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Mount Charleston, including Charleston Peak (Nuvagantu, literally "where snow sits", in Southern Paiute or Nüpakatütün in
Shoshoni The Shoshone or Shoshoni ( or ) are a Native American tribe with four large cultural/linguistic divisions: * Eastern Shoshone: Wyoming * Northern Shoshone: southern Idaho * Western Shoshone: Nevada, northern Utah * Goshute: western Utah, east ...
) at , is the highest mountain in both the
Spring Mountains The Spring Mountains are a mountain range of Southern Nevada in the United States, running generally northwest–southeast along the west side of Las Vegas and south to the border with California. Most land in the mountains is owned by the Uni ...
and Clark County, in Nevada, United States. It is the eighth-highest mountain in the state. Well separated from higher peaks by large, low basins, Charleston Peak is the most topographically prominent peak in Nevada, and the eighth-most-prominent peak in the contiguous United States. It is one of eight
ultra-prominent peak An ultra-prominent peak, or Ultra for short, is a mountain summit with a topographic prominence of or more; it is also called a P1500. The prominence of a peak is the minimum height of climb to the summit on any route from a higher peak, or fro ...
s in Nevada. It is located about northwest of Las Vegas within the Mount Charleston Wilderness, which is within the
Spring Mountains National Recreation Area The Spring Mountains National Recreation Area (SMNRA) is a U.S. national recreation area, administered by the U.S. Forest Service, west of Las Vegas, Nevada. It covers over . The area runs from low meadows (around above sea level), to the Mo ...
of the
Humboldt–Toiyabe National Forest The Humboldt–Toiyabe National Forest (HTNF) is the principal U.S. National Forest in the U.S. state of Nevada, and has a smaller portion in Eastern California. With an area of , it is the largest U.S. National Forest outside of Alaska. His ...
.


Overview

Mount Charleston is a year-round getaway for Las Vegas's residents and visitors, with a number of hiking trails, a modest ski area, a hotel and a small restaurant. The mountain, which is snow-capped more than half the year, can be seen from parts of the
Las Vegas Strip The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas city ...
when looking toward the west. Mount Charleston has nearly 200 camp sites and over 150 picnic areas, some of which are RV-accessible. The village of
Mount Charleston, Nevada Mount Charleston is an Unincorporated towns in Nevada, unincorporated town and census-designated place in Clark County, Nevada, Clark County, Nevada, United States. The population was 357 at the United States Census, 2010, 2010 census. The town ...
, lies at its base to the east. The state of Nevada issues license plates with the caption "Mt. Charleston" and an image of the peak in the background. Sales of the plate supports the natural environment of the Mount Charleston area through grants administered by the Nevada Division of State Lands. According to the Federal Writers' Project, Mount Charleston was named for Charleston, South Carolina by Southern sympathizers.


Plane crash

Near its summit are the remnants of the 1955 crash of a CIA C-54 Military Air Transport Service plane. The plane was on route on November 17, 1955, from Burbank (location of Lockheed's Skunkworks), to Groom Lake (Area 51) (then known as Watertown Strip) to work on the secret U-2 plane development. Fourteen men (a mix of military staffers and civilian subcontractors, engineers, and technicians) were on board when it crashed during a blizzard, all of whom died. There are still remains from the plane that can be hiked to just off the main southern loop trail to the peak. The Silent Heroes of the Cold War Memorial was installed at the Spring Mountains Visitor Gateway in 2015. It features a propeller from the downed aircraft (which was recovered decades later from the crash site) and a granite monument.


Hiking

Charleston Peak is a popular destination for hikers. The summit offers panoramic views from the Sierra Nevada, Death Valley, and Las Vegas. There are two well-marked and well-maintained trails to the summit: South Loop Trail and North Loop Trail. The trails can be done on their own as an out-and-back hike, or combined as a loop. Both approaches involve a strenuous 16-mile+ round trip with over 4000 feet of climbing. The hike often takes all day. The hike is most accessible in the snow-free months of summer and fall.


See also

*
List of Ultras of the United States The following sortable table comprises the 200 most topographically prominent mountain peaks of the United States of America. The summit of a mountain or hill may be measured in three principal ways: #The topographic elevation of a summit me ...
* Carpenter 1 Fire * Mahogany Fire


References


External links

* {{Las Vegas Valley Charleston Charleston Charleston Charleston Tourist attractions in the Las Vegas Valley