Tecopa & Amargosa Canyon Indian Trails

Approaching Ibex Spring

A second trail departing Resting Spring.

The trail on the way to the pass then on to Resting Spring.

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  Slot canyon that attracts all the tourists around China Ranch

  
  

  

  Weird spires in the east canyon of Dolores BM

  
  

  

  The Indian trail on the SE ridge of Dolores BM. This is where it drops off the rim to the river.

  
  

  

  A view of the RR grade and the washouts

  
  

  

  Colors in Dolores Canyon

  

  Map at the China Ranch TH

  
  

  

  Indian trail heading from Dolores BM toward China Ranch

  
  

  

  The Amargosa Canyon trail on the RR grade

  
  

  

  Strange formations in the east canyon from Dolores BM

  

  The Sperry trail has outstanding views.

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  The only spiral I've ever seen.

• Any hikers interested in a guided tour of these trails can find me on Facebook as Nevada Bob. Tecopa has RV campgrounds and a tiny store. The poor peoples' RV park is along the graded Furnace Creek Rd on the south side of the Dublin Hills. I picked up a good VZ cell signal there. I check that road before taking an RV in. Shoshone is the nearest gas. Ibex Pass has a VZ signal.
• RESTING SPRING LOOP - Indian trails can be used to make a loop around the spring with a 2 mile paved shuttle. It's a complex route strictly for Indians and other advanced hikers. Drive east from Tecopa and leave a bike or car near the exit point at N35 51976, W116 10044. Then keep going east 2 more miles and park along the highway. Walk the flats for a mile to N35 53612, W116 08481 el 1850 and drop into a wide wash. Then walk thru a minor saddle into another wash and exit at 54007, 08793 el 1850 then on to the trail at 54837, 09822 el 1950. It goes up a gully then turns left to the pass el 2100. It goes down along the right slope and soon has slid away, but stay on that trajectory. Don't go down. It soon becomes obvious at 55238, 10230 as it skirts gullies then finally drops to the flats. Get off the trail at 55468, 10498 el 1900 and walk down a smooth ridge to the flats and on to high ground at 54829, 11056 el 1600. Go on to a rim at 54445, 11216. Walk a quarter mile down that then drop left to the flats and on to a saddle at 53818, 11344. Go thru to a major wash then up that to a saddle at 53617, 11096. Now there's a trail. Walk it up a ridge then on to high ground at 53153, 10731. Now walk south for 450 feet to a wash and turn left up that and on to a saddle at  53037, 10608. Then go SE for a third mile to a major wash at 52811, 10403. The trail goes east up the wash for a quarter mile and exits up the right bank. Stay on it nearly a fifth mile then bend right to power lines. Follow those thru a gap between big hills then veer left to 52210, 10049 and walk thru a gap in mesquite and on to the exit point. That took me 4 hours, 20 minutes with easy grades. The BLM map shows this all to be on public land. At 53163, 08280 is where I crossed cairns marking an Indian trail coming from the east to the spring. Then at 54280, 09178 I crossed one heading north to Pahrump. Posted 2018.
• RESTING SPRING TO PAHRUMP - 4 miles of that trail is still walkable around Emigrant Pass. Park a vehicle 3 and a half miles east of the pass where a big ridge meets the road. Then ebike back to the pass where there is parking spot with a cable fence. The trail is in view at the far side of the pass. The high ground can be walked to it, but I prefer to go another third mile on the highway to a yellow 40 MPH sign. The trail can be picked up there on the far side of a wash. Go over the pass on it and cross a wash at N35 53499, W116 03212 then skirt close to a point to 53856, 02786 then 54089, 02455 then 54303, 02119 and last is 54493, 01617 before it skirts the big ridge. 2 hours, easy. Gullies have to be crossed but nothing serious. Posted 2022.
• SPERRY HILLS TRAIL - this one goes from Tecopa to Ibex Spring. Walking from Ibex Pass to Tecopa is a good hike of about 9 or 10 miles. Leave a car near the river bridge next to the Tecopa post office then drive to the pass. Get on the trail at N35 47628, W116 20040 el 2100. Follow it along the divide to 47627, 19190 el 2400 then to 47645, 19006 el 2400 then to where it tops out at 47700, 1819 el 2500 next to the high peak on the divide. I call that Sperry Peak el 2600+ and the reg on it says it's the high point of the Sperry Hills, but a case could be made that Tecopa Peak is in the Sperry Hills. It's worth a short side trip for the view anyway. The trail goes on along the divide for a third mile