Castle Peaks Rock Climbing

I'm not going to bore you with a bunch of desert disclaimers, other than to say that once you get on the back roads you are on your own so plan accordingly...

This is definitely a crag in which getting to the base is significantly more than half the fun. Bring and use a good topo map in order to navigate the dirt roads. The scenery is so beautiful and the area is riddled with old townsites so plan on taking your time on the drive in. We made the drive in my 2WD pick-up with little problem. The final road is pretty rough however, so having some clearance and some horsepower does help. The back roads are not maintained so road quality can change suddenly in response to heavy rains.

The Castle Peaks can be approached from at least two different ways. The traditional way is from the Nipton Road intersection with I-15 just inside the California side of the stateline. That is what I'll describe here. However the network of dirt roads leading away from Searchlight, NV, can be quite high quality and pleasant driving so I'd recommend making the Castle Peaks tour a loop-drive.

Exit I-15 at Nipton Rd. Take the first right, south on Ivanpah Rd. Stay on this road past Morning Star Rd., the main drag through the Preserve. Ivanpah Rd. crosses the railroad tracks and becomes a dirt road. This road changes names to Lanfair Rd. At 17 miles from Nipton Rd you will reach the townsite of Barnwell where you will hang a left, east on Hart Mine Rd. This is a section of grade for the old Barnwell and Searchlight Railroad.

Follow the rail grade past a major right turn (at 4.7 miles) to a faint road on the left (at 5.6 miles). Turn left here and follow this rough road for three miles past an old earthen dam until the road is barricaded at the Wilderness Area boundary. Park here.

Here's a few GPS coordinates (WGS84 datum)
35 18' 28"N 115 09' 19"W turn-off from rail grade to final road
35 20' 34"N 115 10' 49"W wilderness boundary parking area
35 22' 10"N 115 09' 41"W base of Dove Benchmark 5th-class pitch