We spent one day of our trip to Vegas out at Mt. Charleston. What an escape! It was 107 on the strip yet at Mt. Charleston just 30 mins away it was 70! There was actually snow on the top of the mountain. The area was also very quiet and we took a two hour hike and never saw another person.

If you are in Vegas and the bright lights get to be too much, go check out Mt. Charleston. You will not be disappointed!

I moved to vegas from a northern state with tree, etc. I didn't visit Mt Charleston until a couple years after i moved to vegas.

I wish i'd discovered it earlier. Very cool. About 1 hour outside of vegas, the tem drops from 120 to 85 in the summer. Pine trees and mountains everywhere.

Its very much worth the drive if you're in vegas for a week with a rental car and getting bored (or going broke). There is a really cool restaurant/bar up in the mountains. There are cabins up there too but the are pretty pricey and very un-private -- i wouldn't stay there.
Also, there are picnic/state camping up there.

And pretty cool scenic views. I've brought a few ladies up there and they really liked it.

My usual trip: 1 hour there, hiking on one of the cool (usually quiet) nature trails, lunch and a few beers at the restuarant, ice cream, a drive out about 20 min farther to the great scenic look out into the desert (i can't remember the name - ask) and an hour or so back to vegas. A good, cheap way to kill an afternoon after you've lost your a** in the casinos. Also check out Red Rock Canyon if you're looking for nature stuff to do (flip over rocks to find scorpians and stuff)