Potosi Mountain is a well-known peak in the Las Vegas area, one of the big peaks of the sprawling Spring Mountains which borders the Las Vegas metro area on the west. Mighty Mount Charleston, at nearly 12,000 feet, is the Spring Mountains range highpoint, the highpoint of Clark County, as well as the most prominent mountain in the state. Potosi Mountain is located about 20 air-miles south and slightly east of Charleston, and possesses an attractive profile as well as impressive prominence in spite of the superlatives of Charleston. Potosi is best known as the mountain into which a DC-3 airplane crashed in 1942, killing actress Carole Lombard among many others. The site of the crash site is kept secret by the Forest Service, although dedicated (and sometimes lucky) searchers have been able to find the site, at which some remains of the plane can be found. At the time, most of the plane was salvaged for its metals, so no big pieces remain. To be honest, I had no interest in seeking out the site. It just adds some interesting historical flavor to the peak.

Potosi Mountain is also well-known to tower builders, who have built communications towers on the tops of the three main summits of the mountain. To that end a road was constructed coming up from the south to allow service vehicles to rumble up into the range. The road, of course, makes for an easy option for a day hike to Potosi Mountain. The usual other alternative is to follow a ridge from the west then cross-country the last bits to the summit. After a few months in which I had hiked a few peaks and turned back on others, and all with some level of bush-whacking or route-finding, I honestly wanted an easy day out this time. No bush-whacking, no route finding, none of that. The service road option actually appealed to me! Even so it's over 3,000 vertical feet of gain in slightly less than five miles to the top, so it's still a good bit of exercise. But it meant I would have to do very little thinking and just follow the road, which is something I am good at doing. I had considered a hike up here in January but came right after a snowfall. Here it was April and summer just around the corner, so I planned a weekend visit to my folks in Henderson with plans to make a hike up Potosi on one of the days. I drove to my folks' place on Friday afternoon after work, covering the 310 miles in just over five hours, which is pretty good considering I went via Laughlin to avoid the back-ups at Hoover Dam, and that it was also typical friday Vegas traffic.

I woke very early on Saturday morning and drove out toward Potosi, leaving my folks' place around 5 a.m., planning to show up just as the sun was rising. I got onto Interstate-15 south to Jean, then west on NV-160 toward the small town of Goodsprings. From here I followed some local roads north about 4.5 miles to a Y-junction, going left, now following a dirt road that went another 1.8 miles or so into the foothills before coming to a locked gate. It was just after 6 a.m. when I arrived and backed into one of the pullouts. I got dressed into my hiking clothes and was on the move by 6:20, the sky alight with the new day but the sun still behind the eastern ranges. Comment on the drive: I missed the bypass road that leads off NV-160 before Goodsprings (didn't see it in the dark, I guess), and went into Goodsprings itself. This wasn't too much trouble. If this happens to you, I suggest taking Esmeralda Road north to Pacific, then hang a right, go past Revere, then take a dirt road on the left that connects to the paved bypass. This road is paved but pretty torn up with some big potholes. It leads to a gate (right at the aforementioned Y-junction) at a quarry. The road's name, as I learned while driving out, is "Goodsprings something something gravel bypass something" Road. Something like that. You can't miss it. I did.

Past the gate the road hangs a left and starts up very steeply. Shortly there is more pavement (!). This was unexpected - I think they may have just put it in since there was a pile of unused asphalt nearby. This goes for about a third of a mile, during which time the road is very steep. Going by the map it gains about 500 feet in this short bit. Doing the math this is about a 25-30% road gradient. Given that vehicles need access up here, the asphalt seems like a good idea to combat erosion and perhaps, downhill skidding vehicles. Even walking it was a grind. But it went up fast and within minutes I had passed the asphalted section. After passing a small knob I saw the remaining steep section of road as it gains up onto the main range crest. In all, the road gains about 1,800 feet in about 1.8 miles, roughly a 17-20% grade. I made good time. Actually, I had to stop and change into long pants when the breeze would chill me severely in the cool morning air. Sometimes it would be still and other times it would blow fast (in this case, maybe 25 mph at the fastest, not that fast, I guess). I arrived at the top of the initial steep section by 7:50 a.m., where I stopped and took a food and water break. The wind was pretty nippy, but I found a seat in the morning sun that helped.

