Petroglyphs Canyon, Zion National Park, Hiked January 5, 2025

This would have been probably my second hike of the year, after the short ramble to the Sam Merrill Trail, to see the B2 bomber.

I learned about this hike maybe a year or two ago, and was kind of annoyed I didn't know about it earlier, since it's short, accessible by paved road, and still an incredibly interesting hike.

It's not on the NPS handouts, but it's not a secret. It is, however, a fair drive from the main canyon, where most people stay. To get to this trailhead, you go east on UT-9, 6.8 miles east from Canyon Junction. A little past 3/4 of a mile beyond the second, short tunnel, parking is on your right. There's a wooden fence along the road, the only such thing in the area when I visited. There is no signage here. Room for about 6-8 cars, depending on how well people park.

Because of the limited parking, I wanted to get there early. Turns out, however, in January, it's pretty dead in Zion. I think there was maybe one car when I got there, and two other cars when I got back.

From the parking area, you either head down on the south side of the road, trending to your right, then loop under the road (smallish tunnel, but short and high enough it shouldn't be a problem for most), or you cross the road, walked west 100 yards or so, and take the shorter but steeper route directly into "Petroglyph Canyon." Once on the north side of the road, I'm going to guess it's 150-200 yards along a sandy wash bottom before you reach the petroglyphs on your left.

There are two panels, about fifty yards apart, along that wall. One panel has a whole "herd" of bighorn sheep. The coloration difference is gone, but you can still see the indentations in the stone.

The non-petroglyph shots are all further up the canyon. The sandy washbottom transitions to some large sandstone exposure. The first "barrier" is easily bypassed by heading to the right, up the grippy sandstone, rather that straight up the dry falls. Once at the top of the first barrier, the onion-skin layers could be seen in places. And, on this January day, there were many pools of water, some with a thin sheen of ice on the surface.

The second barrier, again, probably less than 1/2 mile after the first barrier, if I wanted to, I might have been able to work up and around it. But no way to know how much further I could have gone after that. And my wife was back at the petroglyphs, so I headed back.

Still, as I said, for such a short hike, the scenery was striking, and I had never hiked this part of Zion, before.

It looks like there are numerous other similar short walks that could be taken along different finger canyons along this road. The actual "Many Pools" trailhead is just a bit west of here, maybe 1/3 of a mile away. And, if you continue east another 2.75 miles from Petroglyph Canyon, there's the Checkerboard Mesa. Smidgen past that, and you're at the East Entrance to Zion National Park.

Currently, there's not a lot at the East Entrance, besides some vault toilets and a fee kiosk. There were also a few locations with vault toilets along the drive out, east of Canyon Junction, but there were no facilities at the Petroglyph Canyon trailhead.

Relatedly, an interagency visitor center is being built somewhere further east of the entrance, which is supposed to open sometime later this year.

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.

Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area, NV, Petroglyph and Cowboy Trails

Hiked Saturday, June 27.

This was actually one of my first hikes upon my "return" to the Las Vegas Valley. I've been back numerous times, since then. My second time there is blogged, here. Looks like a few trips blogged here, too.

Among the things that have changed over the past 10-12 years is that there's a paved road to a small parking lot at the top of Nawghaw Poa Road, in Henderson (south of Democracy Drive). Several alternate ways there now, and you can probably use your gps to find an all-pavement route to the trailhead, now. Also, Executive Airport Drive, which you used to take from St. Rose Parkway, is now Raiders Way, with a lot more development along the way than there used to be. And the length of the hike is shorter, now, because you can drive on pavement closer to the petroglyphs..

The trail itself has also changed. What used to be "Trail 100" is now "Petroglyph Trail." What used to be Trail 200 is now "Cowboy Trail." And the trail to the petroglyphs now starts from the south side of the parking lot. Previously, it went down to the east, into a wash then upstream.

Now, you walk the "high" way, along the crest of a rounded "ridge" for about 1/2 mile, before dropping down into the wash. That's just a rough distance, by the way; I didn't measure.

