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4.0
6 votes

Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area

50 Bastian Road, Battle Mountain, Nevada 89820 USA

  • Independent
  • Pet Friendly
  • Not Wheelchair
    Accessible
  • Public
    Restrooms
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“Places in Austin, NV”

Bookended by 7,000-foot mountain ranges at either end, the route between Austin and Eureka is perhaps the longest, flattest, straightest stretch of the entire trans-Nevada length of US-50, over 70 miles of Great Basin nothingness. Cattle ranches fill the plains, which were crisscrossed by early explorers like John C. Fremont, who passed through in 1845, as well as by the Pony Express and the Butterfield Stage. Such recent history, however, pales in comparison to the relics from the region’s prehistoric past, particularly the fine petroglyphs carved into the rocks on the eastern side of 6,594-foot Hickison Summit, 28 miles east of Austin and 46 miles west of Eureka.   Now protected as part of the BLM-operated Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area, the petroglyphs stand in a shallow sandstone draw on the north side of the highway. A half-mile trail loops through sagebrush, junipers, and piñon pines from the parking area-cum-campground past dozens of these enigmatic figures, some of which are thought to date back as far as 10,000 bc. Somewhat surprisingly, so far they are graffiti-free.

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Reviews of Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area

25 people have reviewed this location

Ratings Summary

4.2 Access
4.5 Location
3.9 Cleanliness
3.9 Site Quality
4.8 Noise

Cell Coverage

Verizon 4G

Confirmed by 9 users | Last reported on July 03, 2023

AT&T 4G/5G

Confirmed by 5 users | Last reported on June 28, 2023

T-Mobile 4G/5G

Confirmed by 3 users | Last reported on October 04, 2023
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Reviewed by
BecchioFam.com

  • 2 Reviews
  • 3 Helpful
September 04, 2016
Rated 5.0

Out in the middle of nowhere, it's a great self guided tour of petroglyphs carved in stone. Some pretty vistas, great rock scrambling for our kids. Small pine trees, picnic area, and pit toilets. No water. There is a campground too, which we didn't visit. I'd give it a lower rating for the facilities, but it's so far away from civilization, I can't imagine there's much of a budget for maintenance. Bring some toilet paper just in case 😉

2 people found this review helpful
  • 1 Review
  • 1 Helpful
June 26, 2022
Rated 4.0

This place was pretty desolate. Not much around and about a 2 mile drive down a Gravel road to get to the small, single loop campground. We arrived in a 30ft travel trailer and were able to set up relatively easy. Maybe 10 sites. no hookups at all!
We arrived around 630 on a Summer Saturday evening and there were only about 5 other campers.
Pit toilets. Hit or miss toilet paper. No water to wash hands.
Lots of little lizards, big grasshoppers, bugs. Neat petroglyphs about 10 minute walk.
Sites are sandy and Gravel so expect to bring blocks to level trailers. Sites are back in or tent sites. Fire pits. Coverage over tables. Trash cans. We'll cared for little campground.

1 person found this review helpful

Reviewed by
elheffey

  • 4 Reviews
  • 1 Helpful
October 14, 2021
Rated 5.0

A great break on Highway 50. Wonderful petroglyphs and nice easy hiking. Highly recommend a stop especially with kids. Modern graffiti is sad but you can still see some ancient art.

1 person found this review helpful
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Reviewed by
Campendium

December 31, 2014
Rated

Hickison Petroglyphs is located down a dirt road just north of Highway 50 in the middle of Nevada. There is no water, but the price is excellent! There's a short loop trail to some interesting petroglyphs that made it worth the stop even if you're not overnighting. We had a weak 1x signal on the phones but was able to boost it to 3 bars of 4g with the antenna and amplifier.

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This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: -

2 Access
3 Location
4 Cleanliness
3 Site Quality
4 Noise

Reviewed by
davidkingham

  • 26 Reviews
  • 0 Helpful
May 31, 2015
Rated

This is the place for you! It's a little tight, but got the 25 footer in okay, took a lot of leveling and it was a bit muddy from rain. There was only one other camper here so it was super quiet and relaxing. The BLM obviously never comes out here as there was no TP in the bathroom. The petroglyphs are nothing to write home about, but this was a great place to stop overnight while driving the loneliest road in America. No cell coverage on Verizon or ATT

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davidkingham would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: 2

3 Access
3 Location
3 Cleanliness
3 Site Quality
5 Noise
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Reviewed by
Campendium

May 25, 2017
Rated

Plenty of room for our 30' trailer in this BLM campground. It doesn't appear as if the ranger is here often as the trash cans are all full. However, the camp is neat and there are plenty of sites for us to choose from.