Around the bend I was treated to a grand view of the first of the main Potosi summits. I knew better than to get my hopes up, knowing the true objective was still another air-mile north of this sub-peak. Even so, it was very impressive, if just for its sheer size. A fire from 2005 scorched this particular section of mountain, leaving nothing in its wake - no trees or grasses. The hillsides were rather barren. I could see my road high up on the peak's west flanks ahead of me. The overall effect was like a huge amphitheater. I also had good views down west into the Potosi Valley and the peaks and deserts toward Pahrump, but haze and dust occluded the horizons for now. There was even smatterings of snow in the north-facing shaded sections of rock and cliff. The road drops slightly at first then gains steeply for a short bit before moderating nicely. A side-road zooms up to the summit from here to the towers, but I ignored it. My progress here went very quickly. In sections the grade was very lenient and even level and some slight downhills. In less than a half-hour I had worked my way north of this first big summit to where I could now see the other two tower complexes and the true summit, still about a mile and a half north. So far, all was going to plan. The forest here was thicker, if in the Nevada sense: smatterings of bristlecone mainly, and all sorts of grassy underbrush and some interesting tumble-weedy plants I had never seen before.

The remaining distance to the summit took me another 45 minutes I'd say, including stops for breaks. The road crested near the second tower set, then dropped steeply about 100 feet to a saddle before wriggling up to the last complex of towers near a building. Other than occasional steepness, there was no difficulties to mention. The weather was improving nicely - warming up and becoming more still. I ambled up to the buildings, dropped my pack and walking stick and scrambled the final easy 40 vertical feet up some rocks following wiring conduit to the very summit. Not surprisingly, there was a tower. So what. It was a great hike and the views were tremendous! Mount Charleston dominated to the north, still capped in snow. Las Vegas, of course, could be seen 'everywhere' in the valleys to the east. The nearby Red Rocks could be seen as well. The big peak east was McCullough, which is one I'd like to do soon, too. I didn't spend long up top, instead walking back down to my pack and having lunch on one of the huge concrete guy-wiring anchors nearby the road. A true wilderness experience. I had a signal so I called my folks to say hi, and also to call my wife to say hi and tell her I was safe. It was about 9:30 when I finally checked the time, so I figure an even three hours to the top overall.

I spent about 15 minutes having an early lunch on the concrete anchor block before starting the walk down. The walk out went well and fast, taking the downhills at a nice steady pace. Before the steep downhill section back to the trailhead I changed into my shorts again since the weather was warming up pretty good. I took the overall pace slow to enjoy the views and to take photographs in the slightly better, less hazy lighting. The steep downhill walk went fast, too, but on the steepest bits I had to go kind of slow lest I slip on the loose rock. Even on the asphalt parts I had to go slow. There was a guy driving up this road, presumably to go check on the towers. He was inching up maybe at 1 mph; it didn't look like fun. He had a full-size Chevy truck. I'd opt for a Jeep on a road like this. In any case I was back to my truck at 11:40 for an egress of just under two hours and a total hike of just over five hours, including rest stops. Well, that felt good! Just what I wanted - good exercise, no difficulties and another 2,000-foot prom peak to check off in the logs. I drove out slow and stopped for more photographs, then stopped in Jean to call my family and my wife to let them know all was well. Later that day we went out for a buffet meal at one of the casinos. I had built a good appetite and hadn't eaten much after getting back to my folks' place, so I was ready, you might say, for the buffet.

The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing and generally hanging around the folks. I drove back to the Phoenix area early monday morning. Potosi proved to be just what the doctor ordered. A good day's exercise, lovely weather, lovely scenery and a peak for the efforts!