general information

Park name: Valley of Fire State Park

State: Nevada, Clark County

Distances from Valley of Fire:

• Death Valley - 183 miles / 293 km (3 hours)
• Las Vegas - 54 miles / 86 km (1 hour)
• Los Angeles - 323 miles / 516 km (5 hours)
• Grand Canyon - 312 miles / 499 km (5 hours)
• Hoover Dam - 68 miles / 108 km (1.5 hours)

Short description: An incredibly beautiful and vibrant park that impresses with its rich colors and variety of shapes. Here you can see natural arches, picturesque canyons, "waves", very similar to the famous Coyote Buttes, unusual sandstone formations, mesmerizing landscapes and much more.

Schedule: the park is open for visits 365 days a year from dawn to dusk (camping sites - around the clock). The Visitor Center is open from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm daily. There are two entrances: western (West Entrance Station) and eastern (East Entrance Station).

Visit cost:

• car ticket and all passengers - $10;
• individual ticket(for those who came to the park by bike or on foot) - $ 1;
• bus - for those who came to the park by bus, the cost of visiting will be $ 2;
• Annual Entry Permit- $75 (valid for a year and applies to the Valley of Fire only, can be purchased from the rangers);
• Annual subscription (Passport Annual Permit)- $100 (valid for a year and applies to all parks located in the state of Nevada).

*Payment is made at stations (self-pay station) or in booths. In the first case, you will see an information stand, next to which there will be envelopes in which you will need to put money, fill in the necessary information and lower the envelope into the iron tube safe next to it.

Overnight cost- $20 per car per night (including park entrance fee). You have to pay at the campsite. For an additional $10, you can use the dump station. Campsites are equipped with tables, a fire pit with a grill, water and toilets. Souls are also available.

Previously, it was still possible to stay in the so-called Cabins. These are three "houses" built by the Civil Guard Corps environment. Now you can only look at them from the side.

In case all the places in the campsites are occupied, you can look for something nearby. There was a list on the information board with the following options:

Where to eat: there is nowhere to buy food in the park, so take it with you, especially if you plan to stay here overnight. The supply of drinking water can be replenished in the park (at the Visitor Center and at the Atlatl Rock campsite).

Gas stations: There are also no gas stations in the park, so fill up as much as possible in advance.

Where to look for internet (wi-fi): also absent, even in the visitor center.

Rent a Car: you can rent a car at a great price for a trip to the Valley of Fire and other places on the Priceline website. If you don't like the suggested options, try searching.

Grade

9 from 10 . A very beautiful and memorable park, if there is a choice, then it is better to skip the Hoover Dam and go here.

Valley of Fire map

Open large map (google maps)

Original blog post: http://www.golden-monkey.ru/notes/valley-of-fire-park
Publication date: 24.12.2014

Tourists spoiled by US national parks rarely come here. However, this is an unfortunate omission! The Valley of Fire is a bright palette and a play of nature, which is rarely seen anywhere. There are many trails that allow you to get to know the realm of stone closer. And we highly recommend not to miss this landmark of the US Southwest.

It is best to watch Valley of Fire Park in the morning. Then the red stones really look like a fiery wave. But we weren't lucky with that. Nevertheless, the spectacle was amazing! You can drive by car, looking at the red stones from the window. But this does not give a complete impression of the park.

What to see in the Valley of Fire

The main treasures of the Fire Valley are hidden on its trails. Some of them are marked on the map, some are not. And to tell you the truth, walking on them would be a violation. But if you carefully walk on fragile stones, then you can take a chance. We took a chance and shared our experience in .

Since we arrived too late for our morning walks, we first went to fire wave (Firewaves) . The trail starts at parking lot #3. It is necessary to walk 2.5 km in both directions. The road will go first on the sand, and then on the rocks. So it will be hot! Water will be a savior and it is better to cover your head. And in the hot summer months it is better to refrain from this trail altogether. Getting into the center of a red-hot furnace is not the most attractive event.

But it was autumn, it was 10 am, and we took a chance. The day was not quite hot, and there were not many visitors to the Valley of Fire. So we overcame the way to the wave without any special problems.

Trail to the Fire Wave (photo)

The trail starts immediately after the wave. pink canyon. But there are no signs, because it is unofficial, and we found information about it on the Internet. And there is no such trail on the map of the Valley of Fire park. You just need to go towards the multi-colored stones and stick to the stream bed, slowly moving to the side highway. As soon as you get back on the track, you will have to go to the parking lot. But this is nothing, because a wonderful palette appeared before your eyes, which is difficult to imagine in nature. However, it exists!

