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Avi Kwa Ame National Monument
Birdwatching at Avi Kwa Ame National Monument. Courtesy Bureau of Land Management.
Associate Pages
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Visitor Statistics
Not Available
Avi Kwa Ame National Monument
Park Size
Avi Kwa Ame National Monument
506,814 Federal and Total Acres.
Park Fees
Free
Backcountry and roadside camping in undeveloped areas is allowed. It is not clear whether any areas require a permit.
Weather
This is the desert of Nevada. It is very hot here in summer, over 100 degrees many days, plus in the months surrounding it. Please plan accordingly and check the weather conditions and reports often. Water is imperative, even on a short hike. In summer, consumming 1 quart per hour you hike is a good idea. Always hike within your capacity and try to stay indoors or in shade in the midday.
Photo above: Chunk of torquoise mined in the area, 1968, author Frank Morrissey. Nevada Bureau of Mines. Right: Scene of desert and rising Spirit Mountain in distance at Avi Kwa Ame National Monument. Courtesy Bureau of Land Management.
Avi Kwa Ame National Monument
Avi Kwa Ame National Monument is a great respite if your vacation includes Las Vegas just north, and a great place to visit non bright lights anytime to renew your spirit. It has been that refuge for thousands of years by the Native American tribes of the area, calling it Spirit Mountain in English, but Avi Kwa Ame in their native tongue. It is a sacred place, one that should still be reverered, and that is why President Biden designated it a National Monument during his years in office on March 21, 2023. It has over five hundred thousand acres to explore, by trail, to look for remnants of heritage, reaching back to the original ceremonial days or forward to Hollywood stars and cattle ranches. It is a new National Monument, so facilities are still in the Bureau of Land Management phase, which will continue to run most of the land. A new land management plan should be in place within a few years with additional tourism aspects added, although it will remain mostly a spiritual open land space. The National Park Service does control some land near the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Visit there before the crowds increase.
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Avi Kwa Ame National Monument Then
For the peoples of the the Mojave, Chemehuevi, and Southern Paiute, Avi Kwa Ame, i.e. Spirit Mountain is considered one of the most sacred places on the planet, central to the story of their creation. Its import extends to the Cocopah, Halchidhoma, Havasupai, Hopi, Hualapai, Kumeyaay, Maricopa, Pai Pai, Quechan, Yavapai, and Zuni Tribes as well. The land includes the Highland, Castle, and Dead Mountains, plus the Newberry, McCullough, and Lucy Gray Mountains surrounding and part of it. The Avi Kwa Ame is part of the Newberry Mountains. How long have humans inhabited the region? There are findings that date back over ten thousand years. There are rockshelters with petroglyphs that prove some of that heritage.
Photo above: Photograph of Spirit Mountain during its descent, 2006, Stan Shebs. Courtesy Wikipedia Commons C.C. 3.0. Below: Walking Box Ranch at Avi Kwa Ame National Monument, BLM. Courtesy Bureau of Land Management.
Avi Kwa Ame National Monument Now
There are roads and uses currently in place before the designation that will be allowed to continue. But for what you can do, how about hunting, camping, hiking, OHV use, photography and more. You can learn about the heritage mentioned above, as well as areas of more current uses. Yes, there is part of the Old Spanish National Historic Trail and Walking Box Ranch. It was the location of training for soldiers of World War II under General George Patton through the Cold War. As noted elsewhere, the ground contained turquoise, gold, silver, copper, lead, and molybdenum, so the remnants of those activities are still around a turn. And as you are turning, you might spy Bighorn Sheep, a Gila Monster, or some Desert Tortoises.
The monument is just south of Las Vegas in the handle of Nevada and can be accessed from Nevada Route 95, North to South, and Nevada Route 164, West to East. In the south, with Spirit Mountain to the north, is Nevada Route 163 that also runs West to East.
T-Shirts and Souvenirs
Avi Kwa Ame National Monument T-Shirts and Souvenirs from the official merchandise of America's Best History. Great for fans of the new National Monument south of Las Vegas, Nevada.
Avi Kwa Ame National Monument
Things You Should Not Miss
1. Drive the Christmas Tree Pass Loop that gives you good looks of Spirit Mountain.
2. For those that like such things, hike along the Mojave Road, part of the old Spanish National Historic Trail and follow the footsteps of Jedediah Smith on his early European sightings during a fur trading expedition in 1826.
