Looking to trade the triple-digit summer heat of Vegas for crisp mountain air and ancient forests? You don’t have to leave the state to find an alpine paradise. Just a scenic 4-and-a-half-hour road trip north up US-93 lies Great Basin National Park – a remote gem that completely defies typical Nevada stereotypes. And its ‘Bristlecone Pine Glacier Trail’ just made National Geographic’s ‘100 Hikes Of A Lifetime U.S.A.’ list.
What’s so special about Great Basin National Park?
“This park subverts a lot of people’s expectations,” notes Travis Mason-Bushman, Great Basin’s chief of interpretation. Why? Because many visitors envision this place as a sun-baked extension of Death Valley. However, Great Basin boasts Lehman Caves – the longest developed cave system in Nevada – and the towering 13,062-foot Wheeler Peak. That’s the tallest mountain located entirely within the state’s borders!
Bristlecone Pine Glacier Trail, a hiker’s paradise
But the true crown jewel for hikers is the Bristlecone and Glacier Trail. To begin, you’ll navigate the winding Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive to a trailhead sitting at a breathless 10,000 feet in elevation. From there, there’s a 1.4-mile trek, climbing 600 vertical feet into a rugged grove of Great Basin bristlecone pines. This very grove was once home to Prometheus, a 4,900-year-old pine that held the title of the oldest known non-clonal organism before it was tragically cut down by a researcher in the 1960s. Today, its exact former location remains a closely guarded park secret.
If you continue just one mile past the ancient pines, the rocky trail leads directly to the rim of the Wheeler Peak Glacier. It’s the only remaining glacier between the Sierra Nevada and the Rocky Mountains, nestled dramatically beneath a 1,000-foot vertical limestone face.
Know before you go
Because of the high elevation, the prime window to tackle this bucket-list hike is between Memorial Day and Labor Day. it’s the ultimate summer weekend escape for Vegas locals!
