The Red Rock Canyon Visitor Center is run by the Bureau of Land Management. It costs $5.00 to get in to the Visitor Center and you get to take the 13 mile scenic drive though  the north part of the park. A season pass is $20.00 and is good for one year. The Visitor Center has very knowledgeable BLM people and volunteers, who will assist you and answer any questions that you may have. There are excellent multi-media exhibits worth looking at. These exhibits show the geological evolution of Red Rock Canyon and some of the old west history of the place. There is also a small gift shop where you can buy books, maps, hats and other things relating to Red Rock Canyon. This is a good place to find out which trails are best for the time that you are there, or if there are any upcoming events. The Visitors Center also has a weather station on its grounds which reports to the local media about the weather conditions at Red Rock. The phone number is 702.363.1921 if you need to call them for specific events or information.

The Red Rock Canyon Visitor Center houses a Desert Tortoise Habitat on the west and southwest part of the compound. In 1989, the Desert Tortoise, was placed on the endangered species list. The Desert Tortoise is considered an 'indicator species'. This means that the success or demise of this species indicates the 'health' of the desert environment. Like a canary in a mine, when the Tortoises die out, the environment has become unhealthy for all of its inhabitants. Besides the environmental implications of the extinction of the Desert Tortoise, it would be a shame if a species that has been around since before the dinosaurs, would be wiped out by pollution or some other man made disaster to the environment. The implications are scary. If the Tortoise can survive for hundreds of millions of years and the event which caused the extinction of the dinosaurs, but it can not survive our society, what does that mean about us and our future? The Tortoise, like the Canary, is mankind's friend. We should take good care to make sure that they survive and prosper.