These hiking poles are sturdy, and great to help keep your balance on short or longer hikes
Cathedral Gorge State Park in Nevada is a unique state park with dramatic landscapes. In fact, we haven’t seen anything like it before. The park features eroded siltstone spires that reminded us of the European cathedrals, hence the name. Many of these formations can be seen without much effort. However, the Juniper Draw Loop trail, adding on the Miller Point trail, is the best hike in Cathedral Gorge State Park because it provides the best diversity and landscape that this park has to offer.
Trailhead from Campground
37.821807, -114.416294
Trailhead from Cathedral Cave Slot Canyon
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There are small parking lots in front of both trailhead.
Cathedral Gorge State Park charges $5.00/vehicle ($10 for Non-NV Vehicles) to enter.
There are vault toilets at the trailhead near Cathedral Cave Slot Canyon and inside the campground.
4 miles Loop
Additional 0.5 miles to get to Miller Point and back
106 ft
217 ft if you go to Miller Point
Easy
Takes an average 1 – 2 hours
The best times to visit this trail are April through May when the weather is cooler. We recommend hiking either early in the morning or toward sunset. The softer light will make the formations more beautiful.
Dogs are welcome but they must be on a leash.
Since the Juniper Draw Loop Trail is a loop, there are a couple of options to access this trail. You can either access it from the Cathedral Gorge campground or the parking lot for the Cathedral Cave Slot Canyon. The trailheads are located inside Cathedral Gorge State Park in the remote town of Panaca, NV. It is about 2.5 hours from Las Vegas via US-93 N.
Since we were camping at the campground, we started our hike from there and went clockwise. If you start from the Cathedral Cave Slot Canyon, you will be hiking counter-clockwise. Starting at the Cathedral Cave Slot Canyon parking lot will give you most of the best views first. Since we started from the campground, we saved the best for last.
From our campsite, we quickly found the trailhead for the Juniper Draw Loop trail. The trail started on a flat, sandy wash. After a short distance, we got our first glimpse of the baby siltstone spires. They were adorable. It felt like we were Godzilla, stomping through all the tall cathedrals and skyscrapers.
As we hiked further, we came upon taller, more impressive formations. This was our first day at Cathedral Gorge so we had no idea what to expect. These sculpted formations that we have come across so far are fascinating. They remind us of the hoodoos in Bryce Canyon, but different. The Juniper Draw Loop Trail continues along the sandy wash. There were multiple signages along the trail, pointing the way. Our first junction was the crossroad for Juniper Draw Loop and Hawk’s Ridge trail. We stayed straight to follow the Juniper Draw Loop Trail.
The Juniper Draw Loop Trail runs along the bottom of the hills and then crosses over to the other side of the wide wash. The landscape in this section is interesting. Besides the sculpted hillsides, we also saw many desert shrubberies and plants. There are also many areas full of cryptobiotic soil. Please stay on the trail to avoid stepping on them. They are an important part of arid and semi-arid ecosystems throughout the world.
Once we crossed over to the other side of the wash on the Juniper Draw Loop, the scenery became more beautiful. On this side of the wash, the trail is a lot closer to the interesting sandstone formation. There were also several interesting slot canyons that we could explore. In front of one of those slot canyons was enough of a bench for you to sit down and take a break.
The further we went, the more the sandstone formation became more defined and resembled the cathedrals that this park is named after. About 0.5 miles from the parking lot for the Cathedral Cave Slot Canyon, we came upon the junction for the detour to Miller Point. We highly recommend taking this detour. It only adds 0.5 miles to your overall distance and it’s worth it.
At this junction, we turned left to check out the Miller Point Trail to the overlook. This trail follows along a wash in a smaller side canyon. This canyon is a lot narrower than the main one that we were on for the Juniper Draw Loop. After a short distance, we hiked up a short hill to a small bridge. This bridge crosses over a ravine. Once we crossed over the bridge, there was a short series of wooden steps before we reached a big metal ladder.
Don’t forget to stop and take in the scenery from here. It is quite beautiful to look down at all the sculpted spires. After the big metal ladder, there are more wooden stairsteps leading up the hill. From here, we could see the overlook and another big metal ladder. This whole section is quite steep. However, the stairs help. Just make sure to take your time up and down the steps.
From the overlook, there is a gazebo that provides shade and benches if you want to take a break. There are also informational panels just in case you want to learn more about this beautiful Cathedral Gorge park. Don’t forget to take some time to admire the view from up here. While it isn’t as beautiful as being immersed in the middle of the spires, this overlook gives a different perspective of the landscape that we were just in.
After we were done admiring the view, we followed the same trail to hike back to the junction for Juniper Draw Loop Trail and Miller Point Trail to continue on our main hike. Once we got back on the Juniper Draw Loop Trail, it was a short distance before we reached an interesting stone structure. We think this stone structure used to be a restroom. The section after the stone structure is the best part of this hike, the Cathedral Cave Slot Canyon.
Even though you could access this section by driving here, it was still pretty cool as part of the Juniper Draw Loop Trail. This whole area is what Cathedral Gorge State Park is known for. It is full of siltstone spires, stacking up like a small town full of cathedrals. It was so beautiful. If you love to explore, go further to check out all the cool slot canyons here. There were a few that we found. The slot canyons here are short but so unique. Most of the canyon walls have that popcorn texture. They also rise straight up to the sky, unlike the wavy walls of the famous slot canyon in Page, AZ, or Buckskin Gulch. If you stand inside the chambers inside these slot canyons, it feels like you’re standing inside a big cathedral. It was super cool.
After spending what felt like hours exploring the slot canyons, we continued to follow the trail past the parking area and the historic C.C.C. Water Tower. This tower is an interesting piece of history worth taking a quick look at. If you park here before you start the trail, this is the end of your trail. However, since we stayed at the campground, we followed the sign for the Nature Loop Trail located across the road from the water tower. This Nature Loop Trail connects back to our campsite. It’s kind of funny that since we have our yellow Teton tent on a cot, we could see our tent from the start of the Nature Loop Trail.
Since you’re staying at the Cathedral Gorge State Park, we recommend checking out the Hot Creek Springs. It is about 2 hours from the park but it is super beautiful.
Happy Adventuring. Don’t forget to check out the related posts below for more inspiration on your upcoming adventures. While at it, follow us on Instagram and subscribe to our YouTube channel! We’ll love you forever!
These are the gear that we personally use and find helpful for this particular adventure. Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.
These hiking poles are sturdy, and great to help keep your balance on short or longer hikes
If you tend to have foot blisters on hikes, get this! We use this all the time.
Our favorite hiking/travel jacket. It's warm and packable, perfect to bring on a hike or a road trip.
Our favorite hiking/travel jacket. It's warm and packable, perfect to bring on a hike or a road trip.
This jacket is packable into a super small and light little ball. Perfect for when you just need a little…
This jacket is packable into a super small and light little ball. Perfect for when you just need a little…
It's always good to bring a GPS tracker with you. We use the Garmin inReach.
This is Vy's favorite hiking bag! It has tons of room for snacks and water!
Our favorite biodegradable, eco-friendly, reef-safe sunscreen!
This is our go-to camera for all of our adventures. It comes with us everywhere!
Compact GoPro pole that extends to 25", perfect to bring on your adventure.
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Hi! We are Dustin & Vy, the proud creators of Live That Adventure. We created this website because we wanted to inspire others to live their lives to the fullest. On here, you’ll find everything from hiking, canyoneering, kayaking, and snorkeling to adventure and travel tips, gear reviews, and bucket list items such as bungee jumping or wing walking. We’ll show you the ropes so you can do them too!
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