Experience report: Hiking Red Rock with my favourite brother!

Posted In: Fitness November 22nd, 2016 divider No Comments »

So I spent the weekend in Las Vegas with my favourite (and only) brother for a belated birthday trip. So nice to spend quality time and kick back for a short sejour.

The highlight of the trip was definitely spending an afternoon at Red Rock. It’s pretty sad as you get older, it’s more about the outings like this than the partying. Or is it?

Red Rock is a short drive from Las Vegas. And so worth it. And the $7 admission fee is definitely the best use of money in Nevada. You get to use the 13-mile ring road along the park with about a dozen parking lots that lead to different trails. I guess you could be a lazy tourist and just do the loop in your car and still be wowed. But not out style.

After looking at the map and our options, I was sure my brother would pick the hardest one. Go big or go home, right? The Turtlehead Peak trail was a nice 5 mile trail with about 2000 feet of elevation. Apparently it’s strenous and it takes 3.5-5.5 hours to complete.

Well being who we are, we ran up it. Why not? Well we did walk the steep parts because some were pretty steep. Trust me, it was quasi rock climbing. I think my brother’s watch said it took us 1:38 to complete the up and back.

The weather was damn near ideal. It was sunny and mid to high teens (in celsius). It did get cold on the summit though with the wind and the sweaty shirt mixing. But oh so worth it!

The views were amazing, especially considering we don’t get much of that kind of rock and desert in the far away around here. You could also see Sin City in the back, it did feel so far away.

It was truly one of the best hiking experiences in my life. I’m so glad I got to do it with my brother. Also didn’t use any water or fuel during and felt great, especially on the descent!

If you ever get to Vegas, you have to take the afternoon to go to Red Rock and I would highly suggest Turtlehead Peak. Not easy but oh so worth it!