The Nevada Highway Patrol is issuing a travel advisory for Mount Charleston for Thursday thru Sunday. The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Warning for the Spring Mountains/Mount Charleston from Wednesday to Saturday. With this storm system coming during a holiday week where many people will be off work and out of school we are expecting an influx of visitors to the Mount Charleston area. This weather advisory should be taken seriously, police and emergency services are limited on Mount Charleston and need to be kept free for true emergencies. Motorist who go to the mountain unprepared could cause unnecessary risks to themselves and first responders and take first responders away from other emergency situations.
Things to know before you go. There are no vehicle services on the mountain, make sure you have a full tank of gas when headed to Mount Charleston. It’s a good idea to have cold weather gear/blankets, snacks, water and a fully charged cell phone when heading to Mount Charleston during winter conditions. When winter weather is impacting Mount Charleston the Nevada Highway Patrol may require all vehicles to have All Wheel Drive or snow chains. Vehicles without AWD or snow chains may be forced to turn around. Check road conditions before you go at www.gomtcharleston.com or www.nevadadot.com. Visitors should also use safe snow play areas, sledding in non-approved locations can result in injury which may require a medical/police response.
Mount Charleston has approximately 3,500 parking spots on the mountain between SR156, SR157 and SR158. These spots quickly fill up on holiday weekends and leave no legal parking available. General rule of thumb is if you’re leaving your house to go to Mount Charleston after 12pm, there is probably no parking left, get to the mountain early. The Nevada Highway Patrol, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and the Nevada Department of Transportation will be monitoring parking and traffic flow. If traffic becomes too congested to the point where first responder vehicles cannot safely travel the roadways we will close the roads going up the mountain and only allow vehicles to leave until traffic is at a safe volume. Parking in areas not designated for parking or parking with any portion of your vehicle in the travel lanes can result in a parking citation and your vehicle being towed by the owners own expense. Roads must be kept free and clear at all times for first responder response and snow plow operations.
As always to report an emergency dial 911 or *NHP.
