Overview

Mormon Well is an historic site developed by ranchers around 1900 as a summer pasture. The area was abandoned about 1924, and little remains except the spring, some cement works, and an old circular corral. The site now provides silent testament to those who went before us, while also providing a year-round source of water that attracts wildlife from near and far. Visitors should tread lightly here to ensure that the remaining structures are not damaged, and they should not linger too long because the animals need access to the water.

The hike is quite short, about 0.35 miles, but getting there is an adventure. The Mormon Well Road is a long, rough dirt road that starts at Corn Creek, passes through relatively high-elevation, relatively moist, Mojave Desert Scrub areas (the Yucca Forest), Pinyon-Juniper Forest, Sagebrush flats, and a small bit of Yellow Pine Forest, all of which provides quite a variety of habitat types. The road passes geologically interesting areas too, crossing broad, flat valleys, following deep narrow canyons, and passing caves and fossils. More information on the road is posted on the Mormon Well Road page.

Link to map or elevation profile.

For general information on camping, regulations, other issues, and the natural history of the Wildlife Refuge, see the Desert National Wildlife Range -- Area Overview page.

Watch Out

Other than the standard warnings about hiking in the desert, ...this is a short, easy hike on an old dirt road, so it is relatively safe. However, there is some old junk and a bit of rusty wire lying about, so be sure not to step on nails or other sharp things. Please be careful around this historic site (it is on the National Register of Historic Places) and help preserve it for future generations. We will never get another one of these.

The Mormon Well Road is a long, rough, dirt road. A high-clearance vehicle is required under all but the best of conditions. There are no services. Take at least a gallon of water per person. Expect to be the only people out there, and be prepared to break down and spend a day waiting for help to find you. Your cell phone probably won't work.

While hiking, please respect the land and the other people out there, and try to Leave No Trace of your passage. Also, although this hike is short, it is a long way out, so be sure to bring what you need of the 10 Essentials.

This is a wildlife refuge, so pay extra attention to respecting the land. Please, don't bother the bighorn sheep. They have a hard enough time making a living in these desert lands; they don't need extra stress from people hanging around the spring.

Trail Guide
Getting to the Trailhead

This hike is located on the Desert National Wildlife Range, about 3 hours north of town.

When passing Corn Creek Field Station, be sure to stop and sign the visitor register. Use a false name if you worry about the government tracking your movements, but they need all the visitor-use statistics they can get to argue for more funding.

From town, drive out to the Desert National Wildlife Range. From Corn Creek Field Station (Table 1, Site 106), continue east to a T-intersection a few yards beyond the parking area (Site 731). Turn right onto Mormon Well Road (mile 0.0) and drive south. This is a good graded road that can be driven at about 25 mph most of the way to the trailhead. After about 0.3 miles, the road bends to the left and starts heading east and up towards the mountains. Continue on the main road past Gass Peak Road (mile 4.35), through Yucca Gap (mile 5.5) and out into the Yucca Forest (mile 6.5). The road gradually bends to the north and starts running up along the southeastern edge of the Sheep Range. At about mile 9.3, the road cuts right and heads off to the east, winding around some canyons before heading east again.

The road passes Pine Nut Road (Site 424), winds through Peek-a-boo Canyon (Site 108), and heads north to pass through a nice stand of Ponderosa Pine at the Mormon Pass (Site 648).

From the high point on the road at the Mormon Pass, drive north for 2 more miles. Pass the campground, and watch for a pullout (an old road junction) on the right side of the road at a place where the road bends hard to the left (Site 650). You can get to the corral from here, or drive a short distance farther to a larger parking area by an old cement watering trough on the right side of the road (Site 651). This is 31 miles from Corn Creek. Park at either place, this is the trailhead.

After the hike, you can go back south on Mormon Well Road, or you can continue north for another 15 miles to Highway 93 (Site 649). Mormon Well Road hits Highway 93 where powerlines cross the highway, about 2 miles south of the road to Glendale (Highway 168). Turn right on the pavement and drive south back to Las Vegas.

The Hike

From either parking area, the corral is located atop the hill east of the trailhead. It takes about 5 minutes to get there.

From the watering trough trailhead (Table 2, Waypoint 2), the route runs south-southeast on an old road. After a few hundred yards, the old road turns east and cuts up a steep hillside to the corral.

From the parking area on the curve trailhead (Wpt. 1), the route runs eastward on an old road. When you can see the other road off to the left (northeast), cut over to it, and follow it east and up the steep hillside to the corral.

The corral was made from Single-leaf Pinyon Pine and Utah Juniper branches, with the uprights wired together into a circular structure. There are open gates on the north and south sides of the corral, so you don't have to climb over anything to get inside.

The Mormon Well Spring (Wpt. 3) is located at the base of a cut bank just south of the corral. There are some old cement watering troughs below the spring, but I don't know if they were original or if they were added more recently. The Fish and Wildlife Refuge has done some water improvement work here in the past, and they have been removing some of the old equipment.

Remember, this is the only place like this we have, so be careful and don't damage anything during your visit.

When you are ready to leave, follow your footprints back to the trailhead.