Once you do drop into the wash (hopefully, following the proper, switch-backy trail), you'll see a wooden barrier "downstream," and a sign that they are doing habitat restoration down there. A connector trail, number 101, used to meet the old Trail 100 further down there, so you could connect to the rest of the Sloan Canyon and Henderson trail system. Now, it looks like 101 continues to the paved Nawghaw Road. There's a paved bike path that parallels the actual road. Didn't notice if the hiking trail just goes up the bikepath or parallels that, too. Regardless, if you found the upper lot closed or full, you'd park "down there" and could walk up towards the parking lot, adding some climbing and another mile and a half or so to your hike, roundtrip. On my first few trips to Petroglyph Canyon, parking "down there" was a requirement, at least for non-high clearance vehicles.

Looking upstream from the wooden barrier, there's a sign that indicates you're on the Petroglyph Trail. It also tells you that dogs are not allowed on this trail.

I was starting relatively late-morning, say around 9:30am. Temperatures were already well above 90. But the lot was pretty empty. I guess most hikers and joggers came earlier, or not at all. During my entire hike, I was passed by exactly one jogger, and that was it. Again, the summer temperatures worked in favor in terms of letting me do a socially distanced hike.

This morning temperature was still cooler than my previous afternoon/evening of hiking, however. This meant more active wildlife. Lots of lizards, and a fair number of small rodents, which I'm pretty sure were white-tailed antelope squirrel. Very distinctly white-tailed, not like the normal brown-tailed ones I have seen elsewhere. There was also a trio of hawks, squawking and apparently challenging each other.

Oh, yes, and while I didn't post any pictures, I saw LOTS of tarantula hawks, visiting a mesquite tree, I think. The night before, I saw a couple of HUGE tarantula hawks, but didn't try for any pictures then, either.

It's kind of interesting that, each time I come here, some petroglyphs I see all the time, and others I seem to discover for the first time. So when I compare pictures from different visits, some images appear repeatedly, while others appear only once.

Part of the variability is due to the time I'm hiking. The angle and direction of light affects which petroglyphs become more prominent, or even visible.

This time, there was a rock I couldn't find. After passing the main gallery, after the trail bends to the right, there used to be a rock on the left side of the canyon with a couple of images. Didn't see it, this time. Again, I don't know if that means the rock's not there any more or I just couldn't find it, but I did not see it.

After about 1/8 mile of heading west, there was signage for the Cowboy Trail, on the right. As I mentioned earlier, it used to be just Trail 200. Also, at that point, if you went further up the existing wash instead of turning on to Trail 200, the signage used to indicate you were now on Trail 300. This time, I did not see any mention of Trail 300. I don't know if that means it's been decommissioned or just isn't signed (at least on this side) any more.

Made my way on up to the pass, with the big volcanic plug on the left. I like the view here. But you can't see the Strip from this pass. You'd have to head a bit higher up on that mountain rise to see that.

However, technically, in this section of the Conservation Area, off-trail travel is not permitted. So I've never made it up any higher.

I did see a drone flying around this area, once. That is also not permitted, possibly to help preserve cultural resources, and possibly because the approach to Henderson Executive Airport is oten right over the conservation area.

I saw this nice big Great Basin Collard Lizard on the way down Trail 200.

After less than a mile, Trail 200 reconnects with Trail 100. I return this way almost every time, because it means less retracing of footsteps, and because it means I don't need to slide down the dry waterfalls I climbed up on the way to the Petroglyphs. Only one of the waterfalls is Class 3 (requiring hands and feet, and the lifting of at least one point of contact of contact to make the scamper up the small drop off), and it's not particularly hard to descend, but I still prefer not to.

Once back on Trail 100, I'd say it's a bit less than 1 1/2 miles back to the parking lot.

All Trails gives the total hike distance as 4.4 miles total, with 564 feet of elevation gain. Not intrinsically difficult, but you will have to make the one scramble. Also, the wash bottom is sandy, and the heat can be significant. But still generally one of my favorite hikes in the area. I think I still prefer Black Mountain, Trail 404, but this one is shorter and easier to fit into a limited time, especially if it's hot.

