My wife at Red Spring, NV

Because Red Spring, near the south end of Calico Basin, is known to provide a permanant supply of water, many fauna and flora species take advantage of its fertile beauty. There are three spings in this area. Ash Spring, Calico Spring and Red Spring provided reliable and vital water sources to humans for thousands of years. American Indians used this area, and were followed by homesteaders and ranchers. Here, you see the small tunnel or cave from which Red Sping flows. Keep in mind that the meadow at the base of the spring is a fragile ecosystem, protected by the Bureau of Land Management. A boardwalk was installed in 2005 as part of a restoration project to protect the environmentally sensitive riparian habitat. Outside the boardwalk, there is a fence to keep burros and horses from trampling these areas. If you examine this natural spring, you will find water-loving plants such as stream orchids, watercress, Nevada-blue eyed grass and black-creeper sedge. There's also a number of red-spotted toads and Pacific chorus frogs that inhabit the area. The alkali Mariposa lily, which grows in the surrounding alkaline riparian meadow, is found only in a few other places in Southern California and Nevada. My wife was really fasinated by the flow of water. She had just returned from an extensive visit of the Philippine Islands, and was happy to see some water- loving plants once again; but this time in the Mojave Desert of southern Nevada. Calico Basin/Red Spring is OPEN daily, from sunrise to sunset! As the Roman poet Horace said, "Seize the day!" (Source from Deborah Wall - 2008)