One of our favorite hikes in Carlsbad Caverns National Park, this hike is
notable for great canyon scenery, a variety of cacti and other desert
plants, and some history.
Rattlesnake Canyon
One of our favorite hikes in Carlsbad Caverns National Park, this hike is
notable for great canyon scenery, a variety of cacti and other desert
plants, and some history.
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Hike data:
| Controlling agency: | National Park Service; Carlsbad Caverns National Park; hike web site | ||||||||
| Location in the state: | Southeast; Carlsbad Caverns National Park | ||||||||
| Trailhead waypoint(s): | RSTH | ||||||||
| Elevation: |
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| Elevation gain/loss: | 557 ft; 170 m | ||||||||
| Length: | 5.10 mi; 8.20 km. out-and-back distance. | ||||||||
| How long it took us (HH:MM): | 04:30. | ||||||||
| Cleanliness: | 10/10 | ||||||||
| Trail usage: | 0.50 people/hour. Many people know of this trail. However, only a miniscule fraction of the park visitors ever hike this trail. | ||||||||
| Trail Condition: | Excellent | ||||||||
| Fee: | $0.00. | ||||||||
| When we hiked it: | 2001-01-20. | ||||||||
| Trailhead facilities: | None. Water, trash cans, picnic tables and restrooms are at the visitor center. | ||||||||
| Special features of the hike: | History, wildflowers, scenery, geology. | ||||||||
| When to hike: | All year. If the preceeding winter had sufficient precipitation, the flowers are likely to be stunning in the spring. Summer will be hot; start this hike as early as possible. | ||||||||
| General comments: | The cactus and other desert plants are protected by law. The National Parks Conservation Association has online information about cactus poaching, which is a serious problem. Poachers are robbing us hikers of the beauty of the cactus. |
Maps:
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Getting to the trailhead:
From the Visitor's Center, head out of the parking lot and take the 9 mile scenic loop road. The trailhead is at marker 9 on ths loop, just after you begin to descend from the mesa top.
The hike:
 | The trailhead has only a little parking area. However, I have never
seen it full. While a visit to the famous cavern nearby is important,
this hike is a chance to see the beauty that exists above-ground.
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The trailhead is near the mesa top, so the hike begins heading down
immediately. This area burned a few years ago, and the plants (such as
this Mexican Buckeye) near the trailhead are still recovering. Look at
the larger version, as this small version does not show it well.
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 | The plants are one of the high points of this hike. Here, you
can see two common desert plants, a yucca and a sotol (the upper
plant).
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Some of the cacti are small, and to see them you have to have a sharp eye.
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 | Another famous plant is the Lechuguilla. Translated from Spanish,
that would be "little lettuce". However, those spines are
un-lettuce-like. I have heard of people flattening their tires by
driving over a Lechuguilla plant.
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As you hike down, you get nice views of the canyon. This view is especially nice since it includes Diana! After an hour or two of walking, you arrive at RS3, which is the canyon bottom. You have lost most of the elevation that you will for this hike. Watch for cairns, as sometimes the trail is across rocky areas where otherwise no trail would show up. |  |
 | A few minutes later, you arrive at a junction (RS4). A friend who knows the area well calls this junction, "murder junction", since two people have been either found dead or murdered not far from this sign. One of these murders has received a lot of press: Outdoorplaces.com, ABC News, and the Amarillo Globe News are just a few of the news outlets to cover the strange tale of a man who killed his best friend. He claims that they became lost and dehydrated, and the killing was a mercy killing. They were found not far from this sign. Even though the sign points left for Rattlesnake Canyon, the trail actually heads straight, behind the sign. Follow the cairns. |
The trail now crosses or is in the streambed at times. Other times, it
is up on a bench on the side. The cairns are large, and the trail is
easy to follow.
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 | The bit of history that you run across is the old foundation for a ranch
building. You see bits of life here, such as part of an old sewing
machine.
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An interesting clastic dike crosses the trail (I am not a geologist, so
this could be incorrect).
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 | When you hike in the winter, the opuntia (prickly pear) are a nice
magenta. When it warms up, the pads will turn green again.
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In the spring, after good winter precipitation, these cacti are
probably covered with blooms. The ocotillo will bloom anytime in
spring or summer after they have had sufficient moisture.
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 | You pass another canyon coming in from the right. This is a sign you are reaching the end. When the trail gets close to coming out of the mountains onto the plains, it turns into a two-track and the cairns stop (RS5). This is your sign to turn around. I went much further, just to see if it was worth plowing through the aptly-named cat's claw acacia. It is not. To the right is yet another kind of cactus we saw. |
As you return, the canyon looks different than it did as you hiked down.
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 | Keep your eyes open on the return trip for different cacti.
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This banded rock looks like a cave formation; a cave may have been here
before the canyon was formed.
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Plants we saw along the trail:
Animals we saw along the trail:
Reader comments about this hike:
On Sat Mar 18 13:23:51 2006 Vardy Vincent from Seguin, TX said:Add your comments about the Rattlesnake Canyon hike.
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