May is the perfect time of year to enjoy the outdoors in the American Southwest.
The desert is a beautiful place, and you can experience the best it has to offer during the Spring while the weather is mild. Here are some our favorite outdoor spots that can be done as a day trip. There are also a few ghost towns not far from the city, although we have not checked a lot of those out so it is hard to recommend any specific ones.
Springs Preserve
The Springs Preserve is a few minutes west of The Strip and features two museums, a gorgeous botanical garden, and an outdoor tortoise preserve you can walk around. This time of year you can even see some desert tortoises walking around the habitat themselves. Bring some water, but they do have a café and are across the street from a mall so you don’t have to worry about being too far from civilization.
Wetlands Park
Found in Henderson NV, the neighbor city to Las Vegas, the Wetlands is a county park that is free for anyone to visit during daylight hours. There are quite a few flat and easy walking trails that take you through the wetlands themselves. There are various benches and resting spots found throughout the park, which means that packing a lunch isn’t a bad idea. Some of the geese are jerks though, watch out for them.
Red Rock Canyon
Did you know there is a National Recreation area adjacent to the city proper? Just head west towards Summerlin and you’ll eventually end up in one of the most scenic locations around. One of the trails even has a hidden forest on it, although it is about a 9 mile loop, but it’s an incredible hike. Also in the spring there is still the last remnants of the snowmelt happening and you may still be able to hike up to see some of the waterfalls scattered throughout the area. Bring lots of water and whatever food you want with you, as there is only a visitors center here
Valley of Fire State Park
Perhaps the not so distant cousin to Red Rock is Valley of Fire State Park. Head eastwards out of the city towards Moapa and you’ll find this incredible place where Captain Kirk dies in Star Trek: Generations. There are also some really cool petroglyphs on the rock faces that surround the trails. The weather here is usually a few degrees warmer than in the city, so just like for a lot of these, pack water with you. There’s not much around here other than a gas station and fireworks shop, but the other end of the park does take you directly to the far side of Lake Mead National Recreation Area.
Hoover Dam/Lake Mead
The Hoover Dam is exactly what you think it is, but it is completely free to visit if you do not intend to go in and take the tour. You can walk back and forth across the top of it, as well as see a bunch of other cool things scattered throughout the area. They have a cafeteria style restaurant here and a giant gift shop. Right next door is Lake Mead National Recreation Area. This is not free to get in, but you get charged by the car. You can swim in the lake if you want, and there are multiple beaches and docks all around this massive piece of land. If you drive the entire 45 minutes through the park, you’ll end up near the far entrance of Valley of Fire State Park.
Mt. Charleston & Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest
This is the place to beat the heat, when there is heat. The 50th highest peak in the United States, Mt. Charleston in Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest is just awesome. There are lots of hiking trails, campgrounds, and picnic areas. It’s free to get up the mountain and enjoy yourself. Don’t forget to drink water while up at elevation. Unfortunately the one restaurant on the mountain, The Mt. Charleston Lodge caught fire recently and is not open at this point in time. They do plan to rebuild it though, so with any luck it will be open again in time for the wedding. Their own website will be the best place to see updates for that.
Death Valley National Park
Technically this is in California, but it is only a 90 minute drive from Las Vegas itself. This place is both below sea level and the hottest location on planet Earth, which as a result means most of it consists of scenic points that you drive to and hang out at. However there is no shortage of amazing things to see here. You could easily get lost for days checking out all the cool things here. If you do visit, however, definitely make a point to walk out onto the Salt Flats, with sunglasses. We also recommend going to a Walmart or something on the way out of the city and picking up a few cases of water and a whole lot of other stuff you may want for the day, because there truly is nothing around this completely hostile, inhabitable, but beautiful area.
Cathedral Gorge State Park
This is one of the coolest places we have ever been. It’s a little bit of a hike, about 3 hours away in neighboring Lincoln County, so you would want to leave early. It has one large hiking trail through the gorge itself, an overlook trail, and lots of small side trails. It is also surrounded by slot caves that you are free to wander at your leisure. If you find yourself there after sundown, this is in an area of the country that has some of the lowest light pollution out there. We’ve seen the arm of the Milky Way itself with our bare eyes here before. Everything about this place is worth the trip out to nowhere. The only downside, if there even is one is that there are only a small handful of gas stations and towns along the way, so be prepared for that should you make the trek.
Hannah Harrison & Justin Freund 