• Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Print Shop
  • Nav Social Icons

  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
  • Cleveland
  • Destinations
  • Outdoors
  • Guides
  • Photography
  • Shop
  • Mobile Menu Widgets

    Social

    Search

Local Love & Wanderlust

Local Love & Wanderlust

All Things Cleveland Ohio & Travel

  • Cleveland
    • Cleveland Guides
    • Staycation
  • Destinations
    • Arizona
    • California
    • Illinois
    • NYC
    • Louisiana
    • Nevada
    • Ohio
    • Oregon
    • Washington
  • Outdoors
    • National Parks
    • Hiking
    • Beaches
  • Guides
    • Travel Guides
    • Cleveland Guides
    • Hotels
    • Itinerary
  • Photography
You are here: Home / Destinations / Valley Of Fire State Park When You Only Have Half A Day

Valley Of Fire State Park When You Only Have Half A Day

Found In: Destinations, Outdoors

Valley of Fire is a State Park roughly 1-hour NE of Las Vegas and should be on every nature-lovers list. While there are many incredible views, we’ll only cover a few key points that we were able to visit. My goal is to inspire you to visit this geological marvel even if you don’t think you have enough time. You can easily see a lot of amazing views within a couple of hours.

What To Know About Valley Of Fire State Park

But first, let’s talk about what you need to know about Valley of Fire State Park.

The park was founded in 1935 to preserve the bold red sandstone landscapes and formations. Covering over 42,000 acres in the desert roughly 1 hour northeast of Las Vegas near Lake Mead.

Hours: The park is open every day from sunrise to sunset with 24-hour access to campgrounds. If you are in the park past sunset outside of the designated camping area it will be considered trespassing.

Park Fees: If you are from Nevada your fee is $10.00. Out-of-state visitors pay $15.00

Directions: From Las Vegas take 1-15 North for about 33 miles. Take exit 75 and follow the Valley of Fire highway for another 14 miles till the park entrance.

Visit the official park website for more information.

The Beehives

The Beehives are one of the first jaw-dropping views you’ll get to see once entering the park. These sandstone formations full of geological cross-bedding (the lines through the rock) are a sight to see.

Once you pay to enter the park, continue on Valley of Fire Highway as it leads you right to this viewpoint.

Arch Rock

Just a short drive from The Beehives is a turn-off on your left named Campground Road. Here you’ll see Atlatl Rock which has a collection of petroglyphs on a boulder of red sandstone. The petroglyphs are roughly 50 feet above ground, a metal staircase was installed to help view. We skipped this due to time and make our way directly to Arch Rock, the next viewpoint on Campground Road.

This arch was created over millennia of strong winds and rains eroding away at the material holding the rock together. This was a quick stop with beautiful views. You can return the way you came, or continue on the 2-mile scenic loop past Arch Rock. We decided to return the way we came to save time. Having not been here before, we weren’t sure how much time we needed so played it safe.

Some other viewpoints that were on my list in this area that we didn’t see: Fire Cave/ Windstone Arch, Petrified Logs

This park appears in my post Las Vegas When You Don’t Like Las Vegas. Check out the post if you’re looking for more things to do in Las Vegas when it’s not really your place.

Mouse’s Tank Road in Valley of Fire State Park

After you get back to Valley of Fire Highway, you’ll head East for roughly 2-miles before you see the entrance to Mouse’s Tank Road on your left. This is the scenic desert view of your dreams. This almost 6-mile drive has several turn-offs for multiple viewpoints. If you’re short on time, however, you’ll need to be more selective of which viewpoints you stop at.

Several of the viewpoints require a small hike to the destination, and unfortunately, with our short timeline we had to limit our stops to points that were close to the parking areas. The views were so beautiful along Mouse’s Tank Road that you won’t feel too bad about missing out on multiple hikes. We were able to make a few more stops on this road before we got close to sunset and had to make our way home.

