In Bicycle Love With Lovell (Canyon)

It's a bicyclist's dream ride in the furnace heat summers of Las Vegas.

Lovell Canyon.

It's not like you're biking up at Mount Charleston.

Lovell Canyon is off State Route 160 just over the summit at Mountain Springs. Take a look at the scenery here in this video.

It's 11 miles on a U.S. Forest road to a dirt road. And even thought the paced road surface is bumpy, it's a terrific refuge away from the dangerous, reckless, impaired and uneducated car drivers that threaten the safety of bicyclists on our metro Las Vegas roads.

I parked my car in a dirt lot off SR 160 at Lovell Canyon Road.

Then with a nice tailwind, I biked up the gently sloping uphill road.

As the time appraoched 7 PM, the light and shadows in this canyon, especially on the green-covered contours, made for visual artwork.

It's about 5,900 feet elevation at the end of the 11 miles of pavement and the temperatures are much cooler than the Vegas Valley. Figure about ten degrees cooler.

There are people camping from all types of vehicles, from trailers to cars to tents. There are no facilities so please do not drop garbage on this land.

Buy Alan Snel's Bicycle Man book -- you will enjoy reading it.