Painted Pinnacles, Valley of Fire State Park
Nevada > Valley of Fire State Park > Scenic Drive > Painted Pinnacles
Painted Pinnacles
Colorful backcountry area east of Silica Dome; spires, ravines and ridges, around the upper end of North Fork Valley of Fire Wash. The Aztec sandstone is mainly pink, yellow and white, crossed by thick bands of red
Length: 3.2 miles, loop
Elevation change: 300 feet
Difficulty: Moderate; route-finding, scrambling
Type: Loop, mostly off-trail
Usage: Low
Season: Fall, winter, spring
Trailhead: Parking area for Silica Dome
Rating (1-5): ★★★★★
Elevation change: 300 feet
Difficulty: Moderate; route-finding, scrambling
Type: Loop, mostly off-trail
Usage: Low
Season: Fall, winter, spring
Trailhead: Parking area for Silica Dome
Rating (1-5): ★★★★★
Painted Pinnacles is the unofficial name of a backcountry area in Valley of Fire State Park, east of Silica Dome, where the Aztec sandstone bedrock is exposed. Much of the park is covered by the lower unit of this sandstone, formed of uniformly red rock, but here the more colorful upper unit appears - a mix of white, yellow and pink, crossed by bands of red.
This unit extends northwestwards, discontinuously, for 4 miles to the White Domes. The pinnacles region is only a quarter of a mile across but contains a great variety of eroded formations including slot canyons, ridges, spires, domes and lattice-type rocks, enough for several hours exploring.
The Painted Pinnacles are easily reached, by a 15 minute walk from the parking area at the end of the paved road to Silica Dome Overlook, but just a little difficult to traverse due to some steep slopes - the formations span about 200 feet of elevation, from the rim of cliffs to the north, where pink and yellow sandstone is first exposed, to the sandy wash below, which drains the formations and, to the south, joins Fire Canyon Wash. The easiest option is to descend to the lower level when approaching the formations, and inspect the ravines and pinnacles from below.
The washes and slopes have a good variety of wildflower species, rather more than the sandy plains along the approach route.
The road to Silica Dome ends at an elevated parking area with good views all around. Originally, the road continued another 3.5 miles, exiting the park and joining Hwy 169, but the remainder has been closed for many years and the easternmost section is disappeared, consumed by a silica mine. The closed track provides an easy start to the hike, eastwards for a quarter of a mile, over a minor saddle due north of the dome, then southeastwards along a faint path, moving just south of a low ridgeline. There is initially no sign of any interesting formations ahead, just a broad, sparsely grassy plain with big outcrops of the all-red sandstone ahead - to the east along the edge of Baseline Mesa, and to the south around Fire Canyon Wash.
After a while the path fades away, but continuing in the same direction soon reaches a shallow, slot-like drainage, through red and (mostly) whitish sandstone, then a similar, slightly deeper one, followed by a third, deeper still. Ahead, the land falls away to the main area of ravines and pinnacles, which is crossed by two or three sheer-walled gullies with soft crumbly slopes above, uneven terrain that is difficult to traverse.
The most photogenic, most pinnacle-filled area is along the east edge and the southeast corner, where several broad bands of red sandstone cross the predominantly yellow-white. Often the rocks are marked with fins and lattice structures, the result of compaction zones, cutting across the bedding planes. At the east edge of the formations is a wall of red sandstone and a little valley, which provides a route out, northwards - up a short, steep, rocky slope back to the open desert, then turning west along a faint path that rises gently and later intersects the similar path used on the approach.
This unit extends northwestwards, discontinuously, for 4 miles to the White Domes. The pinnacles region is only a quarter of a mile across but contains a great variety of eroded formations including slot canyons, ridges, spires, domes and lattice-type rocks, enough for several hours exploring.
The Painted Pinnacles are easily reached, by a 15 minute walk from the parking area at the end of the paved road to Silica Dome Overlook, but just a little difficult to traverse due to some steep slopes - the formations span about 200 feet of elevation, from the rim of cliffs to the north, where pink and yellow sandstone is first exposed, to the sandy wash below, which drains the formations and, to the south, joins Fire Canyon Wash. The easiest option is to descend to the lower level when approaching the formations, and inspect the ravines and pinnacles from below.
The washes and slopes have a good variety of wildflower species, rather more than the sandy plains along the approach route.
Approach, from Silica Done Overlook
The road to Silica Dome ends at an elevated parking area with good views all around. Originally, the road continued another 3.5 miles, exiting the park and joining Hwy 169, but the remainder has been closed for many years and the easternmost section is disappeared, consumed by a silica mine. The closed track provides an easy start to the hike, eastwards for a quarter of a mile, over a minor saddle due north of the dome, then southeastwards along a faint path, moving just south of a low ridgeline. There is initially no sign of any interesting formations ahead, just a broad, sparsely grassy plain with big outcrops of the all-red sandstone ahead - to the east along the edge of Baseline Mesa, and to the south around Fire Canyon Wash.
The Formations
After a while the path fades away, but continuing in the same direction soon reaches a shallow, slot-like drainage, through red and (mostly) whitish sandstone, then a similar, slightly deeper one, followed by a third, deeper still. Ahead, the land falls away to the main area of ravines and pinnacles, which is crossed by two or three sheer-walled gullies with soft crumbly slopes above, uneven terrain that is difficult to traverse.
Return Route
The most photogenic, most pinnacle-filled area is along the east edge and the southeast corner, where several broad bands of red sandstone cross the predominantly yellow-white. Often the rocks are marked with fins and lattice structures, the result of compaction zones, cutting across the bedding planes. At the east edge of the formations is a wall of red sandstone and a little valley, which provides a route out, northwards - up a short, steep, rocky slope back to the open desert, then turning west along a faint path that rises gently and later intersects the similar path used on the approach.
Painted Pinnacles Topo Map
Painted Pinnacles Wildflowers
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Painted Pinnacles - Similar Hikes
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