and gets faint. It drops down to the right and crosses a drainage then gets easy to follow again at 47870, 17650 el 2500 where it runs along the north side of the divide. The trail drops off the divide into a valley at 47865, 16786 el 2200 and disappears. Go on down the wash and exit up a gully on the left at 47995, 16028 el 2000. Walk a short way up that until it opens up then bend right to pavement. Walk near the right edge of the pavement into a wash where trail fragments begin to appear on the right side. Be on the trail at 48353, 15469 el 1900 and walk that level. The trail fades in and out with good views. Aim for 49083, 14211 el 1750 where it goes down a narrow ridge and ends at a point above the river with rock circles. There's no good way down, so veer left before that and go down a ridge at 49904, 13811 el 1550 into the wash. Go downstream a few feet then turn left up Tecopa Wash. Go NW half a mile up that then exit to the right on a trail. Then go to a modern trail at 50504, 13943 el 1400 that was built to get around private land and brush along the river. It goes into a wash then take a shortcut by leaving it and go straight up the other side of the wash then down the next gully to the river. A road there goes shortly to the river bridge. That took me 5 hours with minimal gain. An airplane damaged part of this route. Miscreants like that prevent me from publishing a lot of goodies. ALTERNATE ROUTE - a shorter but not quite as good route goes from the divide to Tecopa. Leave the divide  trail and drop into a drainage at 47958, 17090 el 23000 that leads to a major wash. Go left up that to a saddle el 2250 on the right. A trail doesn't go thru the saddle but it's an easy route to go on thru and down the wash to a trail on the left bank at 49151, 16182 el 1900. It goes on to 49409, 15594 el 1800 then 49692, 15238 el 1750 on the far right edge of pavement. The next mile and a quarter is easy to follow then it crosses a mine road then it's a short walk to join the route above at the modern trail. 3 hours, 40 minutes.  Posted 2017. 
• IBEX PASS / SPRING TRAIL - this leg of the trail is an easy 5 miles but needs a 4wd shuttle. Drive south from the pass for a couple miles and turn at a microwave tower. Go nearly 3 miles down a wash to a fork. Go right for a third mile to a sharp dip and that was washed out in Dec 2023. It's the hardest obstacle on the road and there was another trench not far beyond. I might leave a 4wd there then drive back to the pass. Walk west from the pass on the high ground for a mile to the rim where 3 or 4 routes go down. For the shortest, walk to N35 47707, W116 21504 el 2150 where the descent ridge forks. Walk down the left ridge to the trail at the bottom reading 47546, 21876 el 1800. It soon goes into a wash then 200 feet down that and exits on the right. Go on to 47329, 22253 then cross a mine road then to 47087, 22988 then 47043, 23065. Next, you come to a mine road but this time walk on it for 200 feet then the trails forks left. Go on to 46797, 23615 then 46705, 23751 then 46672, 23822. Soon the palms at the spring come into view. It's 5 miles from the pass to the spring. That's the shortest hike possible. If you parked one 4wd at the sharp dip, then it's 2 miles of road walking making it a 7 mile hike but still easy with hardly any gain. Posted 2017. NO SHUTTLE VERSION - I made a loop from the Ibex road. I went in a mile and a half from the park boundary then walked the flats north and stumbled on a rock ring at 46501, 21945 on the low ground. Don't let that get disturbed. Cairns and rock lines are on the bank to the north.  I went on to high ground at 47176, 22024 and followed that for a  third mile to the trail where it hits the flats from the pass. I walked it to the spring and only needed GPS twice due to all the cairns now. I walked the road back. 3 and a half hours, 8 miles. I didn't spend any time at the spring. This is a more convenient way to see the best part of the trail.  Posted 2023.
