For Detailed Information on Getting to Gold Butte National Monument, Hours of Operation, Entrance Fees, Camping, Hiking Permits, Precautions, Rules and Regulations, and Links to More Information, visit the Gold Butte Area Overview Page.

Gold Butte National Monument, administered by the BLM, is located about 2 hours east of Las Vegas (map) (official PDF map) between the Overton Arm of Lake Mead and the Arizona border. Gold Butte is wild and remote with high peaks, low valleys, grand views, lots of history, mixed up geology, and huge solitude for hiking, camping, horseback riding, and off-highway driving.

The geology of this sandstone-limestone-granitic-metamorphic faulted-twisted-contorted-eroded land, while nearly impossible to comprehend in total, is stunningly stark and beautiful. Three major ecosystems (Mojave Desert, Great Basin Desert, and the Colorado Plateau) meet here, providing for a varied and diverse flora and fauna. Much of the area has been protected for years to preserve Desert Bighorn Sheep and Desert Tortoise.

Elevations in Gold Butte range from relatively low desert (1,200 ft elevation) to mountain peaks with conifer forests (to 8,100 ft elevation). In the lower areas, activities generally are restricted to the cooler months (e.g., October through May). At higher elevations, cool mountain breezes provide a respite from the most extreme summer heat.

Gold Butte National Monument includes two designated wilderness areas: the Lime Canyon Wilderness Area (23,233 acres) and the Jumbo Springs Wilderness Area (4,631 acres), both of which provide nice hiking, and be sure to do some Birding in Gold Butte.