Hell Hole Pass Road
  

Hell Hole Pass     by Oliver Hansen    ©Oliver Hansen
  

~ submitted by Oliver Hansen

Directions:  Head west on Sunset Blvd in St. George passing through the town of Santa Clara. This road becomes Old HWY 91. You will enter the Shivwits Paiute Indian Reservation. Continue straight at the intersection to Gunlock (Don't go to Gunlock). 5 or 6 miles after the housing area in the reservation there will be a green sign stating that you have just left the reservation. Almost exactly 0.9 miles after exiting the reservation there will be an unmarked gravel road turnoff to the right (north). This road is marked Hell Hole Pass Rd. and leads up to the high-point of the Beaver Dam mountains - West Mountain Peak.

Road conditions: The road is a wide very well maintained gravel road for the first 3-4 miles and could probably be navigated by almost any car. The last mile up to the pass, however, is very steep and I would recommend having a high clearance and/or 4WD. At the pass there is a turn-off to continue up to the communication station at the peak that I would not recommend driving (even though I know of people driving their trucks to the top). Taking the road down the other side from the pass continues to Indian Springs down on the Beaver Dam Wash side of the mountains and eventually connects back up to the road to Lytle Ranch. This area is very remote and there other than a service truck or two during the week, you may be the only vehicle traveling this road (especially on weekends). Make sure to have plenty of water, gas, and other necessities in case of an emergency.

Specialty Birds:  black-throated sparrow, black-tailed gnatcatcher, gray vireo, cactus wren, and probably a good spot to find Crissal thrashers, black-chinned sparrows and other Mojave specialties.

     eBird Data:   |  Hell Hole Pass Rd (aka Beaver Dam Mtn Rd) |  Utah Hill |

Nearby:  Utah Hill, Gunlock Reservoir, Ivins Reservoir