Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge:
Beautiful springs, endangered fish, interesting history; stop and see for yourself!
Visited March 24, 2016; reviewed May 14, 2016 See this review on TripAdvisor.
Amargosa Valley, Neveda
Lynn and I stopped at Ash Meadow on our way from Las Vegas to Death Valley. We figured it would be a short stop, maybe an hour or less. We ended up staying about four! Plenty to see in the interesting wildlife refuge.
We entered the refuge from Belle Vista Road. Our first stop was at the park sign where we studied the information kiosk including the map of the refuge. The visitor center was sort of centrally located so that’s where we headed next. Good move as the friendly staff lady there was most helpful and extremely enthusiastic about the Ash Meadows. She suggested viewing the movie that shows continuously in the visitor center as it provides the history of the area and highlights many of the sites in the refuge. She also pointed out a few of the key points-of-interest, primarily the springs, within the refuge. She suggested five stops for our self-guided tour: the boardwalk to the Crystal springs just behind the visitor center, Rogers Spring, Longstreet Cabin and Spring, Devils Hole and Point of Rocks. Since we were there, we decided to take the time and visit each of these areas. Each of these areas are accessible by well-maintained dirt roads.
So here’s the rundown on the places we visited within Ash Meadows.
The visitor center is rather small but it is the place to start your visit so that you can get the lay of the land. The informational video is well worth the time as it provides a very good overview of the refuge including the history of the area and of course a discussion about the endangered pupfish.
The Crystal Spring Boardwalk behind the visitor center is the longest of the walks we took but still not quite a mile. It provides nice views of the surrounding landscape as well as an excellent viewing platform for the creek and spring. Ideal for seeing the pupfish. This is an easy, flat walk.
Rogers Spring is at the end of one of the dirt roads. The spring is a very short distance from the parking area. Small, colorful spring which provides another viewing opportunity for the little pupfish.
Longstreet Cabin and Spring is along the same road as Rogers Spring and takes a short walk from the parking area (again, an easy flay walk from the parking area; there is a restroom at the parking lot). Interesting history outlined on the signs at the trailhead. The reconstructed cabin is interesting and the spring is very pretty and in a lovely setting.
Devils Hole, which is a detachment of Death Valley National Park, is an interesting natural wonder, but there really is not much to see. You can peer down into the deep hole where the pupfish live, but it is too deep and dark to really see anything. We walked around to the second hole but alas the view is no better. This is also the only trail that we hiked in the refuge but it is easy (not a flat boardwalk like at the other stops). If you are pressed for time, consider skipping this stop.
The Point of Rocks boardwalk was very nice. It meandered along the stream and by the springs and also afforded nice views of the surrounding landscapes. Unlike the other walks, there was cover from the trees growing along the creek which made this a pleasant little jaunt. There is a picnic pavilion at the trailhead along with restrooms. This was the prettiest of the short walks we took at Ash Meadows.
Our visit was in late March and we arrived mid-morning and stayed until early afternoon, so we were there when the critters were less active, but we still saw several birds flitting about. While it was a sunny, blue sky day, the temperature when we visited was very pleasant. That said, most of the places that we toured in the refuge are exposed so take the proper precautions (hat, sunscreen, water…you know the drill).
Beautiful springs, endangered fish, interesting history; stop and see for yourself!
Visited March 24, 2016; reviewed May 14, 2016 See this review on TripAdvisor.
Amargosa Valley, Neveda
Lynn and I stopped at Ash Meadow on our way from Las Vegas to Death Valley. We figured it would be a short stop, maybe an hour or less. We ended up staying about four! Plenty to see in the interesting wildlife refuge.
We entered the refuge from Belle Vista Road. Our first stop was at the park sign where we studied the information kiosk including the map of the refuge. The visitor center was sort of centrally located so that’s where we headed next. Good move as the friendly staff lady there was most helpful and extremely enthusiastic about the Ash Meadows. She suggested viewing the movie that shows continuously in the visitor center as it provides the history of the area and highlights many of the sites in the refuge. She also pointed out a few of the key points-of-interest, primarily the springs, within the refuge. She suggested five stops for our self-guided tour: the boardwalk to the Crystal springs just behind the visitor center, Rogers Spring, Longstreet Cabin and Spring, Devils Hole and Point of Rocks. Since we were there, we decided to take the time and visit each of these areas. Each of these areas are accessible by well-maintained dirt roads.
So here’s the rundown on the places we visited within Ash Meadows.
The visitor center is rather small but it is the place to start your visit so that you can get the lay of the land. The informational video is well worth the time as it provides a very good overview of the refuge including the history of the area and of course a discussion about the endangered pupfish.
The Crystal Spring Boardwalk behind the visitor center is the longest of the walks we took but still not quite a mile. It provides nice views of the surrounding landscape as well as an excellent viewing platform for the creek and spring. Ideal for seeing the pupfish. This is an easy, flat walk.
Rogers Spring is at the end of one of the dirt roads. The spring is a very short distance from the parking area. Small, colorful spring which provides another viewing opportunity for the little pupfish.
Longstreet Cabin and Spring is along the same road as Rogers Spring and takes a short walk from the parking area (again, an easy flay walk from the parking area; there is a restroom at the parking lot). Interesting history outlined on the signs at the trailhead. The reconstructed cabin is interesting and the spring is very pretty and in a lovely setting.
Devils Hole, which is a detachment of Death Valley National Park, is an interesting natural wonder, but there really is not much to see. You can peer down into the deep hole where the pupfish live, but it is too deep and dark to really see anything. We walked around to the second hole but alas the view is no better. This is also the only trail that we hiked in the refuge but it is easy (not a flat boardwalk like at the other stops). If you are pressed for time, consider skipping this stop.
The Point of Rocks boardwalk was very nice. It meandered along the stream and by the springs and also afforded nice views of the surrounding landscapes. Unlike the other walks, there was cover from the trees growing along the creek which made this a pleasant little jaunt. There is a picnic pavilion at the trailhead along with restrooms. This was the prettiest of the short walks we took at Ash Meadows.
Our visit was in late March and we arrived mid-morning and stayed until early afternoon, so we were there when the critters were less active, but we still saw several birds flitting about. While it was a sunny, blue sky day, the temperature when we visited was very pleasant. That said, most of the places that we toured in the refuge are exposed so take the proper precautions (hat, sunscreen, water…you know the drill).