs.

It's in the Inspirada neighborhood of Paradise Township. "Paradise Township" is what the area of Clark County near "The Strip" is formally called. "Inspirada" is the particular new neighborhood, with pretty continuous construction over the past 12-14 years. As a result, the drive to get here changes all the time.

The first time I tried getting here, the BLM directions were out of date, and I tried to make it from the Las Vegas Blvd side. That was kind of crazy. Looks like my first successful trip was a bit later in March 2013.

Apparently, it's been a while since I've been back, since, upon researching a return to this site, I learned the "new" parking area and visitor contact station that was there the last few times I was here was being replaced by a larger parking lot and permanent visitor contact station, so access to that parking lot was/is closed, from November 2024 to November 2026.

Currently, parking is limited to a wide area of the road, on the south side of Democracy Drive, just east of Nawghaw Poa Road. If your GPS won't take you there, you can try Adventura Park, which is currently also the nearest public restroom to the parking area. Once at Adventura Park, keep heading south, then jig left, then right, again (getting back on to Via Firenza), continuing south, until you hit Democracy Drive. Make a right at Democracy drive, then look for the wide shoulder on the left (south) side of the road, and park, there.

For a small number of people coming from eastern Henderson, south of Anthem, or the western part of Inspirada, you may be directed straight to Democracy Drive, and you'll arrive south of Adventura Park.

On March 23, 2026 (the day of this hike), the creosote was blooming like wild. Desert mallow were also pretty common. Also, some desert chickory, yellow primrose, and a few Mojave aster.

Despite the modest distance for the loop, the way out is slightly uphill, and largely in a sandy or gravelly wash. It can also get hot, and there is very limited shade, so be sure you have enough to drink. The "official" recommendation on the sign is 1/2 gallon per person. Personally, I think that's high, unless it's well into the 100s, but it's better to have more liquids than you need than not enough.

The other slight barrier is that there area few dry waterfalls. While some of them are easy walk ups, a few will require a step or two of scrambling, meaning some size, balance, and strength. They are literally just a step or two, but you'll use your hands, and smaller people may need some help.

You can avoid having to descend those dry waterfalls by continuing past the petroglyph panels an additional 1/4 mile or so, until you see the "Cowboy Trail," to your right. That takes you up a fair incline, adjacent to a volcanic plug.

As you reach the pass at the side of that plug, you've got a nice view over the Las Vegas Valley.

The trail then zig-zags down the canyon, rejoining the Petroglyph trail about 1/2 mile south of the petroglyph area.

Because the trail now starts down on Democracy Drive (near where I used to park, before Democracy Drive got paved) the roundtrip distance is now a little over 6 miles, at least according to my Alltrails recording. Total altitude gain is given as 633 feet. So figure an extra 1/2 mile and 50 feet or so from if you started at the visitor contact station.

Plenty more pictures below, but nothing else to add.

In addition to hike 12 (Big Morongo Canyon Preserve), which I haven't blogged, yet, I redid the Mount Wilson Trail, to Firest Water. Not sure which of those two I'll blog next. Also, should get at least one decent hike in next weekend.

Whitewater Preserve -- Canyon View Loop Trail

Hiked March 15, 2026. My thirteenth hike of the year. My twelfth hike was the previous day, which I'll blog, next.

The first two photos are from just south of the preserve boundary, along Whitewater Road.

Whitewater Preserve is owned and managed by the Wildlands Conservancy. It's also within the boundaries of the Sand to Snow National Monument. The monument has basically no development, however, so the only obvious access points are from private preserves such as this one (and also Mission Creek and Pioneertown Mountain Preserves, also managed by the Wildlands Conservancy, and the Big Morongo Canyon Preserve, which is not.

I hiked the Canyon View Loop trail, which is listed as about 3.5 miles. I also wandered around the visitor center somewhat, as they were recognizing the Tenth Anniversary of the creation of Sand to Snow National Monument, so I walked somewhat more than 3.5 miles for the day.

My Alltrails recording shows about 5.3 miles and 700 feet of altitude change, but that includes about 3/4 of a mile of accidental recording, as I got in my car and started driving back towards the freeway.

This is a nice hike, provided the temperatures are not too high. The changing altitude and sun exposure angles along the trail meant there was a nice variety of wildflowers on this hike.

The lower altitudes had some very dense areas of brittlebush. The photo here was of some desert poppy. Lots of the other flowers I saw, I could not identify, but may, later. Well, except for the Indian paintbrush, which was only on the lower, south-facing slope, as I neared the flood plain, just prior to starting the floodplain part of my leg.

This was my first hike in Whitewater in about ten years (!). Sometimes, you just never manage to get back to a place, even if you enjoy it. Other times, there are acts of nature that close an area off.

This was a combination of the two. First, the former. Then, there were fires and floods. The area was closed for what seemed like several years. But they're open, again, so I was glad for the opportunity to return.

I hiked this trail because I was thinking I hadn't hiked it, before. Previous trips were to Red Dome, and further, to the overlook to the end of the watershed, where you look into the Mission Creek Preserve. I also hiked up Rainbow Rock Canyon, and in from the Cottonwood Trailhead access to the PCT.

I didn't recall hiking this particular hike, before, but on reviewing some of my earlier posts, and walking the path, I think I probably did pass this way, before. Definitely hiked the northern part, on the PCT, up a ways towards the Cottonwood trailhead, though I don't see it in my blog.

The physical appearance of the area has changed somewhat at the "micro" level. Mind you, the big picture is the same: Whitewater is a large flood plain, with sand, silt, and boulders washed down by occasional torrential floods coming off of Mount San Gorgonio. The main area of the Preserve is thus a broad, flat area, leveled with sand, gravel, and boulders, with water courses shifting regularly as it cuts through the debris.

There is evidence of recent major moving of piles of gravel, sand, and boulders by bulldozers or other heavy duty machinery, to build stable channels to funnel the runoff in preferred directions. Some barriers are built quite high, indicative of the need to control the periods of high water due to rain or snow runoff. No doubt, they do this to keep the water crossing the road at a known and reinforced location, and not at other areas, more vulnerable to flood damage.

In some areas, the vegetation has grown in quite different from my earlier visits. This is particularly true around the two palm trees at the northern end of the developed portion of Whitewater. That's the "micro" thing I noted. Those palm trees have long been a prominent landmark on the way to the PCT.

However, despite the changes, it's still a nice place to enjoy a spring wander in the Mojave Desert.

Informationally, dogs and drones are not permitted in the Preserve. Bikes, hunting, fishing, fires, or off-highway vehicles are also prohibited.