Pink Canyon in the Valley of Fire (photo)

Trail in White House (White Domes) is one and a half kilometers. After the Fire Wave and the Pink Canyon, he did not impress me as much as he should have. Yes, and the midday heat enveloped my head. So I don't really remember what happened there. And for some reason, the main impression was the multi-colored stairs, which were built from local stones for the convenience of tourists.

Many films have been filmed in this part of Valley of Fire, including the 1966 western The Professionals and an episode of Star Trek. The place is popular with filmmakers. Suitable for the Mexican ranch and for other planets.

Trail White House in the Valley of Fire (photo)

Rainbow Viewpoint (Rainbow vista)

Rainbow Viewpoint also offers a 1.5 km trail. Although this is not the longest trail in the Valley of Fire, we did not take it due to the fact that there was little time left to explore the park.

Elephant rock

Elephant Rock is the symbol of Valley of Fire Park.

Bee hives (Beehives)

oldest national park United States founded in 1935. The surreal world of the Valley of Fire is located on one and a half hundred square kilometers. This place is like a mirage floating in the middle of the desert, and is only an hour (80 km) northeast of the neon lights and entertainment of Las Vegas.
A distinctive feature of the park is mountain compositions and sculptures, unlike any other forms of natural origin of an amazingly talented master - Nature, consisting of red sandstone (sandstone), formed more than 150 million years ago. The rocks are dominated by a large number of minerals containing high concentrations of iron oxides and sulfides, which have red colors of all shades. In combination with white limestones and colored slates, a rich palette of the park is born.
Arches and caves, flat surfaces, like heads combed by an unknown hairdresser, or moth-eaten things: whatever associations are born when contemplating these stones. Layered, similar to tree mushrooms, or cut and shifted relative to each other, stones with cavities, similar to corals, covered with patchwork quilts of lichens, lit by the merciless Nevada sun, or lying in eternal twilight - they are beautiful. At every time of the day, the landscape is beautiful and unique in its own way. This is used by photographers who come here from all over the world.

Basic moments

At first, there was a desert in place of the Valley of Fire. Over time, the sand dunes became hard sandstone, and through the processes of weathering, they turned into high "beehives", smooth "waves", graceful arches, picturesque valleys with "puff" slopes and various figures that received their names. The bright slopes look especially beautiful early in the morning or at sunset.

Travelers come to the Valley of Fire park to look at the mesmerizing scenery from the car window and have a picnic with friends. There are several good roads through the area and many visitors make it to interesting place, make a stop and take pictures of natural attractions. Tourists also come to the picturesque red rocks, where ancient petroglyphs are visible. IN national park popular walking tours, cycling and rock climbing. There are not many long routes in the Valley of Fire.

It should be borne in mind that in the summer it is very hot here, the air temperature can rise to +45 ... +49 ° C, so it becomes difficult to walk. It is more convenient to visit the park in winter, when the daytime temperature does not exceed +24 °C. However, those who want to come here for the night should take into account that it can be very cold in the Valley of Fire on a winter night.

Information for visitors

Valley of Fire is open to tourists all year round from dawn to dusk. The park is entered through the Western or Eastern entrance. Tourists with tents can organize overnight stays in any of the two campsites and make fires in specially equipped places. Food is not sold in the park, and drinking water can be stocked up at campsites or at the visitor center.

Campsites in the Valley of Fire are open around the clock, and the visitor center receives visitors from 8.30 to 16.30. In campsites, travelers can use water, toilets, showers and tables. Accommodation on the territory will cost $ 20 per car per night, including the cost of visiting the park. Unfortunately, it is not possible to book campsites in advance.

The cost of staying in the Valley of Fire for one day: for cars - $ 10; for pedestrians and cyclists - $ 1; for those who were taken by bus - $ 2; subscription for a year - $ 100.

Motorists are allowed to travel only on roads and stop in places designated for parking. There are no gas stations in the park.

You can come to the Valley of Fire with pets, but walking animals is only allowed on a short leash. It is forbidden to litter in the park, as well as to take flowers, parts of plants, stones and minerals out of its territory.

How to get there

Valley of Fire is located 80 km from Las Vegas. The easiest way to get here is to purchase an organized tour to the park from one of the travel agencies. Travelers traveling by car get to Valley of Fire via Highway 15.

This post is about the most scenic route of all my travels. On a day that somehow had no plans, very close to Las Vegas, I unexpectedly discovered the Fire valley national park - the Valley of Fire and it surprised me well, just to the very limit. Look how beautiful it is!

