La Madre Springs
From the Willow Springs parking lot, walk the dirt road west up the canyon, cross a wash and go to the right when the road splits. Continue uphill to the dam, then follow the foot trail to the spring. Return to Willow Springs by backtracking. [3 miles round trip, moderate]
Red Rock Canyon - La Madre Springs Trail
Views of the miner's cabin located on a ridge high above La Madre Springs dam.
This is a picture taken from above the cabin. Here you can see how far you have to travel to reach the cabin. No where in this shot can you see the dam below that is the official end of the La Madre Springs trail. What you can't see is how steep the trail really is.
This is the view of the cabin from the trail. Close examination of the rocks and soil in the foreground show that this area was inhabited long before the miners got here. This is the site of a Native American agaves roasting pit.
In this shot my good friend and hiking buddy Bonnie Hewitt. She lends perspective to the shot. Bonnie is about 5' 6".
If you turn around you can see that the humans that inhabited this area didn't just pick the location for it's proximity to water. Even on this overcast day the view is excellent.
There is a small area outside walled off outside the cabin.
Even Bonnie has to duck to enter the cabin.
The cabin entrance.
Bonnie has no trouble standing inside the cabin. I on the other hand was forced to try and stand with my head in between the logs.
The interior of the cabin houses some old artifacts from the area. (artifacts = trash that is older than 50 years)
Bonnie stands next to the fireplace.