The hikes to the petroglyph's is pretty short, but worth the time.

Cell phone reception for AT&T was 4 bars and 22 Mb download speeds.

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Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: N/A

4 Access
4 Location
4 Cleanliness
4 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T 4G

Reviewed by
Frank Poole

  • 20 Reviews
  • 0 Helpful
September 09, 2017
Rated

Was here in APR 2017
Nice little off the road campground with something to do. Dirt road was not bad at all, a little rough at times, but ok. Sites could use a little touch up here and there, paint, weeds, trimming etc. doesn't look like it gets much attention, but still works ok. Sites are a little small but manageable, leveling is a little tricky. Hike to point is short and sweet, not bad at all. Petro's are ok, a little hard to distinguish, but so is Graffiti which I call these the original Graffiti artists.
Hike up to the top of the hill was nice, terrific views both sides of hill. A lot of day use and one nighters.
Had a Snow Dusting in APR when there. No big deal, just a dusting.

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Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 5

Site Number: ??

3 Access
3 Location
2 Cleanliness
2 Site Quality
3 Noise
Photo of Campendium

Reviewed by
Campendium

May 08, 2018
Rated

There are three spots here where a longer rig can fit. Our truck and fifth wheel are about 44'. We were able to get into a spot, but maneuvering around the trees and the circle around which the sites are located was more challenging. As with other BLM sites, arrival before dark is a must to insure your rig's safety.

Primitive toilets, picnic tables, and fire rings, and trashcans are available, with some sites having small picnic shelters. The trashcans are not attended to regularly, resulting in regular overflows.

In addition to the campsites there is a gathering area and, the main attraction, a petroglyph preservation site. To reach both of these, turn left rather than right at the end of the dirt road entrance.

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Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: n/a

3 Access
4 Location
2 Cleanliness
3 Site Quality
4 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T 4G

Photo of Campendium

Reviewed by
Campendium

June 10, 2018
Rated

So yeah this was a perfect stop going across Nevada on the Loneliest Hwy. Nice little hiking trails around petroglyphs and they also have restrooms and trash cans. Perfect BLM spot .

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This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 3

Site Number: 2

Photo of Campendium

Reviewed by
Campendium

July 24, 2018
Rated

Great Boondocking would’ve stayed longer but have somewhere else to be. Each site had a covered picnic table, a firing ring and a barbecue grill. The trail was very interesting and easy for even the beginners. The trail included a self-guided brochure which pointed out many interesting facts. The views were breathtaking. Would definitely and probably will stay here again. The road to the camp ground was a dirt road but not bad at all. Easy to find.

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Nightly Rate: $0.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: ?

5 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

Verizon 4G

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Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area

50 Bastian Road
Battle Mountain, Nevada
89820 USA
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  • Unavailable
    Parking
  • Check
    Pets Allowed
  • Check
    Restrooms
  • Unknown
    Wifi
  • Unavailable
    Wheelchair Accessible
  • Unknown
    Credit Cards Accepted
Affiliation
Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
Last Nightly Rate
0.0
Longest Vehicle Length Reported
37.0
Lowest Nightly Rate
0.0
Max Length
25 ft
Max Stay
14
  • Unavailable
    Full Hookup
  • Check
    Rec Facilities
  • Unavailable
    Pull Through
  • Check
    Tent Sites
  • Unavailable
    Dump Station
  • Unavailable
    Big Rigs
  • Unavailable
    Open Seasonally
  • Unavailable
    Age Restricted
  • Check
    Boondock
  • Unavailable
    Cabin Sites
  • Unavailable
    Dispersed Sites
  • Unavailable
    Firewood
  • Unavailable
    Fulltime Residents
  • Unavailable
    Group Tent Sites
  • Unavailable
    Laundry
  • Unavailable
    Mobile Homes
  • Unavailable
    Permit Required
  • Unavailable
    Propane
  • Unavailable
    Public Water
  • Unavailable
    Pull Through RV Sites
  • Unavailable
    Reservations
  • Unavailable
    Sewer Hookup
  • Unavailable
    Showers
  • Check
    Standard Tent Sites
  • Unavailable
    Water Hookup
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