This Nevada National Wildlife Refuge Makes For The Perfect Day Trip

Looking to take a perfect nature day trip from Las Vegas? You'll love visiting Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge near Amargosa Valley, Nevada. This 24,000-acre wildlife refuge is full of beauty and wildlife and lots of space to get away from it all and explore. When you visit, you'll be able to immerse yourself in desert and wetland environments while you take in incredible views and breathe invigorating fresh air. Learn more about this very special place that's only about 90 minutes from the big city.

Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge is amazing! This refuge in the Mojave Desert is huge at 24,000 acres in size, but it's also part of the larger Desert National Wildlife Refuge Complex which covers 1.615 million acres of Nevada wilderness. The land that is now Ash Meadows was once slated for development, but it was purchased and saved by The Nature Conservancy in 1983.

In 1984, The Nature Conservancy transferred the land to the Fish and Wildlife Service which manages it today. Both organizations felt it was important to protect this land because it's a rare example of a desert oasis ecosystem.

It's a truly spectacular piece of land and you'll love exploring it.

Stop by the visitor center when you first arrive. You'll find friendly staff members there who will be excited to answer your questions, and you can learn more about the refuge through hands-on, interactive learning stations and a movie about the refuge.

Then, head on out and check out nature! Wheelchair-accessible boardwalks to Crystal Springs and Point of Rocks give everyone the opportunity to immerse themselves in nature here.

The Point of Rocks boardwalk is approximately a half-mile long roundtrip. The views from it are breathtaking.

The boardwalk to Crystal Springs is also worth undertaking. It's about a mile long, roundtrip, and will take you to Crystal Spring. This spring is just one of many in the park and the blue water is striking. This spring produces 2,800 gallons of water per minute and stays a consistent 87 degrees all year round.

Crystal Reservoir is a large reservoir inside the refuge that is open to swimming and non-motorized boating. Fishing, however, is prohibited.

Since this is a wildlife refuge, you can count on seeing a lot of wildlife during your visit. One of the main creatures this refuge aims to protect is the desert bighorn sheep.

Have you ever seen a jackrabbit before? You might at Ash Meadows.

This refuge is also home to hundreds of different bird species, including greater roadrunners like this one.

This desert environment is also welcoming to a variety of species of reptiles, like this red racer snake.

Perhaps what is most amazing about Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, though, is the number of endemic species that live within its boundaries. Endemic species are living things that are not found anywhere else in the world. There are at least 26 different endemic plants and animals living in this park, like this Centaurium namophilum flower shown here. There are four fish and one species of plant in Ash Meadows that are on the endangered species list.

This national wildlife refuge is fantastic in every way. It's absolutely worth a visit and it's easy to see why we think it's the perfect spot for a day trip. Enjoy!

If you love nature, wildlife, and Nevada, then you're going to love Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. This is a wonderful place to spend a day and you'll see so many things there that you'll remember forever. Be sure to bring your camera! You're going to be amazed by this very special place.

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