The parking area is before this sign at the drive for this horseback riding company.

The trail takes a left from the driveway and starts going past the corral where many of the horses are kept.

After crossing the wash and going a short distance, you arrive at the second turn—one that goes off to the right and heads across the desert.

There is a fork in the trail and you need to take the left fork. That's the one that takes you directly to the Muffins.

The Muffins are two large conglomerate boulders at the top of the first ridge. You can climb up the side of one of them fairly easily for a great view of Red Rock Canyon and the Las Vegas Valley.

As you near the overlook, you join the trail that you would arrive at if you had taken the right fork early in the hike. From here it's a short distance to the first overlook.

While you can see much of Las Vegas from several places on Blue Diamond Hill, this place has been called the Las Vegas Overlook for a number of years. I always stop here to take some photos.

After leaving the first overlook, you follow the trail up the hill to the top of the second ridge and follow it along. Blue Diamond Hill is limestone, but there are several areas of the shinarump conglomerate along the trail. Watch for desert animals and cacti. The blooms are beautiful!

I usually take some time at the edge of the ri... Moredge for a snack and if I bring my binoculars to zoom in on Las Vegas and the planes leaving McCarran. I have been here on a couple of occasions when you could see the sun reflecting off Lake Mead. It's a nice place to sit and enjoy the view.Less

There is some kind of communications or weather information center here. It has grown in size in the past few years. There's a nice solar array to help power the center. I have no idea what it's for, but it's a good landmark to know you're on the right track to come back to the car via the Boneshaker Trail.

This is the beginning of the Boneshaker Trail, a mountain bike trail. There's a sign at this junction—a bit weathered with exposure to the sun—and it indicates to keep heading west.

There are so many great views coming back the Boneshaker including some great conglomerate formations. I marvel at the terrain the mountain bikers traverse.

Here's a view across the canyon and you can see the trail you took to get to the Muffins that are at the top of the photo. The downhill from here on gets a bit steep in places so use care. The footing can be difficult with the loose rock.

The original trail goes to the right, but the bikers have made the downhill part shorter and steeper by going almost straight down the hill. There are a few turns, but this is a steep area and the footing is difficult at times.

The obvious route to take is to go left at this junction. Instead, continue straight across the desert and you'll join the trail you took in. If you want to stay on a defined trail, you can make a left here and then take the road for the horseback riding company back to the car. In any case, you can see the car from here, so it doesn't matter ho... Morew you go back. I generally bushwhack this short section.Less

I always leave the trail to go to the fence of the corral and talk to the horses. They enjoy have their noses rubbed, and they will come to the fence. I don't feed the horses because the business doesn't want them to associate getting treats or other food from hikers. This way they won't learn to expect treats from people and perhaps bite one of... More their riders.Less