South loop trail at the beginning of the hike you climb over 3000 feet in about 4 miles-the last section to the summit is tough, with gradients up to 20%. Mt. Charleston Peak is only the 8th highest in peak Nevada. It's the 8th most prominent peak in the lower-48, also, you can see wreckage from a CIA plane crash that occurred in 1955-the men were traveling to Area 51 where they were working on the U-2 spy plane.