The Fletcher Canyon Trail is a beautiful hike nestled in the Mt. Charleston Wilderness Area, within an hour of the Las Vegas Strip. The hike is a gradual uphill through a pine forest along a (mainly dormant) stream and ends in Fletcher Canyon, a beautiful slot canyon with 200 feet walls, water-polished rocks, and great views of Mummy Mountain. One of the more unusual paths leads up Fletcher Canyon, a north side tributary of Kyle Canyon, which starts off wide, overgrown and rather uninteresting but eventually narrows, beyond a spring and seasonal stream, and for several hundred feet forms a deep, enclosed, slot-like section framed by smooth, grey brown walls of water-polished limestone. First time making it out to The Slots at Lower Kyle Canyon. I never knew there was a slot canyon at Mt. It looked all crumbly and rocks were falling from the top, we had to run through it. We hiked up a steep trail and got a nice view and looped back around. The lesser know area of Mount Charleston (Kyle Canyon) is the northern canyon of Lee Canyon, home the the Las Vegas Ski and Snowboard Resort. The hiking in this area is limited to the spectacular 6.1-mile Bristlecone Trail. Along this trail, hikers find ancient bristlecone trees, battered by cold temperatures and fierce wind.

The lesser know area of Mount Charleston (Kyle Canyon) is the northern canyon of Lee Canyon, home the the Las Vegas Ski and Snowboard Resort. The hiking in this area is limited to the spectacular 6.1-mile Bristlecone Trail. Along this trail, hikers find ancient bristlecone trees, battered by cold temperatures and fierce wind. Some of these trees might be as old as 5,000 years!

Kyle Canyon is definitely a nice reprieve to beat the Vegas heat. It is easy enough to make the 30-45 minute drive up to the mountains. If you live in the north/northwestern valley it can be an even shorter drive.

The Lee Canyon Ski Area is born in 1964 when the US Forest Service issues a Special Use Permit in order to provide winter recreation options in Southern Nevada. From downtown Las Vegas: Take U.S. Highway 95 north approx. 30 miles to Hwy 156, Lee Canyon. Follow Hwy 156 17 miles to the resort. The highway ends at Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort.

On the Deer Creek Highway, which crosses from Lee Canyon to Kyle Canyon.

Lee Canyon Meadow- great place to play in the winter- lots of snow

End of the Road- Lee Canyon:Helicopter landing pad/parking lot
(Mummy Mountain in the background)

Around Lee Canyon

Kyle Canyon Slots Trails

Mummy Mountain is the 2nd highest peak in southern Nevada (11528 ft /3514 m)

More photos of the Lee Canyon Area

Kyle Canyon Slots Trail Map

Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort (Summer)

US Forest Service sign for Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort

Tags: Bristlecone Trail, Deer Creek, hike, Kyle Canyon, Las Vegas Ski & Snowboard Resort, Lee Canyon, Meadow, Mummy Mountain

End of the Trail

Kyle Canyon Slots Trailer

There is no obvious end to the official trail, as the path continues along the ravine into medium-width narrows, up a few steeper sections and past a layered, curving cliff face on the south side. The gorge narrows more soon after; now there are only stones on the floor, no vegetation, and patches of snow are likely to remain into late spring. A series of enclosed, photogenic, vertical-walled passageways lead to a chokestone followed by a major junction, where the right (north) fork becomes quickly shallow, entering open, bushy terrain, while the left fork - the tightest part of the drainage - stays confined a little way further, round a few bends, until this too looses height and changes to an open wash. Following this fork entails climbing over several large chokestones. The rocks in the slots are predominately light grey in color, crossed by vertical bands of other shades, so are quite pretty, especially in spring when contrasted with the twisting path of lingering snow along the streamway.