"Very pleasant and surprisingly fun hike! Went out intending to just check out the conditions: OHV roads, trail, snow, temps, etc. No snow. Didn't intend to summit La Madre or El Padre, but conditions were great so I just kept going and summited both, plus Barricade Peak on the way back! Would have liked to have hiked more along the ridgeline (Burnt, Bastardo, etc.), but knew I had a long hike back. Another day. Really fun bouldery scramble up a gully in the last 0.4 miles to La Madre, most of the trail through a wash (which I didn't expect), and rock not too loose or bad the last 0.2 miles getting to the summit. Wasn't what I expected - I had heard how hard this route is. Granted, I did the 'easier' north route. Parked at Twilight Zone trailhead on Kyle Canyon Rd. Hiked to Mike Alcorn trailhead for La Madre north approach. Then to La Padre, used a different gully to descend from base of La Padre, not nearly as many boulders to scramble, then rejoined the wash. From Mike Alcorn, headed offtrail to summit Barricade, then descended and found a wash to follow back to Prospect Springs Rd. Distance and elevation estimated - I turned off GPS at times to save battery because the route was..." — tracyt • Mar 26, 2026

"In the past I noticed the break in the limestone cliff band between La Madre and El Padre so I figured there had to be a way up there. I thought it would be fun to not look anything up and just go for it. I started at the third pullout on the trail to Turtlehead and then took off left cross country toward the lower angle area I had seen, mostly staying in washes. Eventually I was funneled into a gully that seemed good and had a few cairns, but turned out to be way too far left/west. As I approached the cliffs below El Padre it became really loose and brushy so I got out of the gully to the right and tried to skirt around the bottom of the cliff band on some really miserable loose terrain. I passed a cool looking amphitheater and eventually got to some more solid rock and a few more cairns. Once in the lower angle section between the peaks the way up is pretty obvious, though a lot of it is still pretty loose. From the saddle I could see a large group taking photos on the summit of La Madre. They had come from the north side which I'll probably do if I ever come back here. Getting up to the peaks from the saddle was straightforward, and the summits had incredible views. I've spent..." — kbrack • Jan 1, 2025

"Due to Mt. Charleston (Spring Mountain National Recreational Area) being closed because of the extensive damage done by Hurricane Hilary, we had to come up with a hike that would be in cooler temps. So, La Madre Wilderness it was. We hiked in 70 degree temps for most of the hike, peaking out in the low to mid 80's by the end of the hike. Not bad! The road to the trailhead has been severely washed out 1 mile from the trailhead. I drove the route 2 days before the hike and discovered this. Well, after about an hour with a shovel, I was able to fill in the wash enough and cut the banks of the wash enough to pass through it. Definitely HIGH clearance needed.....and 4WD....and short wheel base....and steep approach angle designed vehicle....otherwise you are going to be pushing gravel and rocks with the front of your vehicle. Or, just hike the last 1 miles (2 miles return). The last 3/4 of a mile on the descent could be done better. We should have been on the ridge line to east of us. It didn't cost us any additional distance the was we went, just a little elevation gain to get back to the trailhead. It was a great route that worked for us. Have fun and enjoy the spectacular views if yo..." — Heartattackbruce • Aug 27, 2023

"3.31.2022~ La Madre, El Padre & Burnt Peak CW Loop w/Frances. 6 miles, 3,000’ gain, 5:35 hrs. We have been trying to plan La Madre together and finally linked schedules. I’ve been obsessed with this ridge as of late so a repeat visit was welcome, ESPECIALLY since she had her Jeep to get us to the trailhead. The views of The Spring Mountains both Red Rock and Charleston are special. Cloud Cover kept temps nice. My bad ankle flopped so we skipped El Bastardo and descended from Burnt Peak since it was aching and it made me lose motivation. I plan to go back anyway for more recon and a proper traverse putting all the pieces together. From above, I was able to scope out a possible ascent from Upper White Rock Lot to El Bastardo direct. There is cliff banding but looks to have weaknesses. Great Day! Thanks Frances!" — paula.raimondi • Mar 31, 2022

"2.18.2022~La Madre/El Padre Mountains Combo Meal from Sandstone Quarry, Red Rock NCA, NV. 10 miles, 4,800’ gain, 7:34hrs. I haven’t been to these 2 in 10 years. I now see why…This was My 1st time doing it alone. It was rough and miserable. I navigated the approach poorly using a garbage track I downloaded off Peakbagger. (It was a passive aggressive track share) I suffered today and was depressed it took me so long but I soldiered on. The route is miserable with a seemingly endless sand wash, loose everything, agave dagger landmines & inconvenient ice and snow. A place where every scratchy leg shredding shrub resides. Despite all that, it was worth it for the views and solitude. The misery of the day brought some negative emotions to the surface and forced me to sort through them. I needed that. I will be back to navigate this route better and faster to appease my ego. I needed this amazingly bad day. I was due for one. I finished at sunset." — paula.raimondi • Feb 18, 2022

"Harlan took us on a great route to La Madre from the north. The roads we drove up definitely required high clearance. The route essentially followed a steep ridge up to the summit of La Madre, then we traversed over to El Padre and Burnt Peak before taking a different (steep & loose) ridge down. Couldn't ask for better weather." — Kevin • Nov 11, 2017