Keep your eyes open as you may see some animals along the route. We came across some bighorn sheep climbing the rocks along Mouse’s Tank Road. You’ll also see so many incredible photo-ops of the dreamy desert roads on the horizon photos.

Some other viewpoints that were on my list in this area that we didn’t see: Visitor Center, Balanced Rock, Pastel Pink Canyon Trail, Fire Wave, White Domes Trail

Fire Canyon / Silica Dome

When you only have half a day to visit, one view you should definitely see is Fire Canyon/ Silica Dome. With such vivid layers of color, this was one of our favorite stops. The views were close to the parking lot making this easily accessible to most. Perfect for when you are short on time. These stunning colors are from layers of sandstone that have sand grains that are almost pure silica. The bold red coloring comes from small quantities of iron in the rock producing rust-like stains.

Crazy Hill

The next stop on our drive through Mouse’s Tank Road is Crazy Hill. This was another relatively short walk away from the parking area that yielded colorful views. Layers of pinks, oranges, and a creamy white fill the views.

Love beautiful desert landscapes? Check out my post on A November Day in Joshua Tree for more beautiful scenes.

Fire Wave

Across the street from the parking lot, we used to visit Crazy Hill is a trail to the Fire Wave. It was getting late in our trip and I still had one more view I wanted to see before sunset. We walked maybe 15 minutes in and made it to the top of the hill Fire Wave sat below. We decided to not walk all the way down to the views. There wasn’t much time until sunset, and we still had the view to find.

Rainbow Valley in Valley of Fire State Park

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jen | Local love + Wanderlust (@localloveandwanderlust)

This was our last stop on Mouse’s Tank Road and it was the view that I’ve seen everywhere and really wanted to witness. We found a hill near the road in Rainbow Valley that had a parking lot nearby. This is definitely one of the most spectacular views in the park and was the perfect way to end our drive-through.

Want to see even more spectacular rocky desert views? See more on my post about Seeing The Grand Canyon South Rim In One Day.

Valley of Fire State Park is the perfect destination for those needing a break from Las Vegas. At only roughly 1-hour away from the city, it’s an easy drive with memorable views. I highly recommend this park, even if you only have a couple of hours.

Save This Post For Later

Found In: Destinations, Outdoors · Tagged: Las Vegas, Nevada

other posts you might like

Las Vegas When You Don’t Like Las Vegas
View of the Golden Gate Bridge from Battery Spencer across the Golden Gate strait.San Francisco to Big Sur: Iconic Views, Things To Do + Huge 5-Day Itinerary
The Lone Cypress on the 17-Mile Drive Monterey, CaliforniaWhere to Stop Along the 17-Mile Drive in Monterey, California

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Next Post >

Las Vegas When You Don’t Like Las Vegas

Follow Along

@localloveandwanderlust

Hiking and exploring in nature is one of my favori Hiking and exploring in nature is one of my favorite things to do when traveling.

New on the blog - Muir Woods & Point Reyes - 7+ iconic views & amazing hikes. Link in bio, check it out!

In the meantime here’s a photo dump from that post.

📸 #pointreyesshipwreck 

📸 #muirwoodshike 

📸 #muirwoodsnationalmonument 

📸 #pointreyesnationalseashore #chimneyrocktrail 

🐄 #pointreyescows 

#california #visitcalifornia #sanfrancisco #travelblogger #hellofrom #hikersofinstagram #newblogpost #linkinbio
Tag a bookworm who you’d visit this shop with in Tag a bookworm who you’d visit this shop with in the comments! 

My weeks are usually all booked up (haha) but I had some time today to finally check out this gem of a bookstore called Loganberry Books in Shaker Heights, an under 20-minute drive from Downtown Cleveland. 

If you’re a book person you -need- to check this place out. Rooms upon rooms in a unique building with endless shelves of beautiful books. My favorite space being the room in back called “The Sanctuary” and a cabinet of miniature books near the entrance Just wowwwww. (More pics in my stories!)