Valley of Fire National Park is really not far from Las Vegas. Literally after half an hour of driving along the highway, the desired exit is visible. By the way, I consider it very convenient that almost all road signs in the United States are duplicated with text. You go, you read - it is extremely clear.

Immediately at the entrance to the park there are signs to places with ancient rock paintings. These rock paintings are called petroglyphs and are over 3,000 years old.

Around interesting landscapes. Rocks full of holes like cheese! Something like a cave city.

Now I will tell you clearly about why the Valley of Fire has such a name. The fact is that the rocks here are of such an incredible shape and, most importantly, of such a color that everything around seems to be on fire. The rocks are just on fire, for real!

One of the attractions is the arches.

We enter the park. Extremely scenic road.

In general, one of the most spectacular sections of the road that I have seen.

The beauty is just incredible. I say this in every publication, but where to go if this is so? Beauty all around!

Impossible not to take a photo for memory.

I love it when random people take pictures. You'll never guess what ridiculous framing they'll give you.

Let's go deep! There is the most interesting. And a great road.

This national park has been known since 1935. Americans from all over the area have been coming here for a long time. However, things changed a few years ago. German photographers walked around taking pictures and discovered some amazing places. Since they were not marked on the map, the discoverers gave them a name and described them in their blog.

After some time, they began to turn to the park staff - where is the “wave” here? And the rangers had to rediscover their own long-known park. Now in some places there are signs and marked paths, but something still needs to be looked for according to the signs and descriptions of the discoverers.

So let's move on to look for that very local “wave”. You need to get to Parking #3 N 36.48832° W114.52916°, cross the road and there will be a sign indicating the beginning of the trail. Go about 1200 meters.

Desert with classic cacti.

I walk along inconspicuous landmarks that mark the path. Not a soul around!

The relief is amazingly beautiful.

The rocks are on fire!

Here are some signs that we are on the right track. The surface becomes streaked.

You can't help but take a selfie :)

And here it is - the wave! You go out on it unexpectedly and the spirit intercepts!

In these parts there is another "Wave" - ​​the famous The Wave. Below I attached someone else's photo from Google so that you can imagine what it is amazing place. By the way, I never cease to be amazed at how diverse and amazing the planet Earth is.

So it's hard enough to get on The Wave. The wave is very fragile and so that tourists do not completely trample it, admission there is only with permits that are played in the lottery. There are only 20 vouchers per day - 10 on the site and 10 at noon on the spot. In short, the chance to get there is not great, and I did not have time to wait for luck. So I will admire the Wave with you in the picture.

But back to the Valley of Fire. During the rainy season, a river flows here.

And around the wave, the rocks are painted with stripes of the most amazing colors.

Pink and purple gems! Eerily similar to colored crayons

In some places, the soil is very reminiscent of Mars.

And right on the rock, too, life.

This is also amazing. Who brought the red stones on white rock? A bizarre play of wind and time.

There are several arches in the park, you also need to look for them according to very vague signs from the German pioneering photographers.

The next point I was looking for is called Crazy hill. it was also described by German travelers. By the way, they sell a brochure for 4 euros, in which all points are described, there are GPS coordinates and tips on when it is better to photograph objects.

I searched without coordinates and brochures - that is, I walked in circles for a long time until I found it :)

But now I know the coordinates, maybe you will need more:

1. Striped Rock 36°28’50.5’’N, 114°31’35.5’’W
2. Thunderstorm Arch 36°29‘10“N, 114°31‘51“W
3. Fire Cave Arch 36°29'11.6''N, 114°31'47.5''W
4. Crazy Hill 36°29'06.6''N, 114°31'47.1''W

And I strayed, strayed, until I found under my feet, well, it’s absolutely impossible, a beautiful stone rainbow. It!

Crazy Hill really blows your mind! And this is one of the things that struck me the most. Both in the US and in general. Nowhere else have I seen this.

In short, I took a lot of photos. Even more than it should :)

Around, by the way - not a soul. Silence. Peace. I walked for two hours through ravines, gorges, arches and canyons and did not meet anyone. I was alone on the hill too. That feeling when the whole planet is only yours!

Having admired enough, we go back to the parking lot and look at the landscapes.

The next point of the route is a trail around some kind of cliff. This place is marked on tourist map and there are more people here. I mean, there's just someone else besides you.

At some point the trail leads into a narrow canyon.

Water creates graceful forms in its style.

There is a bigger arch here. And there are plenty of people around to take pictures. After the meditative calmness of other places, I even want to leave here soon :)

The next point of the route (and in my opinion, it is even earlier than parking number 3, it is not in the direct order of visiting here) is Stripped rock. Rock with a stripe. Class!