Pahrump to Mountain Springs

Total Miles
31.2

Technical Rating

Easy

Best Time

Spring, Summer, Fall

Trail Type

Full-Width Road

Accessible By

Trail Overview

Mountain Springs is located between Pahrump and Las Vegas and is accessible from Pahrump by trail. The trail runs Southeast and Southwest through the Toiyabe National Forest and is an easy off-road drive through beautiful terrain. On this drive, You will step outside the typical desert landscape and visit a treed wonderland with wild horses, elk, and mountain goats. The trail is easy and not technical, though many trails intersect with this route. The path is primarily gravel, hard-packed, rocky, with some dirt. We remained in 2WD for the length of the trail, though a few spots were slippery. Several sites on these trails offer tent camping, hiking, and other outdoor activities. The trail runs adjacent to a few private properties in the mountains; please be respectful of your speed. The trail is primarily one vehicle wide and non-directional and has many blind corners. The trail can be run from Mountain Springs to Pahrump or from Pahrump to Mountain Springs. If you are using a UTV, you could easily go out and back in 2 hours with limited stops; a ride in a Jeep went one way in 2 hours. Cell phone service is good until you are deep in the mountains and picks back up just outside Mountain Springs. Be sure to download your maps for offline use before heading out.

Photos of Pahrump to Mountain Springs

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Difficulty

The trail is primarily easy gravel/hard-packed dirt roads with minor obstacles that most vehicles can traverse without issue. We did not put the Rubicon in 4wd or disconnect the sway bay. You will encounter steep inclines/declines depending on the direction you decide to take. In adverse weather, I would steer clear; there were several dry water channels where flash flood waters run downhill.

Technical Rating

Status Reports

Started trail on Pahrump side it was very dusty. From the turn onto the trail from the larger washboard style road it was fairly bumpy with rocks. About 1/2 way to the summit we decided to air down some. The summit was very neat with small patches of snow on the edge of trail. The east side of summit was smooth all the way to Lovell canyon road. Beautiful day to spend a couple hours on trail.

If taking the entrance from Mountain Springs Saloon, be advised the first few miles is very tight, washed out with boulders and tree roots. There are also many sharp rocks and high clearance of 1 foot is recommended. Made about a mile in before turning around on a stock Cherokee Trail hawk. Turned back and entered through Lovell Canyon Rd and it was smooth sailing from there. Very fun forest trail with an amazing view of the mountains.

Easy Peasy... Beautiful Drive. Lil Tight in a few Sections with the Gladdy, but it was a good Day.

Access Description

From Las Vegas: those with SXS, I recommending staging at Lovell Canyon and Highway 160 and hitting the trail to Pahrump and back, then to Mountain Springs. Jeeps, I would recommend meeting at Mountain Springs Bar and heading to Pahrump, enjoying lunch at one of the many restaurants in Pahrump before heading back to Vegas.From Pahrump: those with SXS I recommending meeting at the Chevy dealership and head up (east) Carpenter Canyon, hand a right on Fenceline Trail (south), heading up on Trout Canyon (east). Eat at Mountain Springs, whether you packed lunch or get lunch, then head back on the trail home. Jeeps, I recommend heading south on 160 until Trout Canyon to pick up the trail. We typically hit the highway home when in our Jeep.