During our (surprisingly amazing) trip to Vegas earlier this year, we had one day to spend in Valley of Fire State Park. This was, by far, my favorite day of the trip. It helped, of course, that we ended up getting discounted tickets later that night to see a show at Sphere, the weather was perfect for our visit, and we had started the day with brunch at Mon Ami Gabi. Life was all roses for me this day.
The question I know you are asking is: How can I spend One Perfect Day in Valley of Fire State Park? (And is it worth it?) I am here to answer, of course.
Mr. Family Trip and I knew we wanted to hike, to see this otherworldly landscape up close, and we ended up at Valley of Fire State Park by default. Red Rock Canyon, the other option, was getting snow. The weather can be vastly different in these two places.
I do want to try some of the hikes in Red Rock Canyon and was saddened we never made it there. But given how much we enjoyed this hiking trip, I consider it a win.
The hiking in Valley of Fire wasn’t challenging (we did about two miles). But what we were able to experience was memorable.
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Where is Valley of Fire State Park Located? How do I Get There?
Valley of Fire State Park is located an easy 50 miles from Las Vegas. The drive will be an hour, or slightly under. Once you get off the Vegas Strip, it is easy highway driving. The roads were straight and we had no issues finding the park.
There are guide services that will take you for a day trip or you can rent a car. Note that if you want to Uber here, that is certainly an option. But getting an Uber back will be a challenge. One of our Uber drivers back on the Strip told us she was recently paid to spend the entire day with a family in Valley of Fire State Park, so there are options if you don’t want to drive.
Valley of Fire State Park is almost 46,000 acres and it is both Nevada’s oldest state park, established in 1935, and Nevada’s largest state park.
Located in the Mojave Desert, this park is known for sandstone formations that have taken 150 million years to form. Formerly shifting sand dunes, the rock here undulates in colors you can’t believe: pinks, purples, yellows and vivid reds. The shapes are bizarre – like God decided to Dr. Seuss an area of the world and let loose a little.
None of the hiking trails in this park are particularly long or strenuous. The only challenge will be the sun and the heat. (Because of this, the hiking trails are closed from the end of May through the end of September.)
But do plan to get out of the car and walk around.
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How to Spend One Day at Valley of Fire State Park
If coming from Vegas, you will enter the West Entrance, turning onto a scenic highway from I-15. The booth where you will pay for park entry is on Valley of Fire Road.
(If you continue straight on the Valley of Fire Road, you will come to Elephant Rock and the East Entrance.)
Visit the Beehives
The Beehives were the first site we saw upon entering the park from the West Entrance. Since we arrived at the park early, we immediately pulled over in the parking lot with a handful of other tourists. This area can get crowded as the day goes on, so we were glad we stopped when we did.
The Beehives are domed rock structures formed by “cross bedding” of sand and silt over the centuries. This was a quick stop for us, but very fun to see.
For our one day in Valley of Fire, we returned to the car and turned left at the Visitors Center towards Mouse’s Tank onto White Dome Road. We bypassed all other stops and parking lots and went back to the P3 parking lot immediately to hike. We did this to get ahead of both crowds and heat, and are glad we did.
White Dome Road in its entirety is only 5.5 miles out or 11 miles roundtrip.
Hike the Seven Wonders Loop
This was the thing we loved. Two major attractions are on this loop hike: the Fire Wave and the Pink/Pastel Canyon. These are must-sees and this loop hike is the best way to do it.
Get Unique Tips from the Trip Delivered
We parked at P3 and were glad we went earlier in the day. This helped us avoid crowds and the hottest part of the day.
Contrary to everyone else, we decide to do this loop counterclockwise. We headed toward the Pastel Canyon first. We absolutely recommend this direction.
While this means you will be walking up the Fire Wave, it isn’t terribly steep and ensures you are going against traffic, which increased our enjoyment. We also got stunning views up and over the Pastel Canyon by going this direction.
This hike was exquisite. It was full of breathtaking moments and scenes our Virginia-loving souls don’t usually get.
The entire loop was only two miles.
It is possible to walk from the parking lot down to the Fire Wave or, alternatively, from the parking lot over to the Pastel Canyon. But looping these together didn’t take much more time or effort and gave us a better experience.
We didn’t find this hike too challenging by way of elevation or distance. The trail was very well-marked and easy to follow. There were some areas of the trail that were flooded out due to rain (things here are pretty dry and not that porous, so a good rain can stick around in some areas). It required us to rock scramble a bit or, if we had chosen, to wade through water over our ankles.
