Canyoneering Route Description

Motorcycle Canyon - 3A II (III)
Lake Mead Nat. Rec. Area, Nevada.

Quick Facts

12-15-12, 5 people (and a Chihuahua), 1 Day (Travel time in route 6.75 hours) includes 1hr hot springs soak. Pictures Icon
04-26-14, 8 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 7.1 hours) includes a short hot springs soak

Time Required - 4 to 6 hours (not including extra time for a hot springs soak)
Distance - 6.8 miles Total, 1.9 miles Technical (A lot of the tech section is walking)
Rappels - 4 Rappels, Longest Rappel 90 feet.
Elevation Range - 2400 - 1135 Feet
Shuttle Required - No Vehicle - Passenger Permit Required - No

Gear Used for Canyon

Rappelling and anchor gear, Ropes and or pull cords for rappels up to 90 feet and 40 feet of 1 inch webbing for sling placement.

General Comments

Motorcycle Canyon is side drainage to Goldstrike Canyon.  Goldstrike Canyon provides access to the Goldstrike Hot Springs and access to the Colorado River, so it gets a fair amount of hiking traffic.  Since Motorcycle Canyon drops into Goldstrike Canyon very close to the hot springs, it can be a nice addition to your day out canyoneering to take a short side trip to soak in the hot springs.    If you decide to take the side trip to the hot springs plan on adding about 0.6 miles to your route and the time you want to soak.

Portions of this route are in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

The first part of the approach is walking on 2 miles of dirt road that could be driven.  Driving this portion of the road may require high clearance depending on road conditions.  If you have a low clearance vehicle you could drive into the area from Boulder City to avoid the 2 miles of walking.  But doing the long drive around through Boulder City and setting an exit vehicle at the trailhead adds more time and hassle to the route.

To keep things simple this route description is done as a loop route where you just walk the part of the road that can be driven.  If you have high clearance vehicles and wish to set a shuttle you can drive the first 2 miles of the route described here.  The route to drive in from Boulder City is not shown here.

Driving Directions

To get to the Trailhead

From Boulder City Nevada drive about 5 miles east along highway 93 toward Lake Mead to the exit for Hoover Dam.  On the way to the exit you will pass Lakeshore road and then the Hacienda Casino.  The exit for Hoover Dam is about 0.2 miles after passing the Hacienda Casino.

After driving down the ramp for the exit you will come to a tee.  Turn right and drive about 300 feet to an intersection (ExtGoldstrike).  Pavement ends near this intersection.  At the intersection turn left and drive east for 0.3 miles to the end of the road and park (tGoldSrikeTH).  This is where you will start the route for Motorcycle Canyon and is also where the route to hike to the Goldstrike Hot Springs begins.

To leave the Exit Vehicle / Escape Pod

No exit vehicle is needed.  This is done as a loop route.

Maps

GPS coordinate information listed at the bottom.  For information about waypoint naming and map symbols, refer to the Glossary page.

Map Link Icon
Click the links for maps of the route.
Map of the entire route.

Details

The Approach:
Hikers traveling to the Goldstrike Hot Springs or going down to the Colorado River via Goldstrike Canyon will start walking east down canyon.  For the Motorcycle Canyon route start you will walk west back down the road you just drove in on.

Note:
On the first part of this approach you are following dirt roads.  Some of the road junctions on the route are very obviously not the road you want to follow and most just go over to the occasional power line tower.  The junctions noted here are those that are not so obvious and make you wonder which way to go.  Be aware that not every junction will be listed here.

From the parking spot (tGoldSrikeTH) walk west along the dirt road you just drove in on.  After walking 0.3 miles you will be back at the intersection (ExtGoldstrike).  Follow the dirt road going west which is number 75 on maps showing this road.

About 400 feet farther on this road is a junction in the road (extGS-75B-bot).  Turn left onto road 75 signed as Goldstrike Pass Road. 

Note:
Continuing straight ahead would be road 75b signed as the Goldstrike Parallel Road.  These two roads meet farther on but this description follows the road to the left 75, Goldstrike Pass Road.

After turning left at the junction follow road 75 - Goldstrike Pass Road for about 0.3 miles to a junction in the road (wGS-passDP-01).  Stay right and continue southwest on the Goldstrike Pass Road.

About 0.75 miles farther is another junction (wGS-passDP-02).  Stay right and travel west to stay on the Goldstrike Pass Road.

About 400 feet farther is another junction (extGS-75B-top) where a road joins in from the right.  This is where road 75B (Goldstrike Parallel Road) rejoins road 75 (Goldstrike Pass Road).  Continue straight to continue west on road 75 (Goldstrike Pass Road).

