Stewart Point, the name given to the highest point in the remote Resting Spring Range of Eastern California, makes for an obscure hiking goal. As many of these desert peaks, few would attempt or climb them, outside of the Desert Peaks Section, Angeles Chapter, Sierra Club. No tourists would give it much notice. Traffic bound from southern Death Valley National Park to Las Vegas or Pahrump, NV, passes it right by. No signs point it out, nor are there any trailheads or parking areas developed for it.

Maybe 10 to 25 hikers do it, in any given year. It is only class 2 at most, with perhaps a short class 3 scramble to surmount a 15' dry waterfall.

Getting There

The Desert Peaks Section Road and Peaks Guide offers the best directions. You may try to scope it out by the photos, and take your own way, and chances. There is a slight shoulder along the high speed highway, CA 178, to park. Park off pavement, but do not get stuck in the sand! Finding a place to park may be the most difficult task, with exact mileages and directions given only by the DPS Guide, and Andy Zdon's Desert Summits. Milepost 58.50 is mentioned in both guides.

Red Tape

This is BLM desert wilderness, and no permits, passes, or fees are required.

When To Climb

It is far more pleasant to climb this peak in the off-season, from late October to perhaps April. Summers in the desert, here, are brutally hot. People regularly perish trying to hike in the summer season.

Camping

Primitive camping can be found on nearby BLM land. There is lodging both in Shoshone, CA (one motel), and Pahrump, NV (a few casinos). There is an RV park in Shoshone.

Mountain Conditions

The nearest towns are Pahrump, NV, and Shoshone, CA. Many live cams in Las Vegas may show the weather, there, being about 50 miles to the east.

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