ST. GEORGE – Those traveling between St. George and Las Vegas are offered alternate routes to direct travel on Interstate 15 in light of a section of the highway between Nevada mile markers 64-112, between Glendale and Mesquite in Clark County, Nevada, being washed out by heavy rains and flooding Monday night.
Trooper Chelsea Webster, public information officer for Nevada Highway Patrol, Southern Command, confirmed an alternate route around the Valley of Fire area available to passenger vehicles only, and said that the NHP prefers vehicles route through Lincoln County into or out of Utah.
Allowing for some variations in accessing the alternate routes, Webster confirms available alternate routes as follow:
Alternate route through the Valley of Fire, Nevada
Note: This route is available to passenger vehicles only. Anyone that is not in a regular car, minivan, basic pickup will be turned away from this route, Webster said. Prohibited vehicles include anything bigger than a passenger vehicle, anything with more weight than a passenger vehicle, including semitrailer trucks, moving trucks the likes of a U-Haul, anything towing a trailer of any sort.
Southbound: The Valley of Fire alternate route opens up I-15 southbound at Nevada Exit 93 junction with state Route 169 towards Logandale, routing back to I-15 southbound at the other side.
Northbound option for passenger vehicles only: Travelers from Las Vegas may take I-15 northbound to Nevada Exit 75, the Valley of Fire turnoff, to state Route 169, where they’ll pass through Logandale, and will get back on the I-15 northbound at about Nevada mile marker 93.
Alternate route through Lincoln County, Nevada
From St. George to Las Vegas: Take Highway 18 to Utah Highway 56, which becomes Nevada Highway 319 to U.S. Highway 93, to I-15 in Nevada.
From Cedar City to Las Vegas: Take Highway 56, which becomes Nevada Highway 319, to U.S. Highway 93, to I-15 in Nevada.
Northbound option for all travel from Las Vegas to Cedar City: Exit northbound I-15 at Nevada Exit 64 at Love’s Travel Stop in north Las Vegas, to U.S. Highway 93 to state Route 319, which becomes Utah Highway 56 northbound reconnecting to I-15 in Cedar City OR diverting off Highway 56 onto Highway 18 into St. George.
The NHP prefers those traveling between Las Vegas and St. George, both directions, use the Lincoln County alternate routes, Webster said, despite the travel time involved.
Travel time
Because of the increased traffic on the Lincoln County routes due to commercial traffic being detoured that direction the normal travel time from St. George to Las Vegas on that route of 4.5 hours is being reported by St. George News reporter John Teas, who drove it Tuesday, and readers as taking from 6-10 hours or more. Expect slow moving semis on steep grades and single lane highways in both directions.
St. George News readers have reported mostly smooth sailing on the Valley of Fire alternate routes – times vary. But, again, these routes are only available to standard passenger vehicles.
Maps
Below are three variation maps for point of reference purposes. These are not the only routes and do not purport to reflect all variations described in this report. People are encouraged to consult map resources available to them.
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It is Valley of Fire, NOT Lake of Fire. And the top picture is the Lincoln County route, not the Valley of Fire route.
Does anyone have the time it is taking to go north bound from Las Vegas to St. George through Valley of Fire? Also, is Valley of Fire still charging their fee to everyone going through?
it took me about one hour extra this morning (Wednesday) to get to Mesquite. The road is winding and some curves are sharp. The speed limit is 25 to 35 in some places through the park, and it should be, as the road is narrow. It sure beats going through Lincoln County. The park fees are being waived for now.
How long will this be going on before I 15 is reopened? We are planning g a trip through there on Sept. 2014 this month.
We are going through there on Sept. 22. I need to know!
Returned from CA yesterday and hit the 93 detour at about 7:00 pm. What a nightmare! After sitting for an hour in stopped traffic just N of Caliente, we opted for the gravel roads and finally made it over to Enterprise! Arrived home at 1:30 am.
Does anyone have an idea of how long it would take to get from St. George to Las Vegas with the detours?
This is a better article, describing the reality of the various options. It would be nice to know how long the Valley of Fire route is taking and why the NHP is suggesting that passenger cars between St. George and Las Vegas join the convoy of trucks in Lincoln County, taking significantly longer. It’s also quite important to know if commercial shuttles and buses are being allowed through the Valley of Fire.
For the person who asked about September 22nd, NDOT is trying to open at least one lane in each direction on I-15 (using the northbound lanes) by this weekend. But this destruction will take weeks to repair, probably a month or more.
Need to know time it takes from I-15 exit 93 thru Valley of fire route back to I-15…have to catch plane back to minneapolis tomorrow in Las Vegas
I am heading SB I15 and will be on the Valley of Fire route in about half hour. Can anyone give a more specific time estimate for getting to Vegas this way?
I went through today going through Overton and the Valley of Fire and it took 3 hours total. There was very little traffic on the road.
Are vehicles able to fuel up at gas stations along the southbound Valley of Fire route? I heard previously that gas had run out at the stations along that route, and that people were running out of gas, and getting stranded. Can anyone confirm whether this is still the case?
Thanks for the updates!
What is the average time it is taking to go the detour from Vegas to St. George via Overton? I’ve read the Lincoln County route is taking 8－10 hrs, but what about the shorter alternate for passenger vehicles? I also saw one comment say it was for local traffic only and they were turned away.
St George to Las Vegas via Valley of Fire detour was about 3 hours…traffic was light. No fee at the Valley of Fire Park.
so from st. george to vegas you can take I-15 down to the valley of fire exit and that way? I heard the freeway was closed just passed mesquite this is very confusing matter.
St George a Shuttle says they are running behind, but will be bringing us home later this afternoon they VOF.
Thanks to those who posted the time it takes to go from St George to Vegas, but what about the other direction? We need to go north from Victorville, CA to Ogden, Ut and I trying to make best routing decision. So … how long is it taking to get FROM Vegas through Valley of Fire TO St. George? Anyone gone that direction? Is it also about 3 hours?
Just barley took the detour south bound to Las Vegas through the Valley of Fire. It was not bad at all….no bumper to bumper. There was only a 14 mile stretch where it was 35….but the rest was 50 or so Only added an hour ish onto our drive from Utah. It was a great scenic route!!
Anyone have an update on weekend travels from St. George to Las Vegas? I’m driving this afternoon and don’t know if Saturday is typically a highly traveled day. I don’t want to miss my flight at 7:30 pm. Thanks.