• DOLORES BENCHMARK INDIAN TRAIL - the trail thru Ibex Pass has one branch that goes right by the BM in the Kingston Range Wilderness and on to China Ranch. But for one stretch it's better to drop off and walk washes south of the trail. A 10 mile one way hike is a good way to do it. Drive east from Tecopa and follow signs to China Ranch. Leave a car at the new BLM TH. It has a restroom. Then drive 15 miles to Ibex Pass.  Get on the trail at N35 47628, W116 20040 el 2100. Follow it along the divide to 47627, 19190 el 2400 then to 47645, 19006 el 2400 then to where it tops out at 47700, 1819 el 2500 next to the high peak on the divide. I call that Sperry Peak el 2600+ and the reg on it says it's the high point of the Sperry Hills, but a case could be made that Tecopa Peak is in the Sperry Hills. It's worth a short side trip for the view anyway. The trail goes on along the divide for a third mile and gets faint. It drops down to the right and crosses a drainage then gets easy to follow again at 47870, 17650 el 2500 where it runs along the north side of the divide.  Drop off the trail and down a ridge at  47924, 17412 el 2400 and walk a major wash to a saddle at 47289, 16178 el 1950. Go thru to another saddle at 47025, 15285 el 1950 then thru to a faint trail at 47278, 14872 el 1850. Go up toward the BM and the trail gets more visible. The BM is at 47158, 14462 el 2105. Did I find a reg way, way out there? I'm not telling. There are several ways to get to the canyon running east toward the ranch. I followed a trail south from the BM and dropped in at 47095, 14269 el 1900 but maybe should have walked the rim down. It's a rocky canyon but gets smoother with some weird rock formations. It cuts thru spectacular badlands to a short slot at 47267, 12711 el 1250. Just past that is another with a fall, but it's easy to pass on the right. Then tracks from hundreds of tourists show up in the wash. It's a short way to cross the river on stones then turn right on a trail. It will soon fork. Both go but the high one looks shorter. It's less than a mile on to the TH at the ranch. That took me 5 hours with not much gain. Posted 2018.
• SARATOGA SPRING TRAIL - this one branches off the Ibex Spring trail near Sperry Hill and goes to Saratoga Spring but a lot is missing now. I made a good one way hike by starting at Ibex Pass and walking the trail to Sperry Hill (as shown on peakbagger) then down the canyon to the west of it and to the trail and on to the highway at mp 39.2. I went ahead and climbed the peak but that can be skipped and just walk down the canyon west of it using the left bank. I got on the right bank at N35 47379, W116 18270 and then down and around a corner to the trail at 47188, 18399. It runs level to a major wash then I went down that and got on the right bank at 46780, 18416. In another fifth mile the trail appears on the bank and I went on to 46168, 19094 then 46138, 19159 and then the last leg to the highway at 46091, 19236. 2 hours, 46 minutes, 5 miles. The app had the gain at 733 but 150 of that is the peak side trip and that can be skipped. I put a track on peakbagger under Sperry Hill.  Mp 39.2 has camp spots with good Verizon. WESTERN LEG - the next day I started from camp at mp 39.2 and got on the trail at 45963, 19487 and on to 45881, 19640 then it fades for a mile and reappears at 45205, 20596 and goes a fifth mile to the saddle north of Ibex BM. It soon fades on the other side and so I went down a rocky gully to the main wash then down to a sandy slope where I took an easy angle to the saddle NE of peak 472 reading 44923, 21971. I went down the other side on sand for a fifth mile then went over the right rim to a good flower display. I went on down to the flats then to a rock ring at  46501, 21945. Cairns and rock lines are on the bank north of it. I kept going to high ground at  47176, 22024 then in a third mile the Ibex Spring trail crosses. It goes into a main wash then up a ridge and on to the pass where I parked my cycle the day before. 4 hours, 500 feet of noticeable gain, 8 miles.  I didn't have to fool with a shuttle by doing the two hikes on consecutive days. Posted 2023.
• SOUTHERN SARATOGA SPRING TRAIL - this one starts the same as above and over Sperry Hill then runs more south of the trail above. I started at Ibex Pass and took the trail to Sperry Hill then down the east ridge into the main east canyon. I could have skirted the peak on the trail and dropped into the canyon. I went down canyon to a trail on a ridge running left of center at N35 45893, W116 17140. It goes to a wash then fades then I went on to a short segment at 45546, 17970 then another at 45513, 18238 and finally on to a camp area on the highway near mp 38. 3 and a half hours, about 800 gain. Posted 2024.
• IBEX PASS TO SARATOGA SPRING TRAIL - this one starts at the pass and goes to the spring then south to the Saratoga trail and back to the highway. I was camped on the highway at mp 39.2 and I rode my cycle to the pass then walked the trail to the spring then turned south on the main road to a faint old road at N35 46034, W116 24437. I walked that south for nearly a mile to a flower hotspot then went left to a major canyon at 44351, 22440. No sign of the trail until the head of the canyon where it is on the left bank at 45070, 20808.  It goes across the divide then bends left and fades. I walked with the flow and then on to 45809, 19772 where it appears again and goes shortly to camp. 5 and a half hours, 12 miles, easy grades. Good flowers in April, 2024.
