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Giant Ledge Mine Trail, Caruthers Canyon
Hiking Around Las Vegas, Mojave National Preserve
Caruthers Canyon
Caruthers CanyonCaruthers Canyon Trail sign, missing after the fire (view N)

Overview

The Giant Ledge Mine Trail runs 1.2 miles up an old road through Caruthers Canyon to the old Giant Ledge Mine. The road parallels Caruthers Canyon Wash, staying on one side or the other, as it climbs at moderate grades through a wonderland of eroded granite rock piles, spires, and balanced rocks.

The 2023 York Fire burned the lower canyon, but because the trees are gone from the first half-mile of trail, the views are now more open and expansive. After about 0.5 miles, outside the burn zone, the views are intermixed with relatively lush Pinyon-Juniper Woodland flora that provides shade for hikers.

As would be expected for a mine dating from before 1927, it is safer to stay out and stay alive. There is plenty to see while peering into the darkness from the safety of the mine entrances, including one opening that collapsed despite timbers at the entrance. For hikers who want to see inside the mines without the danger, click here.

Link to map.

Caruthers Canyon
Trailhead at fork in Caruthers Canyon Road (view N)

Watch Out

Other than the standard warnings about hiking in the desert, ... mines are never safe to enter. I took a calculated risk on this one, and because I did, everyone can look at the pictures and nobody else needs to go inside. Be safe and do not enter the dark, dangerous mines.

While out, please respect the land and the other people out there, and try to Leave No Trace of your passage. Due to the remote location of this canyon, be sure to bring the 10 Essentials.

Caruthers Canyon
Caruthers Canyon Rd continues past the campsite turnoff (view N)

Getting to the Trailhead

This hike is located in the Mojave National Preserve, about 2 hours south of Las Vegas.

From town, drive south on I-15 into California to Nipton Road. Turn left onto Nipton Road and drive east about 4 miles to Ivanpah Road. Turn right onto Ivanpah Road and drive south for about 24 miles to the signed New York Mountain Road. Turn right onto New York Mountain Road and drive west for about 5-1/2 miles to an unsigned four-way intersection with Caruthers Canyon Road. Turn right onto Caruthers Road and drive north, passing an old windmill, for about three miles to a trailhead at a fork in the road. The best parking is a bit back down the road, but the last parking is just past the fork. Park near here; this is the trailhead. See Caruthers Canyon Road for details.

Caruthers Canyon
Caruthers Canyon Rd at a parking area (view N)

The Hike

Regardless of the vehicle driven or the parking spot chosen, continue north on Caruthers Canyon Road. At a fork in the road (Table 1, Waypoint 01) where straight appears to continue up a wash and the right runs up to the stone-table campsite, the route follows the road in the bottom of the canyon.

Shortly, the road passes where a sign on the right used to say: Caruthers Canyon Trail (Wpt. 02A). Along this section, the road used to be bordered by heavy Shrub Live Oak and shaded by Single-leaf Pinyon Pine, but the fire changed all of that. As a result, the towering granite crags and balanced spires are easier to see.

The road continues up the canyon. For hikers, the road is fine and easy to follow (side roads are obscure), but for drivers, the main road continues to deteriorate up the canyon.

Caruthers Canyon
Parking area (view NE from Caruthers Canyon Rd)

Before the fire, vegetation along the start of the trail was dense and diverse. Shrub Live Oak was thick, and the spaces between the oaks were filled with Manzanita, Ashy Silktassel, Cliffrose, Matchweed, Narrowleaf Goldenbush, Banana Yucca, and lots of cactus (Tulip Pricklypear, Grizzlybear Cactus, Mojave Kingcup Cactus, and Spinystar Cactus). Hikers could keep an ear out for Woodhouse's Scrub-Jays, and watch for Western Fence Lizards scurrying behind the rocks. The fire changed all of this.

By about 0.2 miles out, now near the edge of the fire, the burn was more patchy, and stands of oaks and other trees remain in places.

At about 0.36 miles out (Wpt. 02B), the Gaia GPS app shows that the trail turns right into a side wash (old road) and heads upstream. Hikers should stay left, which can be mistaken for the wash bottom at this point, and continue hiking up the main canyon. The side wash leads to interesting boulders that make for a nice lunch spot.

Most drivers in 4WD vehicles will want to stop about 0.4 miles out, and by about 0.5 miles out, hikers are beyond the edge of the fire, and the vegetation remains as it has been for decades.

Caruthers Canyon
Grand scenery (view E from Caruthers Canyon Rd)

At about 0.65 miles out, the road crosses to the west side of the wash (Wpt. 03). Very few vehicles make it this far. The miners did some nice rock work along here laying in stones to hold up the road.

The road eventually crosses back to the east side of the wash (Wpt. 04) and runs up along rocky cliffs where the road was cut into the hillside. A landslide here (Wpt. 05) blocks the road, keeping all vehicles from continuing up the canyon.

The old road runs up the east side of the canyon, then once again crosses the wash (Wpt. 06) to the west side. Running along the west side of the wash, the road briefly dips into the wash, then cuts out again onto the west side. At about this point, tailings from the Giant Ledge Mine become visible farther up the canyon.

The road crosses the wash (Wpt. 07) to the east side for the last time, and just across the wash, the road splits (Wpt. 08). To the left, the road runs about 100 feet to the base of the tailings pile (Wpt. 09) at the edge of the wash. A collapsed wood-and-tin ore chute lies crumpled on the bottom of the tailings pile. The chute probably carried tailings to the far edge of the pile where they could be dumped over the edge.