About 0.65 miles farther is another road junction (wGS-passDP-03).  The road splitting off to the left goes northeast to a series of power line towers.  Stay right and follow the road as it turns south.

Note:
Just after this junction is a wash to the east.  On the other side of that wash is another road which you will be on shortly.  If you wish to cut across this wash to get over to the road you can cut about 0.5 miles off of the route.  It is about 300 feet of travel to leave the road you are on and get to the other road but may be a little more difficult travel.   Or you can stay on the roads as described here and travel about 0.52 miles to the same point.

About 0.25 miles farther is another junction in the road (extGS-75C).  Turn left at this junction to follow the Black Canyon Overlook Road signed as 75C. 

Note:
If you are driving the first part of this route and setting up a shuttle vehicle, this is where to park.  The road leading south from here will lead back toward Boulder City.

About 0.7 farther the Black Canyon Overlook Road (road 75C) makes a sharp turn to the right and begins to head southeast (wBCOL-DP-01).  At this corner there are great views down over Lake Mead and the Hacienda Hotel.

About 0.3 miles farther the road crosses over a drainage where there is a culvert installed for water drainage under the road (yMotrcyclTp). 

The Canyoneering / Technical Section:
From where the road crosses Motorcycle Canyon (yMotrcyclTp) turn left (east) and leave the road.

About 320 feet after leaving the road find a way to downclimb into a slot from the RDC (south) side of the canyon.  The downclimb is about 20 feet and has loose rock so be careful.  At the bottom of the downclimb is the top of rap 1.

Rap 1 (dMotrcycl-R1) is anchored RDC from two glue in anchors about head high and drops about 90 feet.  Be careful of rope placement here since there are a lot of places a rope can get pinched.  At the bottom of rap 1 is the reason this route is called Motorcycle Canyon.

Rap 2 (dMotrcycl-R2) is about 100 feet down canyon of rap 1 with a couple easy downclimbs between.  You have to scramble up on the RDC side of the canyon to get to the anchor for rap 2 which is a very phallic looking rock.   The actual drop of rap 2 is about 60 feet but it is 80 feet back to the anchor.

Just after rap 2 are a couple easy down climbs / scrambles before reaching the wash where the route starts a long wash walking section.

About 0.2 miles down canyon of rap 2 is a side canyon (wMotrcycl-RP-1) joining in from RDC (south).

About 0.35 miles farther the canyon begins to slot up again.  Shortly after the narrow section begins is a drop of about 12 feet (wMotrcycl-RP-2) that is moderately difficult to downclimb.  The drop can be bypassed by going up and over LDC then down a slope.

About 500 feet down canyon is another downclimb of about 12 feet (wMotrcycl-RP-3) and is an easy stem style downclimb.

About 0.2 miles down canyon is the start of another narrow section (wMotrcycl-RP-4) that has a few easy downclimbs / scrambles in it.

A few more hundred feet down canyon is a spot where tow drainages join in from each side (wMotrcycl-RP-5) and feels like a cross joint section.  Just after this cross joint like feature the canyon slots up more and the rock starts to become much more solid.  Continuing down canyon involves several easy downclimbs of 4 to 10 feet each.  A few more hundred feet down is the top of rap 3.

Rap 3 (dMotrcycl-R3) is anchored from either a chokestone at the top of the drop or you can use a retrievable anchor from an arch about head high on the LDC side.  Rap 3 drops about 45 feet.

Right after rap 3 is a drop of about 35 feet with a pool at the bottom which may have water.  No anchor options were explored here.  A meat anchor was supplied for those that wanted to rap the drop then cross the pool (which could be up to waist deep if full).  The rest of us did the bypass of this drop.

To bypass the drop right after rap 3, walk around on the ledge RDC about 50 feet toward the top of a crack running back down to the canyon floor.  Continue on the ledge beyond the crack and carefully traverse around the corner to a where you can downclimb back to the canyon floor.  Be careful on this bypass route as it is full of loose rock.  None of the moves are difficult but there it is exposed feeling.

About 0.2 miles down canyon is a spot where the canyon widens out a little as another canyon joins in from RDC (wMotrcycl-RP-6) and you can see power lines up in that canyon.  In this area there are multiple easy boulder hopping scrambles.

Just before reaching rap 4 are a few easy downclimbs of about 6 to feet each.

Rap 4 (dMotrcycl-R4) is in a boulder debris section and is anchored from one of two chokestones overhead.  Rap 4 drops about 30 feet with a pool at the bottom that can be avoided.

Just after rap 4 is a drop of about 20 feet that is an moderately easy downclimb and has a pool at the bottom where you might get your feet wet getting across.

