Overview

Corn Creek Road, so named because it connects Highway 95 with Corn Creek Field Station in the Desert National Wildlife Refuge, provides the primary access to the wildlife refuge from Las Vegas. For most visitors, this is just the road to the Visitor Center, but for those who know better, this is the road to wild places and grand adventures.

Corn Creek Road also provides access to northern reaches of Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument and the Village of Corn Creek.

Corn Creek Road is 3.8-miles long and paved, but the road is subject to flash flooding and sometimes rocks get thrown up on the road.

In Desert NWR, the road is now closed between sunset and 4am.

Link to map.

Watch Out

Other than the standard warnings about being in the desert ... Corn Creek Road is a fine road. There are no services (no fuel, no food) or developments of any kind except the Visitor Center where water and restrooms are available. Cell phones work along this road. The speed limit is 35 mph.

While out, please respect the land and the other people out there, and try to Leave No Trace of your passage. This road is short, so just bring what you need of the 10 Essentials. This is a wildlife refuge, so pay extra attention to respecting the land and the wildlife.

Location

Corn Creek Road is located on the Desert National Wildlife Refuge, about 25 minutes northwest of Las Vegas.

From Las Vegas, drive north on Highway 95 passing the turnoffs to Mt. Charleston and the Las Vegas Paiute Indian Reservation (the highway goes under an overpass here). About 6 miles past the overpass, the turnoff to Corn Creek (Table 1, Site 0350) is marked by a small green refuge sign, a Corn Creek Road sign, and a paved road heading east across the desert. Turn right; this is Corn Creek Road.

The Road

From Highway 95 (Table 1, Site 0350), Corn Creek Road passes a dirt parking area on the right with an information kiosk about Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument, then bends left in an area of low rolling hills were water sometimes crosses the road. These rolling hills are covered with Creosote Bush, White Bursage, and other species typical of the Mojave Desert Scrub habitat type.

The road runs straight at a slight decline towards the bottom of the valley. The road passes a T-intersection to Corn Creek Village, which lies off to the right. Continuing straight, the road passes the boundary sign for the wildlife refuge, and the field station can be seen ahead in the distance.

Dipping into the bottom of the valley, Corn Creek Road passes through an area of playa-type soils with heavy-clays. Here, in the Shadscale habitat type, Shadscale saltbush is the dominant species. This is the best place around Las Vegas to find Le Conte's Thrashers.

Approaching the field station, the road passes two service roads on the left (providing maintenance and refuge staff entrances), curves to the left and approaches the visitor center (Site 0106), which is on the far side of the refuge headquarters and maintenance buildings.

Just before the Visitor Center entrance road, a small kiosk on the right provides a map, general information about the refuge, and a sign-in register. For visitors entering the refuge without stopping in the Visitor Center, please sign-in here. Use a false name if you don't want the government tracking your movements, but sign-in so the refuge gets information on visitor use. Hopefully better information will lead to better funding for things like grading the backroads.

The Visitor Center parking area is on the left. If space is available, be sure to park in the shaded parking area.

Continuing a few more yards, Corn Creek Road ends at a T-intersection (Site 1295). Here, Alamo Road runs north (left) and Mormon Well Road runs south (right). Signs provide mileages and general warnings about these roads that provide access to wild and wonderful places in the interior of the refuge. These roads can be quite rough, so don't start out unprepared.