children will be able to handle this hike, but all hikers must keep in mind that once they arrive on top, there are severe drop-offs in all directions. Be extremely careful, as people have lost their lives by falling here.
Along most of the trail there is loose rock underfoot, so I recommend wearing hiking boots rather than sneakers or athletic shoes. Boot soles are usually thicker and have deeper treads, less likely to slip on loose rock.
The trail immediately starts ascending steadily through a forest of ponderosa pines and white fir in Mazie Canyon. Suddenly the landscape changes dramatically and you will be surrounded by young aspen trees. That’s because this area is a major avalanche chute in winter, and aspen trees are among the few plants likely to survive the havoc. But in season you’ll see wildflowers such as lupine, paintbrush, thistle, and penstemon.
After you cross to the other side of the chute and continue your ascent on the south side of the canyon, keep an eye out for a spur trail on your left. This short spur trail, only about one hundred yards long, is well worth the effort, for it ends at a series of three seasonal waterfalls. In spring they can pour quite spectacularly but in summer there is sometimes a mere trickle, except after storms. Trickle or torrent, it’s a pleasant place to take a break.
Back on the main trail, continue up through the avalanche chute, which takes you around to the back side of Cathedral Rock.
Just before the trail reaches a saddle, you will come to a fork. Stay right and continue down a small dip, and you will hear the water flowing in a small creek on your right. Continue on and then start up a series of switchbacks. You will notice manmade netting on the hillsides here, an attempt to stop erosion. The trail brings you up to the west side of the monolith and then swings north to the overlook.
The trail travels through fossil-bearing limestone. There aren’t any vertebrate fossils in the formation, but you might find brachiopods, crinoids and horn corals.
Once on top you will have excellent bird’s-eye views down into Kyle Canyon and the surrounding area. Below lie Mt. Charleston Lodge and the private homes that were built in this glorious setting. Looking down Kyle Canyon Road to the east you will have far-reaching views of the Sheep Mountains.
To the northeast is Mt. Charleston Peak, at 11,918 feet the highest in the Spring Mountains. If you’re young and ambitious it may inspire you to bigger adventure on its slope. Or if you’re middle-aged and out of breath, it may inspire you to rest on the laurels of a morning well spent.
Cathedral Rock At A Glance
Best season: May to mid-October, barring snowfall.
Length: 2.8 miles roundtrip.
Difficulty: Moderate.
Elevation gain/loss: 910 feet.
Trailhead Elevation: 7,680 feet.
Warning: Steep drop-offs.
Jurisdiction: Spring Mountains National Recreation Area, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest.
Directions: From Spring Mountains Visitor Gateway, go west on Nevada Route 157 about 5 miles to the Cathedral Rock Picnic Area, which is open 8 a.m.–8 p.m. Access trailhead from the first parking area.
12 Big Falls
The Big Falls hike is less known than some on Mt. Charleston, yet offers as much pleasure, including the sight of bristlecone pines, doubtless the oldest living individuals you’re ever encountered.
From the trailhead follow the signed trail as if going to Mary Jane Falls. Immediately you will find yourself within a vigorous forest of ponderosa pines and white fir, mixed with aspens and mountain mahogany. At seven-tenths miles the well-worn Mary Jane Falls trail narrows and heads off to the right.
For this hike, though, you will go straight, on an abandoned gravel road. Follow this for about one hundred yards, then take the obvious left turn to the west. The trail will narrow and bring you over a couple of small washes, then arrive at the right or north side of the area’s major drainage. You will follow this canyon upstream to Big Falls.
In this area look carefully at the conifers surrounding you, and you’ll see a few of the famous bristlecones. You can recognize them by their branches, which have needles arranged in a pattern that resembles a bottle brush. Some along this trail are only about six feet tall, but they’re close to a thousand years old. A few bristlecones in California have been scientifically estimated to be nearly five thousand years old — the oldest trees in the world, and perhaps oldest of all living things.
Follow the path until it drops into the drainage itself. From here just start heading up the canyon. There are many boulder-choked areas and small log jams that you’ll have to maneuver around, but nothing very demanding until you get to the one large obstacle of the hike.
That obstacle is a very narrow section of the canyon, blocked by a fifteen-foot-high boulder wedged between the walls. You have two choices to get around this. If you have climbing skills, you can go directly up on the left side of the boulder using upended logs that have been placed there to aid you. The other option is backtracking about twenty yards and heading up the faint trail on the southeast side. Although there is also a clearly visible path on the northwest side, I can’t recommend it. It’s more strenuous, has more cliff exposure and is harder to negotiate safely.
After your ascent, drop back into the wash and continue upstream. Depending on recent rainfall, the rest of your route might be along a small stream, which disappears underground and resurfaces from time to time. You can easily skirt the water to the right. Continue up canyon until all progress is blocked by a one-hundred-foot pour-off, Big Falls. The water flow depends on snowmelt and recent rain, so the amount can change significantly from visit to visit.
It’s a rugged route up to Big Falls.
Big Falls At A Glance
Best season: May to mid-October, barring snowfall.
Length: 2.7 miles roundtrip.
Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous.
Elevation gain: 850 feet.
Trailhead elevation: 7,833 feet.
Warnings: Route finding, rock scrambling and dangerous drop-offs.
Jurisdiction: Spring Mountains National Recreation Area, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest.
Directions: From the Spring Mountains Visitor Gateway take Nevada Route 157 west about 3.3 miles, staying right at the hairpin curve onto Echo Road. Drive 0.4 miles then go left on gravel road for 0.3 miles to trailhead.
13 Fletcher Canyon
In the Kyle Canyon area of the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area, Fletcher Canyon offers a moderate hike through a dense evergreen forest, past a small spring-fed stream and
