Whitney Pocket

00:00     Title
00:17     Whitney Pocket
06:47     C.C.C. Dam
08:33     Tarantula Crossing
10:24     Fin

Prior to the creation of Gold Butte National Monument, Whitney Pocket was a scenic place that only the local folk knew about, but that has changed with national park status. This destination is located near the northeast section of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area in Nevada. Both the NPS and BLM regulate this area, while local Gold Butte organization members occasionally do patrols along the main roads. Whitney Pocket is the most popular point of interest in Gold Butte and it is a staging area for backcountry excursions. Camping around the red rock outcrops is allowed on a limited basis and there is plenty to explore by foot.   

Views of the Whitney Pocket landscape are nothing less than spectacular! The islands of red rock dot this vast landscape for many miles around and the views certainly are surreal. The colorful outcrops also butt up against the mountains and hours can be spent wandering through this dreamy canyon landscape. There are several small natural arches and pocket caves in this area to peak the interest. A historic Civilian Conservation Corps cistern dam was constructed in one of the slot canyons that is also well worth checking out. Landscape artists will find the sunrise and sunset views to be some of the best in the west, so Whitney Pocket definitely is a destination that needs to be chalked high on the list!

I did a lot of winter camping around Gold Butte during my lengthy Covid camping tour. Whitney Pocket is where I landed after doing a lengthy late summer tour of the Pacific Northwest and I arrived during the autumn tarantula migration season. I knew what to expect and after camping overnight it was easy to get an early start for a tarantula hunting adventure. All that a visitor has to do is drive slow back and forth on the paved section of Gold Butte Road early in the morning to spot dozens of tarantula spiders on the move. Yes, these spiders are large enough to spot from a moving car! 

The mass tarantula activity actually is not a migration, but it is part of the mating ritual. The spiders only travel as far as it takes to find a new mate. This all takes place during a short window of opportunity in late summer or fall. The tarantulas only have one thing in mind and they will not become aggressive unless you get in their way. For this reason, it is best to give the big spiders the right of way and use a long lens for close-up pictures. Both black and brown tarantula species exist in Gold Butte. There are birds that actively hunt these creatures and one local bird species actually spears a caught tarantula on the pointed end of a yucca leaf, which is really a prize to capture on film. As a reminder, tarantulas are poisonous, so taking risks is not good to do. They are also protected by national park status, so it is best to slow down, observe and just let them cross the road.