HIke 2016.016 -- McCullough Hills Trail, Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area, NV

Hiked Friday, March 25. 4 miles. First time on this trail. Out on that Bird and Hike website, which had a page on the McCullough Hills Trail. I was unaware of this trail previously, but was trying to find alternate access points to Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area, since my access to the Petroglyph Trail became spotty on account of construction in the Inspirada development.

The pictures I saw on the Bird and Hike site made me curious. However, as is often my habit, I only read directions to the trail head carefully. I like to keep the actual hike a bit of a surprise for me.

Access was from the road adjacent to Del E. Webb Middle School and Anthem Hills Park. From St. Rose Parkway (or the Southern Beltway, I-215, which is only a mile or so north of St. Rose Parkway at this point), I took Eastern Avenue south. After about 1.5 miles, Eastern splits, and I stayed to the left, which was Anthem Parkway. At the first light (Reunion Drive, about 1/2 mile away), I made a left. Another half mile on Reunion, and I took the first left, at McCullough Hills Parkway.

McCullough Hills Parkway is a short spur of a road, which runs immedi-ately north of Del E. Webb Middle School, and immediately south of Anthem Hills Park. It ends right after the school, and turns into the trail. The park is on your left. Once in the parking lot, trail parking appears to be to your right, though I'm sure you can park anywhere in the park you want. The park has several ball fields and restrooms, picnic areas, and basketball courts.

The trail is to your east. The Anthem "E" Trail appears to have a formal trail head at the end of the parking area. It's a paved, ADA-accessible trail. (On the other hand, on Google Maps, this trail appears to continue in unpaved form for quite some distance).

I didn't pay enough attention to the write-up to know this. Instead, I just walked back down to McCullough Hills Parkway, turned east, and walked past the End of Road barriers. This put me on the dirt access road that runs along the big brown power line towers. These appear to be the same power lines that run by the access to Petroglyph Canyon, although, in looking at Google Maps, they appear to get down towards Petroglyph Canyon trailhead by making a long job to the southwest, along something labeled "Nevada Power Trail." I guess I caught the east end of this trail during my hike in Sloan Canyon National Conservation area.

For my own hike on this day, I decided to try to stay on the "McCullough Hills Trail," and followed the markers where they were. But there are many crossing trails, and signs that indicate hikers, bikers and horses on one side or the other of parallel trails, and it's not always obvious which trail is meant for which. I tried to stay on the "main" trail, although I clearly got off it for a while, then rejoined it, a bit later.

I somewhat wanted to make it all the way to the tallest mountains to the southeast, but didn't have the time or motivation. I did notice mile markers on some of the signs for the trail, and passed two mile numbers, so I figured I covered something around two miles out. I turned around at the large metal structure, with a nice view of the surrounding hills.

The trail along the way alternated between being smooth, and road-like, with scrubby grasses and creosote, and hard, volcanic rocks. The view also varied, from being dominated by power lines at spots to feeling somewhat isolated. In fact, on my two hours or so on foot, I only saw one or two mountain bikers (I'm not sure if the biker I saw at a distance at one point was the same one or a different one I saw earlier; I don't pay much attention to stuff like that) I saw no other hikers.

And this was a wonderful, comfort-able, warm, dry afternoon. Early spring. One of those days when you think, "What a wonderful day to be alive."

It was also quiet; for the most part, all I heard was the sound of the blowing wind. I guess the planes were using the "diagonal" runway (7L/25R, I think). In any event, they were approaching and leaving far from Henderson this day (a little unusual, since their normal approach is west, parallel to Sunset Road, and right over the condo I stay in when I'm in the Las Vegas area.

I returned the way I came. There were some nice views as the sun dropped, and we got those long shadows and soft lighting that is somewhat rare in the desert, except at sunset or sunrise, and, sometimes, not even then.

Nice view os the Las Vegas Strip in the distance, too. And Henderson, in several directions. Nice trail system that's building here; not sure what it will look like when it's done, nor where, exactly, the housing will stop forever, and what might yet be swallowed up by urbanization. For now, however, it's a nice hike.