If you have enough mobility to enjoy this hike, I highly recommend it. If you only have time for one hike in the park, make this the one.
Visit Atlatl Rock
Atlatl Rock bears petroglyphs estimated to be 4,000 years old.
The parking lot is easy to find and the rock itself is easy to see – it sticks out of a landscape of shrubs and scrub. To see the petroglyphs requires going up a metal staircase of 150 or so steps. It ends in a small platform close to the rock carvings. There are Internet rumors of a dinosaur footprint somewhere in the rocks close by, but we didn’t see it.
This reminded us of the petroglyphs we saw in Capitol Reef all those years ago.
This was pretty remarkable to see and I so desperately want to know what the story is, what the authors were trying to convey. (It must be the writer in me.)
Shockingly, people throughout the years have defaced and added graffiti to this area, so the platform is far enough away to discourage anyone from touching things. Please, keep your hands off.
Bonus tip: There are other petroglyphs in the rocks behind the Atatl rock as well. Just walk some of the paths that circle behind the rock from the parking lot.
Visit Arch Rock
This is definitely worth the short zag to see. A quick walk from the parking area yields a beautiful stone arch formation. Of course, nothing like the grandeur of Arches National Park, but still a precarious reminder of evolution and the changing earth.
Enjoy the Drive
We took our time and enjoyed driving through this park. It was completely reasonable to do this park in one day, yet we also didn’t feel pressure to check everything off the list or to do every walk to every viewpoint available.
We stopped where we wanted, and took time to look back over where we had been.
Bighorn sheep were all over the park and I found a lot of joy in watching them watch me.
Take your time in this park, enjoy the views, see what you want to see, and get out of the car when you want. Take tons of photos. Go slow.
What to Bring and Top Tips for Visiting Valley of Fire State Park
Due to the high temperatures, nearly all of the hiking trails are closed May through September.
The best time to visit Valley of Fire State Park is basically any time that’s not summer. We were there in winter (January), and the weather was perfect for hiking. After having hiked here, I wouldn’t defy this rule. There is absolutely no shade on these hikes unless you cower under rocks. Everything is exposed.
We were underwhelmed by the Visitors Center. The information kiosks were good, but you can get most of the information there on the Internet (thanks to awesome blogs like this one).
This park can get busy but it never felt extreme while we were there. But much like the parks out West, the drive can be slow and the parking lots can fill up. Going early can help.
It does cost money to get into this park. Fees are per vehicle at $15.00 for out-of-state visitors. Reservations are NOT required to visit Valley of Fire State Park.
There aren’t any concessions for sale in the park or nearby. If you are coming for the whole day, especially if you intend to hike, bring lunches and snacks with you.
There are campsites in the park, which look like fun. While the campsites don’t have a lot of privacy due to the landscape, they have amazing sunset and sunrise views. Campsites fill up quickly, so you will need to reserve well in advance. Reservations for Valley of Fire campsites can be made here.
What to bring:
- Moisture-wicking clothing
- Water bottles filled with water (there are taps to fill bottles at the Visitors Center – do not start this hike without full water bottles)
- Daypack
- Sunscreen
- Hat
- Good hiking shoes or boots
- Snacks
- Hiking socks
Is Visiting Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada Worth It?
Here’s the thing: if you’ve been around The Family Trip long enough, you know that I never regret getting outside and seeing the Earth in her natural state. Even if the weather doesn’t cooperate, finding a way to experience what a greater hand created is (usually / always) more inspiring to me than man-created buildings and places. Our imaginations as humans seem so limited, even if our technical ability is vast and great, when compared to tree cathedrals and rivers of ice.
So yes, I say it is absolutely worth getting outside of the glowing and throbbing Vegas Strip and the hustle of downtown Las Vegas to see something that humans can’t create. It is worth stepping away from the lights and dizzying noise to experience something that took millennia to form, where human hands first took to leaving stories behind on rock walls, stories we now can’t tell.
If you have a day, go get outside and experience a different kind of color.
Useful LInks
- Official Valley of Fire State Park website: parks.nv.gov/parks/valley-of-fire
- Park brochure here: parks.nv.gov/uploads/documents
- Seven Wonders Trail on AllTrails: www.alltrails.com/trail/us/nevada/fire-wave-and-pink-canyon
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