After chatting with one of the super friendly staff, I learned a few interesting facts. The building used to be a showroom for Studebaker’s. The shop kitty has retired but a new cutie is in training, and that they have rented the shop out for photoshoots and one of them was a Beauty & Beast theme. (I’d love to see those shots!)

Cleveland locals & visitor bookworms alike should definitely add this huge bookstore to their must-visit lists! 

@loganberrybooks 
📍13015 Larchmere Boulevard, Cleveland Ohio 44120

*when I say hidden gem, it’s somewhere I don’t see people talk about a lot but is totally worth being talked about in my humble opinion. 
.
.
.
.
.
#loganberrybooks #thisiscle #bookworm #bookshopsofinstagram #bookstagram #shakerheights #larchmere #clevelandohio #hiddengem #visitmeincle #clevelandblogger #thingstodoincleveland #readingcommunity #shoplocal #locallove #hellofrom #nationalbookloversday
I find myself just getting a classic glazed more o I find myself just getting a classic glazed more often then not. How about you?

Nothing like being one of the first in line to get one of @brewnuts huge donuts!

If you haven’t been, check them out at
📍6501 Detroit Avenue Cleveland, Ohio 44102
.
.
.
.
.
#brewnuts #cleveland #clefoodies #clevelandblogger #ohioexplored #thisiscle
Did you go to City Stages in Ohio City last night? Did you go to City Stages in Ohio City last night? It was awesome! Performance by the energetic Dobet Gnahoré from Africa’s Ivory Coast had the neighborhood moving to the music. @dobet_gnahore_officiel 

Last night was City Stages 29th performance in Cleveland Ohio’s @hingetown part of the @ohiocityinc neighborhood.

Hosted by the @clevelandmuseumofart City Stages brings performances from around the world for a free summer concert in the city.

There will be one more City Stage performance you can experience next week! Be sure to check it out. ⤵️

🎤Cimafunk - a 9 person band from Havana @cimafunk 
📍W29th & Church In Ohio City (Hingetown)
⏰ 7:30 PM
📆 08/10/22
💲FREE for all to enjoy
Bring: lawn chairs or picnic blanket if you want to sit, your  doggos and children are welcome (it gets loud, protect their ears!)

Grab dinner before the show at nearby restaurants:  @bananablossomthaicuisine_cle (Thai), @amba_cle (Indian), @saucybrewworks (pizza & beer), @jukeboxcle (Sandwiches, etc), @alea.cle (Mediterranean), @larderdb (Eastern European deli & bakery) & more.

Also check out the @transformerstation for @fronttriennial Contemporary Art exhibit “Oh, Gods of Dust and Rainbows” (through October 2) 

Will I see you there next week? 📌 Save this post to reference for next week
.
.
.
.
.
#summerinohio #thisiscle #hingetown #citystages2022 #ohiocity #clevelandblogger #clevelandmuseumofart #hellofrom #locallove #cleveland
Do you have a favorite plant? Right now mine is th Do you have a favorite plant? Right now mine is the Neon Pothos and I just swiped the last one at Urban Planting Cleveland 🫣

Soon, you’ll be able to shop at two different locations when one of my favorite Cleveland plant shops open their second spot in the Tremont neighborhood in the Lincoln apartments building.

Till then, you can still visit the Edgewater location.

Save this in your must-visit Cleveland shops folder ⤵️

📍10908 Clifton Boulevard, Cleveland Ohio 44102
.
.
.
.
.
#clevelandblogger #thisiscle #edgewater #tremont #plantlife #plantsmakemehappy #summerinohio #ohioexplored #urbanplantingcleveland #clevelandohio #plantshop #ohioigers #ohiofindithere #visitmeincle ##instaplants #neonpothos #shopsmall

Footer

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • About
  • Privacy
  • Terms of Service + Disclosure
  • Contact

Copyright © 2022

 

Loading Comments...