About 450 feet down canyon is another downclimb of about 15 feet over fallen boulders(wMotrcycl-RP-7).  Next there is one more set of boulders to downclimb over on your way to the confluence with Goldstrike Canyon about 0.2 miles away.

You will know you are at the confluence (yMotrcyclBt) of Motorcycle Canyon and Glodstrike Canyon if the canyon you get to has old wooden power poles in it. 

The Exit:
Now that you are at the end of Motorcycle Canyon and are in Goldstrike Canyon, you have choices.  Your exit route is to turn left and hike up Goldstrike Canyon to the west back to your cars.

The Side Trips:
If you have time and planned to go visit the Gold Strike Hot Springs you can take a side trip to the right and travel east down Goldstrike Canyon about 0.25 miles down to the Goldstrike Hot Springs.  There are a couple downclimbs to navigate on your way to the hotsprings.  In years past when the lake level was higher there was a lot more flow to these springs.  Even with low lake levels these springs are still worth a look and a soak but there are only a couple of good pools when there is little flow.

To get back to the the cars at the trailhead travel west up canyon in Goldstrike Canyon.

About 500 feet up canyon is a huge boulder wedged in the canyon (wGS-Stair) and you will need to climb up the RDC side of the canyon.  This is made easy by a set of stairs cut into the rock to assist.

About 0.3 miles farther up canyon is a boulder debris area (wGS-UpandOver) making travel up canyon difficult.  When you get here look for a bypass trail that goes up and over this boulder debris section on the LDC side (or your right as you are hiking out).  The trail starts about 300 feet before reaching the boulder section.  If you get to the boulder back up a few hundred feet and look for the trail or just scramble your way around.

From here it is easy walking all the way back to the trailhead (tGoldSrikeTH) a little over a mile away.

Note:
As you get closer to the highway you may notice an old pickup truck high on the wall on the right then farther up an Audi that has also found its fate in the canyon also high up on the right side and a little farther up you will hike over the top of a partially exposed vehicle in the wash.

GPS Waypoint Information

Downloadable GPX files available at BG-Gear Store (easier than manual entry and a great way to support Bluugnome).
Waypoint naming convention and map symbol information can be found on the Glossary page.  Elevations are approximate.
BEFORE
manually entering coordinates set your system to WGS84 datum and Lat/Lon hddd.ddddd° coordinate format
Inconsistent datum's and coordinate formats will result in location errors.

