Where to go in Nevada

The 3 best hiking destinations I have found in Nevada.

I will list them first, in true newspaper fashion.  Lead with the keys.

Cathedral Gorge State Park
Valley of Fire State Park
Great Basin National Park

These are 3 locations hard to match anyplace else and comprise all the photos on my Nevada poster.

You can climb a 13,000 ft peak and go into a deep cave at Great Basin, plus there is a lovely set of mountains to view with snow atop them, expansive desert views, often accented with snow, ease of access, wonderful fall colors, and more.  I suggest going in late October or early November, so ugly Wheeler Peak will not be a boulder slog and the heat will be long gone from the summer.  Crowds are never a problem at this park, or so I hear.  I have only gone twice.

Valley of Fire is wonderfully unique, with swirls of rock, strange forms, good climbing, and hiking and scrambling and amazing photo opportunities to get lots of stunning shots that no one will buy but you can enjoy.  You have to be willing to go a bit vertical though, or most of the park is missed.  All the hikes are good enough, and if you do go off "trail" try to stay on rock and remember the vegetation is delicate.  Leave some beauty for others, and for itself.  A puny weed doesn't know its a puny weed.  Life feels only life, only greatness no matter where it sits in the pecking order.  This is mostly a sunset and sunrise park, like Bryce Canyon, where photos and vistas will dry out and flatten out in mid day without shadows.  And you will get burned easily even in winter if not careful.

Cathedral Gorge is a small isolated state park that is not well-known.  Inspiring and fun mud caves and soft spires form temporary and delicate hoodoos, like huge earth organs you can explore.  I took some amazing and strange and unique photos of the sky glowing into darkness in these caves.  I also had a fun but cold time slipping through some spots narrower than slot canyons.  You won't need more than half a day here.  It is somewhat central between the other two larger parks, and can be combined with either or both for a good half week trip.

I would say any of these 3 can be enjoyed briefly.  I spent 2 weekends on two different trips to the Basin, 1.5 days at Valley of Fire, and the other half day at Cathedral Gorge.  I would have liked another day at Valley of Fire because the hikes are short and there are a lot of spots worth exploring multiple times.  I quickly would spot little summits I wanted to spend a sunrise or sunset on.  Over on Facebook I have a sample image of my Nevada poster with more pics, and when thestillwildwest.com is eventually up, there will be a few of the best shots there too, for your perusal, and even for sale, if you were so inclined.  As always, here are some decent images it won't break my heart if you steal, which may inspire you to go.