3. While walking around the expansive monument, take some time to listen and watch the birds of the desert. Avi Kwa Ame is known as a great birdwatching site, situated north of the Sonoran Desert and within the Mojave. Be on the lookout for Red-tailed Hawk, Loggerhead Shrike, LeConte's Thrasher, Horned Lark, Verdin and the Black-throated Sparrow. Once higher in washes toward the mountains, listen for Costa's Hummingbird, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Crissal Thrasher, Rock and Cactus Wren, Phainopepla, Verdin, Black-throated Sparrow and the House Finch. Among the Yucca trees of the Joshua Tree woodlands, nest Red-tailed Hawks, Great Horned Owl, American Kestrel, Gilded Flicker and the Ladder-backed Woodpecker.
Visitor FAQ
What's There Now
Avi Kwa Ave National Monument
Beyond the nature that abounds in this rugged terrain, whether in the mountains or lowlands, there are a few European settler remnants, including the Walking Box Ranch, see below, and mining and military remnants. However, Spirit Mountain and its story is the highlight here.
The Friends of Avi Kwa Ame have given recommendations about where you should go beyond that, including hikes such as the Castle Mountains Grasslands Trail, five mile loop with parking amidst Joshua Trees. It intersects the Barnwell and Searchlight Rail line. Horses, people, and ATV's are allowed. Moderate. No restrooms. The Hiko Springs Canyon Trail is located near Spirit Mountain and is a hike in, then out trail, total 3.6 miles, with colorful rocks and spiritual significance. No restrooms, ATV or horses allowed. The Wee Thump Joshua Tree via the Eldorado Wagon Trail Road. Six miles roundtrip. Can park at either end. Along Route 164. Walking or horseback riding allowed. No restrooms.
They also suggest two drives for those who like four wheels instead of just feet. The Christmas Tree Pass Loop is twelve miles long and gravel. It takes you near Spirit Mountain as well as past the trailhead to the Grapevine Canyon Trail. The Eldorado Valley Backcountry Drive is longer, just over twenty-five miles long and has a minimum amount of paved road, 3.4 miles. It travels in the valley between the Highland Mountain and South McCullough Mountain ranges. You enter off Nevada Route 95 outside Boulder City or Nevada Route 164 near Wee Thump.
Native American History
Spirit Mountain, Avi Kwa Ame, is an integral part of the origin story of the various tribes in the area, dating back ten thousand years. These were Yuman-speaking tribes, including the Mojave, Hualapai, Yavapai, Havasupai, Quechan, Maricopa, Pai Pai, Halchidhoma, Cocopah, and Kueyaay. It is also sacred to the Hopi and Southern Paiute. Local tribes had been advocating for permanent protection for Spirit Mountain and the lands surrounding it for decades. In 2023, with use of the Antiquities Act, President Joe Biden designated it a National Monument.
"Of all the spiritual lands and sacred places, Avi Kwa Ame is the most sacred and important to us," Bianca Otero, Fort Mojave Indian Tribe. Source: Avikwamme.com.
Photo above: Painting of Chief Cairook, Irataba, and Mojave Woman by Balduin Mullhausen, 1857, courtesy Wikipedia Commons and the New York Public Library.
Walking Box Ranch
Yes, it has Hollywood ties, even though the Rock Springs Land and Cattle Company originally owned it and a massive amount of land around it in the Paiute Valley. The acres of the Walking Box Ranch was bought by Rex Bell and Clara Bow, two film stars in 1931. They lived there until the late 1940's and continued to run it as a cattle ranch, as did subsequent owners. Eventually in 1989, the Viceroy Gold Corporation bought the ranch to gain access to their mine, and rehabilitated the ranch house as an executive retreat. The United States government bought the ranch in 2005. The house is considered a exquisite example of Spanish Colonial Revival architecture; the outbuildings and barns as railroad tie construction. The home is not currently open for tours, but there are plans to do so. You can walk around the outside of the ranch in a tour on your own.
Lodging and Camping
There is no lodging within Avi Kwa Ame National Monument, but some can be found in the towns surrounding its entrances, as well as copious amount of casinos and hotels in Las Vegas.
The camping opportunities are primitive and developed. We are unsure if there are areas that are forbidden on require a permit and fee.
Photo above: Filming along an Avi Kwa Ame walking trail. Courtesy Bureau of Land Management.
