White Dome Hike in Valley of Fire, NV

Overton, Nevada
Stewart's Point Boondocking

The sun was up and so were we.  Off to hike the White Domes on our last day at Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada.

On the way to White Domes we pulled over for some other short hikes we hadn't had time for.  Plus there was an Earthcache hidden in the canyon at a tank.  For those that didn't know, in the desert, a tank is an indentation in the rock where rain water collects.

What we really like about this park is that you can venture out and explore just about everywhere.  We hiked back further on this trail and found a small slot canyon with an arch above it.

Steve at the beginning of the small slot.

There is the arch just above it.  Pretty cool discovery. Many things are not mentioned, you just have to walk around and look for them.

Ok.  As we drive back up the White Domes Loop, we once again see the beautiful pastel colors.  There is another hike we wanted to do that led up to the top of a sandstone dome.  Another Earthcache was at the top for those willing to climb it.  Hurley couldn't wait.

The top of that white dome is where we're headed.  It was about 3 miles roundtrip.  Most people just pull over to take the picture of the color change on the mountain.  Not us.  Up we go!

Views looking down on the other side.

Here's the top. 

After that we continued our drive and saw a photo shoot of a rock band.  Wish we knew more about it.  Pretty cool scenery for photo shoots.

There's a lot of people out here.  Some to do the Dome Hike and others to climb the White Domes themselves which are to the left of the picture.

Another easy mile plus hike.  This one is a loop that takes you through another small slot canyon.

The beginning was the only challenging part.  You had to go uphill in some thick sand then down a slippery, smooth sand covered rocky area.

Once you were down you'd find yourself constantly saying, "Wow! Look at that!"

Many movies were filmed in the Valley of Fire.  Above is the only ruins left used in the movie, The Professionals, filmed in 1963.  Other movies filmed around the park include:

Entering the slot there were only a few of us.

This guy was having a fun time posing for this picture like Spiderman.

 

And coming out the other side are some other people.

The backside was level hiking and with many different colored rocky hills.

Every now and then you could capture the moon rising just over them.

These hills reminded me of Neapolitan Ice Cream.

This area was covered with what are called Indian Marbles.  They are rocks that have freed themselves from erosion.  This particular area was covered with them.

Fins created by erosion on this rock.

The last of the trail loop.

This part of the park has got to have the most crooked, hilly road.  Makes for a cool picture.

And a little more zoomed in.

And my last picture was of the Balanced Rock near the Visitor's Center.  The lighting was never right for me to get a shot before.  We loved our week here and could've spent another week.  There are several longer, more challenging hikes that we'd have loved to do.  Some include some rock climbing.  It's a great park that you can drive through and see a lot with several short, easy hikes and things to see right along the road. 

 

 

While Steve and I were out hiking and having a ball, Jo and Craig were back at their rig doing some chores and making dinner for us.  Again, we feel a little guilty!  Jo is an amazing cook and tonight we had a shrimp boil, potatoes, corn, home made cole slaw and French bread.  YUM!  Desert was her delicious blueberry crumble with vanilla ice cream.  Guess now I need another hike!

If you get to Louisiana, get yourself some of this great seasoning.  Perfect on seafood!

We also watched a taped show Craig had of Robert Plant performing with Allison Krause.  It was nice to hear the gentle country sound that she sings combined with his.  He was very toned down and sang in her slow, sultry style.  They were mostly his songs that sounded incredible sung with a bluegrass sound.  Some of the songs they sang were, Please Read the Letter, Gone Gone Gone and Rich Girl.  Here is Please Read the Letter on YouTube.  It may have a short commercial before it starts but it's worth it.

We really enjoyed the company of Craig and Jo these past couple of weeks boondocking through Nevada.  We still get to spend another week with them at the RV Dreams Reunion Rally in Pahrump. We are really looking forward to time with several other couples we met back in 2014 where we all went on the road full time.