Caruthers Canyon
Caruthers Canyon Rd continues (view N)

Either climbing steeply up the side of the tailings pile or walking up the right fork on the road, the route arrives on a flat area atop the tailings pile (Wpt. 10) and some of the mine openings.

Note that walking up the road to the right, the first adit encountered has collapsed, despite timbers intended to hold it open. Let this stand as a warning to hikers - mines are never safe to enter.

Atop the tailings pile, just around the corner to the east, an old pipe comes out of the main adit. To the right is a shaft - don't get too close to the edge! To the left are other adits. Straight up the hill is a shaft and an adit, and up across the hillside 100 yards to the east is another adit. I didn't record good notes here, but these three sites were the main areas of activity, although I've underestimated the number of adits.

For hikers who want to see inside the mines without the danger, click here. Return to the trailhead by following your footprints back the old road to the trailhead (Wpt. 01).

Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd at first of many rocky spots (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd continues (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Grand scenery (view NE from Caruthers Canyon Rd)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd starting into another rocky area (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd at another rocky area (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd at another rocky area (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd at another rocky area (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Grand scenery (view NE from Caruthers Canyon Rd)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd at a steep sideslope (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd improves a bit (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd improves a bit (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd entering another burned area (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd with some green trees (view NW)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd at another rocky area (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd approaching a side wash (view N)
Caruthers Canyon
A different mine, not on this route (view NE zoom)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd dropping into a side wash (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Gaia App says to turn up this wash -- don't do it (view NE)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Don't follow Gaia App: road does not go up this wash (view NE)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd continues up the main canyon (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Grand scenery (view NW from Caruthers Canyon Rd)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd with lots of small rocks (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd at a rough patch (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd at another campsite on the right (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Campsite on the right (view SE from Caruthers Canyon Rd)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd continues up the main canyon (view N)
Caruthers Canyon Road
Caruthers Canyon Rd (view N)
Caruthers Canyon
Grizzlybear Cactus in flower on the side of the trail
Caruthers Canyon
Balanced rocks and stone spires
Caruthers Canyon
Balanced rocks and stone spires
Caruthers Canyon
Balanced rocks and Shrub Live Oak
Caruthers Canyon
Narrow road (view N)
Caruthers Canyon
Last campsite (view NE)
Caruthers Canyon
Crags and spires
Caruthers Canyon
Crossing wash to west side (view N)
Caruthers Canyon
Stonework holds up roadway
Caruthers Canyon
Crossing wash to east side (view N)
Caruthers Canyon
Unusual erosion pattern in granite boulder
Caruthers Canyon
Landslide blocks road (view N)
Caruthers Canyon
Old road continues past the landslide (view N)
Caruthers Canyon
Old road continues past the landslide (view N)
Caruthers Canyon
Last wash crossing; mine tailings visible (view NE)
Caruthers Canyon
Old road forks just before mine area
Caruthers Canyon
To the left: collapsed ore chute and tailings pile
Caruthers Canyon
To the left: collapsed ore chute and tailings pile
Caruthers Canyon
Collapsed ore chute and tailings pile (view from above)
Caruthers Canyon
Tailings pile
Caruthers Canyon
To the right: collapsed adit with roofing timbers
Caruthers Canyon
To the right: another collapsed adit?
Caruthers Canyon
Atop tailings pile (view E)
Caruthers Canyon
Main adit and shaft
Caruthers Canyon
Copper ore in the rock wall outside the main adit
Caruthers Canyon
New York Mountains (view NW from main adit)
Caruthers Canyon
New York Mountains (view NW from east adit)

Hiking Back Down the Caruthers Canyon

Caruthers Canyon Caruthers Canyon
Caruthers Canyon Caruthers Canyon
Caruthers Canyon Caruthers Canyon
Caruthers Canyon more to come

Table 1. Trail Coordinates Based on GPS Data (NAD27; UTM Zone 11S). Download Hiking GPS Waypoints (*.gpx) file.

Wpt. Location UTM Easting UTM Northing Elevation (ft) Point-to-Point Distance (mi) Cumulative Distance (mi)
01 Trailhead 654841 3901041 5,674 0.00 0.00
02A Caruthers Cyn Trail Sign 654883 3901089 5,669 0.05 0.05
02B Fork in the Canyon 654967 3901489 5,703 0.31 0.36
03 Road Crosses Wash West 654720 3901834 5,744 0.29 0.65
04 Road Crosses Wash East 654622 3902002 5,817 0.14 0.79
05 Landslide 654632 3902087 5,961 0.07 0.86
06 Road Crosses Wash West 654654 3902306 5,961 0.16 1.02
07 Road Crosses Wash East 654693 3902384 5,975 0.07 1.09
08 Road Forks 654700 3902384 6,036 0.01 1.10
09 Base of Tailings Pile 654710 3902424 6,001 [0.03] .
10 Giant Ledge Mine, Main 654737 3902438 6,070 0.07 1.17
11 Giant Ledge Mine, Upper 654763 3902449 6,100 0.02 1.19
12 Giant Ledge Mine, East 654831 3902460 6,161 0.05 1.24
01 Trailhead 654841 3901041 5,674 1.24 2.48

Happy Hiking! All distances, elevations, and other facts are approximate.
copyright; Last updated 241009

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