Click to show / expand the list of waypoints below........
Motorcycle Canyon (1) - Approach
  1. tGoldSrikeTH          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00992   W -114.76887        Elev: 1,600 Feet
    Gold Strike hot Springs Trail head
  2. ExtGoldstrike          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.01009   W -114.77389        Elev: 1,660 Feet
    An intersection shortly after leaving the highway at the Hoover Dam exit. Turn left (east) here to drive down to the Goldstrike Canyon Hot Springs trailhead. If you are walking the road to follow the route for Motorcycle Canyon follow the road (road number 75) going southwest.
  3. extGS-75B-bot          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00911   W -114.77483        Elev: NaN Feet
    Junction for raods 75 (Goldstrike Pass Road) and 75B (GoldStrike Parrallel Road). To follow the route for Motorcycle Canyon, turn left (south) and follow 75 Goldstrike Pass Road.
  4. wGS-passDP-01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00845   W -114.77198        Elev: NaN Feet
    Junction in the Goldstrike Pass Road. The road going east is a short road to a power line structure. If following the Motorcycle Canyon route stay right to continue southwest on the road.
  5. wGS-passDP-02          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00328   W -114.78071        Elev: NaN Feet
    Junction in the Goldstrike Pass Road, road 75. If following the Motorcycle Canyon rotue, stay right to continue on Goldstrike Pass Road.
  6. extGS-75B-top          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00322   W -114.78209        Elev: NaN Feet
    This is the top end of where road 75B (GoldstrikeParallel Road) meets road 75 (Goldstrike Pass Road. To follow the route toward Motorcycle Canyon continue striaght (west) to stay on road 75.
  7. wGS-passDP-03          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99801   W -114.78619        Elev: 2,320 Feet
    Road junction. To continue on the Motorcycle Canyon route stay right and follow the road as it turns south.
  8. extGS-75C          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99508   W -114.78774        Elev: 2,390 Feet
    Road Junction. To the north is Road 75 (Goldstrike Pass Road). To the southwest are roads leading back to Boulder City. To the northeast is Road 75C (Black Canyon Overlook Road). To follow the Motorcycle Canyon route follow Road 75C (Black Canyon Overlook Road) to the northeast.
  9. wBCOL-DP-01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99954   W -114.77999        Elev: 2,340 Feet
    Spot on the Black Canyon Overlook Road that turns a sharp corner and offers great views out toward Lake Mead and the Hacienda Casino.
  10. yMotrcyclTp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99573   W -114.77743        Elev: 2,380 Feet
    Top of Motorcycle Canyon. This is where the road crosses a draiange and has a culvert and where you leave the road to drop down into Motorcycle Canyon.
Motorcycle Canyon (2) - Canyon
  1. yMotrcyclTp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99573   W -114.77743        Elev: 2,380 Feet
    Top of Motorcycle Canyon. This is where the road crosses a draiange and has a culvert and where you leave the road to drop down into Motorcycle Canyon.
  2. dMotrcycl-R1          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99580   W -114.77634        Elev: NaN Feet
    Rap 1 for Motorcycle Canyon. Anchored RDC from two glue in anchors and drops about 90 feet. There are other natural anchor options here like small bushes and lots of rocks.
  3. dMotrcycl-R2          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99591   W -114.77600        Elev: NaN Feet
    Rap 2 - Motorcycle Canyon. Anchored RDC from a phallic looking rock and drops about 80 feet from the anchor to the floor. The actuall drop is about 60 feet.
  4. wMotrcycl-RP-1          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99631   W -114.77356        Elev: 1,960 Feet
    A side canyon joins into Motorcycle Canyon from RDC (south).
  5. wMotrcycl-RP-2          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99748   W -114.76865        Elev: NaN Feet
    This is shortly after the canyon starts to slot up again and there is a drop of about 12 feet and is moderately chalenging to downclimb. The drop can be bypassed by going up and over LDC then down a slope to get back to the canyon floor.
  6. wMotrcycl-RP-3          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99867   W -114.76807        Elev: NaN Feet
    Drop of about 12 feet that is an easy stem style downclimb.
  7. wMotrcycl-RP-4          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99887   W -114.76513        Elev: NaN Feet
    Start of a slotted area with a few easy scrambles / downclimbs in it.
  8. wMotrcycl-RP-5          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99878   W -114.76304        Elev: NaN Feet
    Small drainges join in from both RDC and LDC and it feels like a cross joint.
  9. dMotrcycl-R3          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99919   W -114.76254        Elev: NaN Feet
    Rap 3 - Motorcycle Canyon. Anchored from a chocke stone at the top of the drop or from a retrievable anchor on an arch on the LDC side about head high. Rap 3 drops about 45 feet.
  10. wMotrcycl-RP-6          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99914   W -114.75857        Elev: 1,430 Feet
    Canyon joins in from RDC and you can see power lines up in that canyon. There are multiple easy boulder hopping scrables through here.
  11. dMotrcycl-R4          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00007   W -114.75764        Elev: 1,370 Feet
    Rap 4 - Motorcycle Canyon. Anchored frm one of two chokestones overhead and drops about 35 feet.
  12. wMotrcycl-RP-7          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 35.99989   W -114.75589        Elev: NaN Feet
    Downclimb of about 15 feet over some fallen boulders.
  13. yMotrcyclBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00192   W -114.75358        Elev: 1,135 Feet
    Bottom of Motorcycle Canyon where it meets Goldstrike Canyon. Downcanyon to the east is the Goldstrike Hot Springs and the Colorado River. Up canyon to the west is the Goldstrike Canyon Hot Springs Trailhead. Motorcycle Canyon is to the south and some old hikeing trials also travel up the draiange to the north.
Motorcycle Canyon (3) - Exit (and Hotsprings point)
  1. hGldStkHS          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00311   W -114.74994        Elev: 1,060 Feet
    Gold Strike Hot Springs
  2. yMotrcyclBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00192   W -114.75358        Elev: 1,135 Feet
    Bottom of Motorcycle Canyon where it meets Goldstrike Canyon. Downcanyon to the east is the Goldstrike Hot Springs and the Colorado River. Up canyon to the west is the Goldstrike Canyon Hot Springs Trailhead. Motorcycle Canyon is to the south and some old hikeing trials also travel up the draiange to the north.
  3. wGS-Stair          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00132   W -114.75523        Elev: 1,190 Feet
    Rope to climb down a rocky area. Had some steps like stairs cut into the rock.
  4. wGS-UpandOver          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00268   W -114.75935        Elev: NaN Feet
    Here you can't stay in the wash. You have to go around a bunch of boulders here.
  5. CarWrek2          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00733   W -114.76383        Elev: NaN Feet

  6. CarWrek1          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00860   W -114.76578        Elev: NaN Feet

  7. tGoldSrikeTH          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 36.00992   W -114.76887        Elev: 1,600 Feet
    Gold Strike hot Springs Trail head