Sight · Valley of Fire State Park
An odd little sandstone perch on a very short walk.
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Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Valley of Fire Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Valley of Fire State Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Valley of Fire audio tourRecorded for this place
Balancing Rock: A Short Walk at the Old Visitor Center“Balancing Rock is ahead by the Old Visitor Center, with a short path to a small sandstone stack. Its top block projects over pitted layers below.”
Plays as you drive up to Balancing Rock in the Parkwolf Valley of Fire Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Balancing Rock is a small sandstone formation with a boulder perched above its sloping base, reached by a very short walk. The state park lists the trail at 0.1 mile. If you're exploring this part of Valley of Fire, it's an easy extra look; the feature is modest, so I'd skip a special detour just for it.
Older directions and visitors place the path by the former visitor-center lot. Today's visitor center is farther west, so check that your navigation pin points to the old site before heading out.
Walk around the formation for a few angles: its silhouette changes as you move. For a photo, keep some of the surrounding sandstone in frame so the balanced boulder reads clearly against its setting. The park's red rock is Jurassic-age Aztec sandstone, formed from windblown sand after inland seas receded and the land rose.
Wildlife
647 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
11 sightingsMojave Desert TortoiseMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
23 sightingsSidewinderMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
18 sightingsBlack-tailed JackrabbitMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
11 sightingsRingtailMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
19 sightingsRed-tailed HawkMost seen around 10 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Valley of Fire. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyBalancing Rock Trail0.3 mi · 15 min · 0.1 mi awayA short walk to a sandstone stack with an eyelet.
EasyMouse’s Tank Trail0.7 mi · 36 min · 0.8 mi awayLook up as you walk: petroglyphs mark a sandy red-rock canyon.
ModerateProspect Trail4.6 mi · 3.3 hr · 1.4 mi awayAn open cross-park hike over a red-rock pass into a striped wash.
EasyRainbow Vista Trail1 mi · 45 min · 1.4 mi awayA sandy canyon walk to a rugged overlook above Fire Canyon
EasyPetrified Logs Loop Trail0.3 mi · 20 min · 1.5 mi awayA short loop with fossil wood and the story behind its grain.
ModerateSilica Dome Trail1.2 mi · 1 hr · 1.9 mi awayA short scramble climbs to a wide view over Fire Canyon.
ModeratePinnacles Loop4.7 mi · 2.5 hr · 2 mi awayFollow a sandy wash into a pocket of red sandstone spires.
ModerateFire Canyon Loop Trail5.7 mi · 3.5 hr · 2 mi awayA longer Silica Dome circuit where a downloaded track earns its keep.
Historic marker · 0.2 mi awayNevada’s First State Park Historical MarkerA quick marker stop for the park’s early history and Arrowhead Trail.
Sight · 0.6 mi awayMouse's TankA short canyon walk where petroglyphs lead to a rain-fed basin.
Picnic area · 0.8 mi awayMouse’s Tank Picnic AreaA shaded lunch stop with petroglyphs just behind it.
Picnic area · 0.9 mi awaySeven SistersA shaded roadside picnic area beneath seven red sandstone towers.
Sight · 1.2 mi awayFire Canyon OverlookA short, sandy hike ends above a rugged red-rock canyon.
Sight · 1.4 mi awayPetrified LogsThe best-exposed trunks come farther along the short loop.
Sight · 1.4 mi awayRainbow VistaA ridge-top panorama over miles of multicolored sandstone.
Visitor center · 1.7 mi awayValley of Fire Visitor CenterStart with the sandstone story before exploring the red-rock country.Parkwolf’s Valley of Fire ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
