Overview

This is a moderately strenuous, 5-mile hike that climbs about 2,660 feet from the Harris Canyon trailhead to Griffith Peak. The Harris Canyon trail generally is open, airy, sunny, and not too steep. The views from the summit are some of the best in southern Nevada, and there are fascinating fossils and rare plants on the summit.

The trail mostly follows sidehills, contouring up around Harris Peak and then along the east ridge of Griffith Peak. Near the summit, the trail contours around the south side of the peak to the west ridge, then continues westward to the summit of Mt. Charleston. There is no official trail to the summit, but there are four logical places to leave the trail and climb to the summit: the northeast ridge, the southeast ridge, the south ridge, and the northwest ridge (which has a well-established use-trail).

The road to the trailhead is a bit rough, and a high-clearance vehicle is a good idea, but not entirely required (weather permitting), and a careful driver could get there in any vehicle.

An alternate route up Griffith Peak starts in Kyle Canyon and follows the South Loop Trail to the rim of Kyle Canyon. At the rim, the South Loop Trail joins the Harris Canyon Trail. From the junction, the route up Griffith Peak runs southeast along the ridge and heads up a use-trail on the northwest ridge.

Link to map.

Watch Out

Other than the standard warnings about hiking in the desert, ...this is a pretty safe hike. The trail climbs through some limestone cliffs on narrow, exposed ledges just above Harris Saddle, so watch your step along this part. The trail is moderately strenuous, so take it easy at this elevation if you've just come up from the desert. Because of the length, this probably isn't a good trail for young children.

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

Trail Guide
Getting to the Trailhead

This hike is located in the Spring Mountains (Mt. Charleston area) on Harris Springs Road (off Kyle Canyon Road), about 1.5 hours northwest of Las Vegas.

From town, drive north on Highway 95 to Highway 157 (Kyle Canyon Road) (Table 1, Site 667). Turn left onto Highway 157 and drive west for 12.3 miles to the Harris Springs Road (Site 764), which only goes to the left. Follow this dirt road south as it runs across the wash and cuts sharply up the hillside. The road runs up over hills and drops onto Harris Springs Canyon. There are many little side roads, but the main road is fairly obvious and easy to follow.

Stay to the right where the road drops into Harris Springs Canyon (passing a large dirt road turnoff on the left). About 3 miles from the pavement, turn right at a fork (Site 767) where the road leaves the wash and heads west and up into the hills. If you get to a gate and "no tresspassing" signs, you've gone a little too far. Continue up Harris Springs Road for a total of about 8.5 miles from the pavement. The road ends abruptly on top of a sharp ridge overlooking Lovell Canyon (Site 594). Park here; this is the trailhead.

The Hike

From the Harris Canyon trailhead (Table 2, Waypoint 1), the trail begins on the Harris Canyon trail to Harris Saddle. For details on this part of the hike, including a map, see the Harris Saddle Trail. Generally, however, the trail runs northwest up the old road until it abruptly ends high in Lovell Canyon (Wpt. 2). From the end of the old road, a good trail continues northwest to Harris Saddle (the saddle between Griffith and Harris peaks; Wpt. 3).

Lower down, the vegetation generally is composed of mountain mahogany, shrub live oak, sagebrush, manzanita, silk tassel, Mormon tea, other low bushes, shrubby burn areas, and a few single-leaf pinyon pines, but little shade. Along the upper section, the vegetation transitions to a cool, alpine-feeling ponderosa pine and white fir forest with a few limber pine mixed in.

From Harris Saddle (Wpt. 3), which overlooks Kyle Canyon, the trail turns west and climbs fairly steep switchbacks, rocky stairs, and narrow ledges to pass through and around craggy limestone cliffs. At the top of the cliffs, there is a great place to walk out to the rim of Kyle Canyon, rest, and enjoy the view to the north. In this area, and especially a little higher up, the vegetation becomes sparser and gives way to bristlecone pine, limber pines, wild currents, and a few open, shrubby areas.

After the cliffs, the grade becomes more gentle as the trail runs along the south side of the main ridge. The trail eventually climbs the side of the ridge to near the rim of the canyon just below the summit. At this point, the trail breaks out of the bristlecone pine forest and enters a grassy area that looks like a ski slope (Wpt. 4). This is the first logical place to leave the trail and climb to the summit. This route is relatively long and steep, but there are use trails near the summit.

Continuing westward on the trail as it traverses the south side of the peak, the trail eventually crosses the south ridge (Wpt. 6). At this point, you get the first view down the west side of the Spring Mountains into the Pahrump Valley. This is the third logical place to leave the trail and climb to the summit. This is the highest point on the trail, so the south ridge is the shortest off-trail route to the summit.

Continuing past the south ridge, the trail descends to the northwest ridge and returns to the rim of Kyle Canyon. At the point where the trail hits the crest of the ridge (Wpt. 7), a steep, well-used use-trail leads to the summit.

Continuing down the northwest ridge, at about 5 miles out, you reach the junction with South Loop Trail (Wpt. 8). The trail to the northeast (right) drops steeply into Kyle Canyon, while the trail to the northwest (left) goes to Charleston Peak. If you climb Griffith Peak from Kyle Canyon, this is where you join the Harris Canyon Trail.

Views from the summit are spectacular. Much of the South Loop Trail to Mt Charleston, the North Loop Trail, the Sheep Range and points east, Red Rocks and Las Vegas to the southeast, Mt. Potosi and other mountain ranges to the south and east into California are visable. On clear days, you can see far into California and Arizona.

While gazing into the distance, don't overlook the close-up view: there are some interesting crinoid fossils on the summit, and some of the rock layers appear to be largely composed of crinoid fragments. Also, the thistle plants on the summit are a rare species (Charleston Mountain Thistle), so be careful around them.

You might want to descend by heading directly down the east ridge towards Harris Saddle. Otherwise, retrace your steps to the trailhead.