Dead Mountains Wilderness Trails • Hike • California • All Triplogs • HikeArizona.COM

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Dec 20 2025

DixieFlyer

Guides 100
Routes 1,574
Photos 16,476
Triplogs 1,464

male

Joined Jan 07 2017
Fountain Hills,

Mount Manchester - Dead Mtns Wilderness HP, CA

Hiking		Dec 20 2025
		DixieFlyer • Triplogs 1,464

Hiking	9.84 Miles	1,877 AEG

Hiking	9.84 Miles	6 Hrs 8 Mns	1.89 mph
	1,877 ft AEG	55 Mns Break

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Dead Mountains Wilderness Trails

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Route Recorded on Route Scout | Pop | Map | Popup | MapDEX

This was a hike to the summit of Mount Manchester (elevation of 3,600 feet and prominence of 1,287 feet), the high point of the Dead Mountains Wilderness Area. This wilderness, which features the rugged, rust-colored Dead Mountains, is in the "dead zone" centered by the point where Arizona, California, and Nevada intersect.

I parked about 75 feet off of Highway 93, and I was about 150 feet from the wilderness boundary. Most of the hike was a long walk across the desert floor to the east toward Mount Manchester and the Dead Mountains. It was easy hiking across the desert, with the only vegetation being some sparsely spaced creosote bush. There was little rock or sand, which made the hiking quite easy. I was glad to have some cloud cover in the morning which kept the sun from beating down on me.

After about 3.5 miles or so I entered a wide wash and took it for about a mile, and then took a ridge that went to the summit from the NW. The ridge got steep in the last mile, and there was some loose tread as I got closer to the summit.

The summit was a fairly small area, and it had some nice 360 degree views, although there was some widespread haze which limited visibility.

I returned the way that I came.

I enjoyed the portion of the hike that climbed to the summit, but the walk across the desert floor was a slog on the way back.

Geology

Geology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Dry Falls

Culture

Culture [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Benchmark

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Dead Mountains Dead Mountains Wilderness Mount Manchester Spirit Mountain

_____________________

Civilization is a nice place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there

1 archive

Feb 28 2018

azbackpackr

Guides 30
Routes 527
Photos 5,937
Triplogs 898

72 female

Joined Jan 21 2006
Eagar AZ

Picture Canyon - Dead Mountains Wilderness

Inland, CA

Picture Canyon - Dead Mountains Wilderness

Inland, CA

Hiking		Feb 28 2018
		azbackpackr • Triplogs 898

Hiking	4.03 Miles	601 AEG

Hiking	4.03 Miles	2 Hrs	2.18 mph
	601 ft AEG	9 Mns Break

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Dead Mountains Wilderness Trails

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This hike is mostly in California, but when I posted the GPS route it forced me to use Nevada, because the starting point is in Nevada, and so is the first part of the access road, which is the historic Mojave Road. That is annoying, but whatever. This was a scouting hike to see if I could find any petroglyphs in the canyon. Since I had a friend with me who wasn't feeling up for the walk, I said I'd go as far as finding the first one or two of them, and then turn back. I did see a couple of them. I don't even know if there are any panels or what, but I will go back later to see. As you can see from my GPS hike route, I did not reach the main area of petroglyphs. But that's okay. It's only a few miles from where I live, and I can go back with someone who wants to hike all the way in, or by myself.

Next time I will either crop the GPS route so it will be entirely in CA, or I will not turn the GPS on until I have walked about 20 feet up the wash, and am in CA.

You MUST have 4 wheel drive to get to the trailhead, or walk from the Needles Highway. Here is the GPS route to the trailhead:
[ gps route ]

This is in a wilderness area, but as you can see from the map, there is an old Jeep road that crosses the Dead Mountains in this canyon, and it is popular with ATVers and dirt bikers. They are breaking the law by riding it, but the road has been there for a lot longer than the wilderness area, so maybe they feel justified. Certainly the BLM isn't doing much to stop it. Although I didn't see anyone, there were plenty of fresh tracks.

It's an interesting canyon.

Wildflowers Observation Isolated
Brittle bush is blooming a little bit.

_____________________

There is a point of no return unremarked at the time in most lives. Graham Greene The Comedians
A clean house is a sign of a misspent life.

2 archives

Dec 12 2014

azbackpackr

Guides 30
Routes 527
Photos 5,937
Triplogs 898

72 female

Joined Jan 21 2006
Eagar AZ

Dead Mountains Wilderness Trails

Inland, CA

Dead Mountains Wilderness Trails

Inland, CA

Hiking		Dec 12 2014
		azbackpackr • Triplogs 898

Hiking	4.94 Miles	520 AEG

Hiking	4.94 Miles	2 Hrs 46 Mns	2.39 mph
	520 ft AEG	42 Mns Break

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My first foray into the edges of the Dead Mountains, only a few miles from my winter home. I found I could not drive my car very far up the dirt road (a "cherry stem" road into the designated wilderness area). So, I hiked, and then diverted up an interesting wash, then up a twisting narrow wash, and then wandered along the crests of the hills bordering the washes.

Easy hiking, nobody around, very quiet. I saw birds, and deer tracks, so it isn't actually "dead" in there. I planned a short hike because of rain in the forecast, but it never did start raining.

Incidentally, Hikebot named this description. But I don't think there are any actual trails in this mountain range.

Flora

Flora [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Brittlebush Creosote Bush

Geology

Geology [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Unidentified Geology

Named place

Named place [ checklist ]

[ checklist ] Dead Mountains Wilderness Mohave Valley

_____________________

There is a point of no return unremarked at the time in most lives. Graham Greene The Comedians
A clean house is a sign of a misspent life.

2 archives

WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.

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