• DOLORES BENCHMARK LOOP - a loop can be done from China Ranch by going up the east canyon then back down an Indian trail on the SE ridge.  Drive east from Tecopa and follow signs to China Ranch and park at the new BLM TH. It has a restroom. Follow the map posted at the TH to get to the slot canyon. It can be seen on the topo a half mile west of Acme. It is blocked by minor falls, but easy to bypass on the left. Soon there is another short slot then keep going up the main canyon for about an air mile to a main fork at weird spires. Take the left fork for a few feet then climb up the right rim at N35 47242, W116 13697 el 1550. Keep going up for .57 air mile to an obvious Indian trail el 1950. Go right on that to the BM at 47158, 14462 el 2105. Then retrace back to where you hit the  trail and keep going on it to a saddle. It climbs out of that to the left then on to 46845, 13807 el 1900 then 46719, 13492 el 1950. Next is a rock ring that the Indians must have built then the trail fades. Start down a canyon at 46600, 12949 el 1800 that goes back to the slots. To see how the Indians got down to the river, step over to the rim at 46576, 12793 el 1700. That's the hard way down with a wall of tamarisk at the bottom. It's easier to walk the rim a fifth mile to a major saddle then drop left back to the canyon and stroll on down to the slots. That took me 5 hours with about 500 noticeable gain. That's the best hike you're going to find around the ranch and tourists turn back at the slot canyon. Posted 2018.
• DOLORES CANYON is what I call the colorful canyon draining SW from Dolores BM. It gets rocky but it's easy to step between rocks. A loop can be done going up canyon then back on the Indian trail on the SW ridge of the BM. Drive in on the Dumont Dunes road and follow signs up the river on a sandy road to Sperry Wash. The river flows there but has little brush. Walk up to Dolores Canyon at N35 45242, W116 13327 el 900 and go up that to a fork at 46106, 14058 el 1250. Go left then stay right at main forks and top out on the Indian trail at 46955, 14013 el 1800. The BM is NW  at 47158, 14462 el 2105 but I skipped it. I went SE on the trail to  46845, 13807 el 1900  then 46719, 13492 el 1950.  The trail drops off the rim at 46576, 12793 el 1700 but a tricky knife edge is just before that. It's safer to drop left down a drainage to get at the trail. It goes 350 feet into a gully and seems to end. I went down the gully then stepped onto the right rim at 46556, 12665 el 1500. That goes down steep and trail segments can be seen. At the bottom the trail is obvious running high on the bank of the river down to where the RR grade crosses. Dirt bikers made it that far up from Sperry Wash but I couldn't even see a way for hikers to get thru the brush to go up river. They fought nasty washouts on the RR grade for nothing trying to ride to Tecopa. That loop took me 4 and a half hours with maybe 200 noticeable gain. This hike is almost entirely in the Kingston Range Wildeness. Posted 2018.
• AMARGOSA RIVER CANYON TRAIL - a maintained trail runs along the river. A one way hike can be done from  China Ranch to Tecopa. Take the road behind the Tecopa post office and then stay left around barn ruins and on to the TH at N35 50491, W116 13446. Leave a car  there then drive east from Tecopa and follow signs to China Ranch and park at the new BLM TH. It has a restroom. Follow the map posted at the TH to get to the turnoff for the slot canyon, but stay on the trail along the river to get to Tecopa. It's a 5 or 6 mile hike that's so easy a dead man could do it. A side trip to the slot would add less than an hour. Bikes aren't allowed on the trail. But to use one for a shuttle, I would walk this the reverse way from Tecopa to the ranch then up the road to where it tops out on the divide and the pavement starts. Then coast back on a bike stashed there or use an ebike to ride the whole way. It's easier to hike it in this direction and there's an Indian trail shortcut at 49217, 13010 that cuts across a gooseneck. MIDDLE ENTRY - a canyon can be used to get to the trail between the two Trailheads. There is a Pavement Ends sign where the road to China Ranch tops out. From the sign, walk perpendicular away from the road down a wash or walk the left bank of it. It will lead to the trail then go left or right depending where your other vehicle is.  Posted 2018.
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