On May 29, 2006, Ken and I decided to hike Red Rock's First Creek Canyon Trail. First Creek has a decided advantage for the early morning hiker. The trailhead is right on the main road, so you don't have to wait for the gate to open at 6am. It's an easy 3 mile trail that goes from the road to the entrance of the canyon.
Elevation gains are slight and the trail is well marked. This is burro country, so watch where you step! We did not see any burros, but we could hear them in the distance. We did see a few rabbits with their huge ears that adapt them to the desert habitat.
As we neared the canyon, we could hear the creek. The water was very clear and the mountains became very red about 5 minutes before the actual sunrise.
We did not linger since we wanted to hike to the Calico Tanks once the park opened. We really enjoyed the hike (with some bouldering) to Calico tanks. We regretted not bringing cameras on this one, so we will return and describe it with pictures in the near future.