LAKE MEAD NATIONAL RECREATION AREA
Activity: Day Hike, Light Scrambling
6.5 Miles, 679’ elevation gain, 3 hour duration, Rated Easy to Moderate
Date: April 25, 2026

This is a great day hike with many exciting attributes from views of Lake Mead, some very cool rock formations along a flowing stream, a really nice slot canyon that will make you think that you were in Utah or Arizona.

My friend Jackie and I took a popular hike that I had done a couple years ago, ( White Owl Canyon via Hole 33 ), and extended it in a rather adventurous fashion making it almost twice as long as the popular route. I might add twice as fun, but probably twice as physical as well. Which was something I was looking for and Jackie was a true trooper trudging up the incline all red in the face near the end of our exploration.

Lake Mead National Recreation Area is a pay area. If you have a National Parks Pass then you are golden. We started our hike near Las Vegas Bay Picnic Area.

The trail from past the Las Vegas Bay Picnic took us along the Las Vegas Wash which was flowing nicely. Water moving through this arid area over time created these interesting rock formations or pillars.








I would suggest that you have a hiking app as it seemed the only named trail in this area was the White Owl Trail which starts at it’s trailhead on top of a bluff. Certainly you can start there as well. We just did some add on’s which we felt were both scenic and adventurous.

For your own benefit in making a decision which hike you might be interested in you can review the map tracker that I have posted here and then look at my link from my pervious hike a couple years ago.
White Owl Canyon is a great place for those in the Las Vegas area to experience a cool slot canyon.











We exited the slot canyon into a wide wash and started to climb.






Then we made our way down from the high point and back to my 4Runner TRD Pro. This was a fun hike and it was great to be able to share this Adventure with my friend Jackie.

Sharing White Owl Canyon
CLICK THE PIC!


I was happy to share White Owl Canyon with my good friend Jackie. She had always wanted to do this adventure and had recommended the hike to me a couple years ago. The original plan on this day was to do a hike that was called Lake Mead Shoreline Trail, not realizing that hike would run into a portion of the White Owl Canyon Hike. So when we realized that White Owl Canyon was nearby there is no way that Jackie was going to miss it. She had been jealous of my trek a couple years back ‘White Owl Canyon via 33 Hole.‘ Sharing Balance gained from profound experiences in Nature is what ’Pursuing Balance Through Adventure’ is all about. Jackie works very hard to provide her daughter a step in the right direction through good schools which led to college and now heading towards a Masters Degree. Putting in the hours Jackie does, and even taking on odd jobs in addition, to enable a dream for her daughter means that more than most Jackie needs Balance in her life. Reconnecting with Nature and all the benefits of a hike like this can bring can do just that. So it was really fun to hike together, push Jackie a bit in that this was not an Easy hike. There were some interesting parts that looked a little perilous. She was skeptical about dropping down into something that looked as if we might not be able to get out of. If we got walled out in the canyon and were forced to turn back we could be hiking past sunset. So she was pushed a bit in regards to her physicality as she became very red in the face as we clambered up a ridge. She was pushed a bit as well as it pertains to her comfort zone not really liking scrambling down into a tight section. Jackies life is challenging. It is important to keep it all in check, to Balance the crazy work a day, busy schedule, head aches and the ups and downs of life with the extraordinary bounty of Nature and the deep emotional richness it provides. Stay with me as there is always more Balance ahead. You can accomplish this by doing these simple tasks: COMMENT, LIKE, FOLLOW and SHARE. You can purchase my top quality Adventure Wear at SHOP APPAREL. Go up to the menu above and you will discover that PBTA ventures all over the West of this great country of ours. There are many magical places to explore and please use this to inspire your next adventure. Each location is a separate website and thus needs to be FOLLOWED independently.
Happy Trails-
Roger Jenkins
Pursing Balance Through Adventure





















































































































































































