Recently I set out to explore the Seven Devils Wilderness in Idaho and walk a 27-mile loop through those mountains, but a large fire in Hell’s Canyon diverted that plan at the last minute. The Ruby Mountain Wilderness of Nevada had long been on my “to do” list, and this seemed like a good time to change plans and head south.

The Rubies were misnamed in the 1800s during the gold rush, when a group of army explorers thought they’d found a range filled with rubies; instead they discovered only garnets. The range is about 60 miles long, with the width being a bit narrow at an average of 11 miles across. The Rubies are also moister than the surrounding basin and range landscape of the high desert, and the summer wildflower display is impressive.

The range is covered with healthy stands of lodgepole pine, and on its higher windswept peaks a handful of ancient bristlecone pine. It holds a large herd of mule deer, some elk, mountain goat, bighorn sheep, and the usual predators of cougar, bobcat, and coyote. If you’re lucky, you might also get a rare sighting of the Himalayan Snowcock, transplanted here in the 1960s from Pakistan (the Ruby Mountain range is the only place in North America to view this bird). My real surprise in the Ruby Range was the lack of mosquitoes. Maybe it was the altitude or maybe the surrounding dry desert air, but those pests were not a problem on my trip.

The range boasts ten peaks over 10,000 feet, which includes the highpoint of 11,387-foot Ruby Dome. Since the Rubies are a wetter range, the area is also dotted with lakes which hold a number of trout species (including the endangered Lahontan cutthroat trout). I’m told the fish are smaller in the more popular lakes, and quite large in the more inaccessible ones.

Backpacking in the Ruby Mountains

If you’re interested in hiking the Ruby Mountains, there is the 42-mile Ruby Crest National Recreation Trail which cuts across the range lengthwise. You can either call a guide from nearby Elko, Nevada to shuttle your car to the trailhead or plan a two-car shuttle with a friend. Since my time didn’t allow for a longer backpacking trip, I decided to head for the lake country at the end of the glacially carved Lamoille Canyon (this range’s equivalent of the Yosemite Valley). The drive up Lamoille Canyon to the trailhead is beautiful; aspen line the streambeds and peaks jut out from the ridgelines above.

A slow ascent brings you to 6,725 feet and the parking lot trailhead at the end of the Lamoille Canyon Road. From here it’s a gradual climb to 10,450-foot Liberty Pass, and if you’ve come from sea level like I did the breathing will get tougher as you go. Before Liberty Pass you’re still not in wilderness, so watch out for mountain bikes bombing the trail past backpackers, day hikers, and families with children. Unfortunately I’ve only seen bikers yield to hikers twice in all my thousands of miles of backpacking.

At Liberty Pass you say goodbye to the canyon behind, and look out towards Lake Peak across a valley and scenic Liberty Lake below. You might choose to stop here and camp to avoid an afternoon thunderstorm or just to stay high to acclimate to the new-found elevation. If you need to descend, you’ll reach Favre Lake in another mile and a half, or you can climb from there cross-country to Castle Lake which sits in a beautiful cirque of mountains. Once you cross Liberty Pass, you enter the Ruby Mountain Wilderness and leave most day hikers behind as your solitude increases. From Liberty Pass, you can also climb and travel cross-country anywhere you wish. I found the rock of the area to have a firm grip on hiking shoes and cross-country routes and passes abound. I chose to stay in the lake basin photographing the landscapes and wildflowers of the lush high country.

Travelling onward the Ruby Crest Trail drops and then ascends to Wines Pass, then drops to North Furlong Lake sitting below a crest of mountains. I had planned on climbing the Ruby Crest Trail over 10,892-feet Wines Peak and onward along a high ridge walk of the Ruby Mountains, but stormy weather bringing heavy rains, lightning, and dime-sized hail put the kibosh on that. Instead I waded into North Furlong Lake for some photography, where I found my legs covered with leeches. A bit of medieval doctoring I guess. For the return route I just reversed the way I came, stopping at different lakes on the way.

There are a number of loops you can take in the Rubies, and some trail access routes are more difficult than others. Many of the four-wheel-drive roads are accessible in drier times, but once it rains the road mud can become slick and treacherous. If you’re planning to hike the 42-mile Ruby Crest National Recreation Trail, plan on parking at the Lamoille Canyon Parking lot and leaving another car or shuttle at Harrison Pass along Route 57.

Much of the trail features ridge walks and high passes; afternoon thunderstorms are common and I planned any hiking that traversed these areas for morning. For maps I used the Ruby Mountains and East Humboldt Wildernesses map, published by the Humboldt National Forest. Both the Forest Service and BLM offices in Elko, Nevada were closed when I arrived Saturday afternoon and they weren’t due to open again until Monday, and no retail outlets in Elko carried topo maps either. I bummed my map off some hikers finishing their trip (maybe purchasing your topo maps online would be a better option).

Final Thoughts on the Ruby Mountains

The Ruby Mountain range is an impressive site. Scenes like this are usually reserved for states like Montana, Wyoming, and California – but rarely Nevada. I’ve heard Nevada called the “poor man’s Alaska” and this state contains more than meets the eye. My guess is the Ruby Mountains could be the “crown-jewel” of the Great Basin Desert, an area that includes Great Basin National Park in Nevada, the Steens Mountains of Oregon, and the Book Cliffs of Utah. These are all beautiful places I’ve explored and visited, but the Rubies are truly a gem.

Need to Know

Information

The U.S. Forest Service site for the Ruby Mountains can be found here.

Best Time to Go

Peak time for the Rubies is July 1 - August 31, but September can be nice for fall aspen color in Lamoille Canyon. Getting There: From Elko, Nevada take Hwy. 227 (Lamoille Hwy.) toward the Ruby Mountains. Before the town of Lamoille turn right on NF 660 up Lamoille Canyon to the trailhead.

Maps and Books

Ruby Mountains and East Humboldt Wildernesses map. For getting to and from the trailhead and exploring other Nevada hiking destinations, an atlas like the Nevada Benchmark Atlas can be useful. For books on hiking in the area and Nevada see 50 Classic Hikes Nevada: From the Ruby Mountains to Red Rock Canyon as well as Hiking Nevada, a Falcon Guide.

All images in this article © David M. Cobb Photography.

Editor's Note: This article by contributor David Cobb originally appeared in Issue 18 of TrailGroove Magazine. You can read the original article here for additional photos and content. See more of David’s photography at dmcobbphoto.com.