The desert north of I-15 between Las Vegas and Mesquite, Nevada, stretches as far as the eye can see and beckons the backcountry explorer.
I've made some inroads exploring Southern Nevada, but had never explored the Mormon Mountains. I waited too long. The mountains are now the Mormon Mountains Wilderness Area. Driving around their base, we discovered a road the BLM has designated a backcountry access route. We decided to turn west toward the mountains and see where it went.
The road deteriorated to the "jeep trail" it was labeled on the topo map. It wound through desert foothills, climbed past some ruins, an old corral, and finally ended at the base of steep cliffs. The views were great.
Even though the actual mountain range was closed, it was still fun getting out where very few ever go to explore our beautiful backcountry.