McFarland Peak

"This is a nice loop that takes only a few minutes more than the standard up and down route to McFarland....and you get to tag two peaks. There is one more variation of this route and that is to add Gunsmoke Peak as the first peak to summit. There is a gully off of the main canyon that runs right up to Gunsmoke. From there all you have to do is traverse the ridge towards McFarland and join up with this route. It's also a nice loop route. PLEASE be aware that some of the routes I post are for advanced scramblers only. Have fun! Be safe!" — Heartattackbruce • Aug 11, 2024

"6.30.2024~McFarland Peak w/Jimmy. 10 miles, 3,800’ gain via Horse Meadow to Old Mill picnic area & Bonanza trail. The picnic area trail no longer has a “closed trail” sign. My 5th time up and our 2nd time together. His 1st time using the gully as an ascent (his 1st summit of this peak was an obnoxious long distance CW loop we did from Cold creek including Bonanza Peak. We went DOWN the gully that day) A burro in the horse meadow bellowed at us with a loud bray at the start of the trek. Strong breezes and an early start helped keep temps tolerable. We both had low grade terror from crux to summit (and back to crux) but I left and few personal items in key spots and it is cairned very well. It still looked confusing here and there. We encountered no other humans, which is pretty nice for a Sunday. I love this charming and lonely side of the Spring Mtns. Weekends in Kyle canyon must be a clusterfuck. " — paula.raimondi • Jun 30, 2024

"Gunsmoke Peak was a last minute add to the original route we planned to McFarland and N. McFarland. We scrambled up a wash from the "standard" north route to McFarland that took us directly to Gunsmoke. Good, solid rock in the wash where we needed to get up cliff bands. Would do that route again. From Gunsmoke we took the ridge line traverse over to McFarland and then down the northern ridge line to North McFarland. The route was not difficult and definitely a good one to do again. " — Heartattackbruce • Sep 9, 2023

"This hike was very difficult for me actually. I would count this scree field as one of the more difficult scree fields I've done. Very unstable footing for 1000+ feet. Very steep. Not much scrambling needed as others have said. I did the entire ridge and all peaks from Bristlecone to McFarland, 4k elevation, 12 miles round trip, 8 hours, 6.5 hours moving time. " — solacesonder • May 26, 2023

"Followed gimpilators route to do these 3 peaks and somehow clocked me at 7 miles less when I recorded on alltrails . Nevertheless , very fun route , about 80% of it is on a nice trail only the last parts to each summit are off trail. McFarland is maybe a couple class 3 moves nothing crazy or exposed though . Lots of cairns too so route finding is never an issue. This is a super fun loop ! #10-12 of the Vegas 100 for me " — joshortman • Oct 6, 2022

"Oh McFarFarland. Didn't seem so far today. We put the turbo on and hit the peak in 3h 12m. 6h 5m car to car. Weather was absolutely gorgeous. Perfect temps, no wind. " — DudeAlmighty • Oct 5, 2022

"LVMC trip with 8 folks. I've taken the north canyon (L) route to McFarland at least 10x, and this was my 4th time coming down the N McF ridge. My main aim is to report on road conditions. My current preferred route is from the fenced ATV parking. The original HikingLasVegas road (reportedly) has a deep washout (which can be circumvented by taking a connector from Mud Springs Road.). us95 , 36.5233996, -115.5475691 Fenced Parking, 36.4210964, -115.7307138 go-L-(SE), 36.3905688,-115.7184508 go-R-(South), 36.3844792, -115.7165411 go-R-(SW), 36.3950012, -115.718365 ===========alternate=============================== MudSpringsRoad, 36.4558566, -115.6826604 mudSprConnector, 36.4185275, -115.7052338 McFarConnector, 36.4292791, -115.6879175" — hwstock • Sep 24, 2022

"oh McFarFarFARland. Haha! always a long, but rewarding hike. Beautiful day, some light cloud cover to keep us cool. I got a 2nd wind climbing back up the bonanza trail and was a little ahead of my group so I quickly tagged Divide peak." — DudeAlmighty • Aug 31, 2022

"10.3.2020~McFarland Peak/Bonanza peak Big CW loop. 17 miles (5 mountaineering/12 trail), 6,600’ gain, 8:45hrs. We didn’t get started til after 11am so we finished in the dark forest which was amazing. I underestimated the route distance by 6 miles so we were beyond exhausted and Jimmy was NOT happy with me. It was a Sufferfest of epic proportions. Early on, ‘‘twas a nightmare to fight our way through thick Scratchy brush that thrashed and sliced up our legs. I tweaked my back after a mile and had major spasms that immobilized me. It held us up for a half hour as we iced my back with my frozen bottle and massaged it with the hiking stick so I could move again.....It calmed down and we carried on. I was in pain the whole time but didn’t give up! Great day. Lots of wild horses, bones and switchbacks! Hot too...Oy! My husbands 1st McFarland Peak and my 4th. https://youtu.be/iFw5mP0XgzM " — paula.raimondi • Oct 3, 2020

"9.30.2020, McFarland Peak #3, Solo....8 miles, 3,500 gain round trip on foot in 4:54hrs, 3 miles round trip Mtn bike. This peak is the 4th highest in the Spring Mountains and considered by many to be the hardest Peak in the Range to climb. I have a stress fracture in one of my metatarsal so it was slow but steady. Luckily it isn’t too painful. (God forbid I rest it, tee hee) Beautiful day with bountiful solitude. Days are getting shorter. Farewell September. See you next year.... https://youtu.be/7M7d1QQGghQ" — paula.raimondi • Sep 30, 2020