Adventure Travel Photography Blog
I decided to compete in a triathlon over the winter because it gave me something to do during the cold weather while most of my friends headed to the mountains to ski. Unfortunately for me, the weather was mild, and I could have been hiking!! Continue reading “Hiking at Lake Mead National Recreation Area”
We arrived in Boulder City, Nevada on Thursday morning to compete in a triathlon at Lake Mead Recreation Area on Saturday. Not leaving until Monday evening, we had time for a mini-vacation, and found a variety of attractions in Boulder City and the surrounding area.
First, we visited Hoover Dam, which was only a few miles away from the Hoover Dam Lodge where we were staying for the event. This was my third time to Hoover Dam, though Steve’s first. We paid $10 park and walked down to the dam to take in the view of Lake Mead, the water intake towers, as well as the Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge. Then we wandered into the visitor’s center where we paid for the shortened tour of just the power plant that took place every half hour.
In the power plant, we were shown the water tunnels that transfer nearly 90,000 gallons of water each second to the dam’s hydroelectric generators. Next, we visited the 17 generators on the Nevada side of the dam. These generators are held in a wing 650 feet long which is about the depth of the dam at its base. I marvel at the construction of this dam in the 1930s every time I hear about it. Amazingly, it was built ahead of schedule and under budget. If only the government could do that now!
After visiting the dam, we stopped for a walk along the Pat Tillman Bridge as well as for a lovely view of Lake Mead from a nearby overlook. From the overlook, we could see the marina near where the race start would be. It was approaching lunch time, so we tried The Bighorn Cafe at the lodge. It was sustenance.
While we spent much of our time hiking over the weekend, we tried hard to limit our mileage in order to keep our legs rested before the race and stretched afterward. As such, we stopped at the Nevada State Railroad Museum. We were pleasantly surprised. A variety of rail cars and engines were on display under a pavilion. We could explore at our leisure. I personally liked the mail car and learning about mail-on-the-fly. The Railway Post Office would use mail cranes and catchers to retrieve mail without stopping! Then mail was sorted (very quickly at times) so it could be ready to drop off.
Dinner came early at Southwest Diner. We both order pasta. The portions were enormous! I got three meals out of my chicken, artichoke, mushroom alfredo. They must have cooked a whole box of angel hair per plate! I think they may be better known for their Mexican food, however.
The following day, we drove over to Lake Mead Recreational Area. We stopped at Boulder Beach and then drove thirteen miles along Lakeshore Drive to check out the bike course and enjoyed spectacular views of hills peppered in a medley of colors including different shades of reds, browns, oranges, and greens. Along the way, we enjoyed a nice hike at St. Thomas Town Site and a quick stop at the Redstone Picnic Area where red boulders peppered the region.
We wanted a simple dinner and early night before our race, so we went to Chilly Jilly’z. They really should change the name! It sounds like a yogurt shop, which it is, but it has fantastic broasted chicken. The chicken, fried in a pressure cooker was so tender and tasty. We went back on Monday for our last meal in Boulder City, but they were out of breasts, so that was disappointing, but their sandwiches were good too!
After we competed in our race Saturday, we wandered through an art festival which was taking place in town. A variety of photographers, painters, and handicraft artists displayed their wares. Having strolled around town for a few days now, we noticed that Milo’s Cellar and Inn had a very popular restaurant with a patio so we treated ourselves to nice a dinner before stopping at Grandma Daisy’s Candy Store and Ice Cream Parlor for dessert. We tried the ice cream which was mediocre, but the shop was cute. Perhaps the candy was better!
We saved Sunday for a visit to Las Vegas. Boulder City is only about a half hour away. Before we headed out, however, we had to try breakfast at the Coffee Cup Cafe, which was featured on Guy’s Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. Guy Fieri suggested the pork chili verde omelette which is highlighted on the menu. Steve ordered it while I stuck with good ole bacon eggs. One good thing about competing in a triathlon is I can eat whatever I want!
We finished off our visit to Nevada with another hike in Lake Mead Recreation Area, though we had to cross the border into Arizona to do it. The hike to Liberty Bell Arch offered spectacular views of the Colorado River and canyon. Who knew there was so much to do in Boulder City! We didn’t even get to ziplining, kayaking, or four-wheeling. Boulder City is a great town for those interested in the outdoors! ETB
Download it here with this GPSMyCity Travel App Link: Things to do Around Boulder City, Nevada
Check out the photographic note cards and key chains at my shop. Each card has a travel story associated with it. 20% of proceeds are donated to charity.
Well I think most people would talk about gambling and clubbing after they visit Vegas. I, on the otherhand, prefer the dining and shows in Vegas, though I think the food may be more expensive in Vegas than New York.
Ann, my tennis partner, and I traveled to Vegas to run the Rock’n Roll 10K. Given neither of us had trained much at all, we were trying our hardest to rest up for the event on Sunday night, but the casinos are so big, we still managed to talk nearly 6 miles a day! And that was with the help of a taxi and the monorail.
Aside from lounging poolside at Bellagio, we ate and went to see Carrot Top. Our first meal of our trip came at lunchtime on Saturday. We stopped at Morels French Steak House and Bistro on our way back from the expo at the convention center where we picked up our race packet.
Morels is located in the Venetian and has a lovely second story patio. We thought it would be a great place for people watching and the menu was appealing. I picked the mussels which came with fantastic fries and Ann opted for a shrimp salad with a side of fries. The portions were enormous and we loaded up since we’d be burning countless calories tomorrow.
After a relaxing, yet somewhat cool afternoon at the Bellagio pool and a stroll through the atrium to admire the Thanksgiving decorations, we dressed up for dinner at Julian Serrano Tapas at the Aria. We were a bit more discerning about dinner, and spent a short time researching restaurants on Yelp. This one got high ratings and Spanish food sounded good to me, so we reserved a table. Little did I know Julian Serrano is an award-winning chef who recently guided a team on the popular Top Chef TV show to victory. Apparently he is going viral…but I wasn’t following the trend.
The restaurants in Vegas are giant! We opted to sit at the bar to enjoy the atmosphere. The service at Julian Serrano was impeccable. The bartender could rattle off every detail of each dish on the extensive menu. Our tapas were served extremely quickly. We were shocked at the speed. The cheese stuff peppers were excellent. Ann loved the tuna cones so much we got a second order, and I loved the shrimp black rice. The tenderloin was extremely tender as well. The paella looked out of this world, but we had plans for Carrot Top later, and paella required planning (60 minute preparation). While we probably had enough time, we chose to eat at a leisurely pace rather than wait and then rush.
Carrot Top plays at the Luxor, so after dinner, we headed south on the strip, but not before we admired the semi-circle of Lamborghini’s parked outside of the Aria. According to the license plates, most of them seemed to be owned by “Gia Lai”. For car enthusiasts, this was so cool!
Carrot Top is a character. He uses props for most of his act, and I have to say he had us in stitches! I wish I could even remember even one of his jokes, but he talks SUPER fast, and many wouldn’t be appropriate for the content on this blog anyway! From the Luxor, we took a taxi back to the Bellagio and called it a night. We didn’t even gamble! I brought $100 to waste on the slots, but I managed to save it.
Our eating continued the next day at Palio for breakfast. The berries were outstanding and the pastries looked divine. I mean the nutella pocket and almond croissant were huge. I really wanted one, but behaved.
We ended up back at the Venetian around lunch time. Ann wanted to do a little shopping at a favorite store. We ended up at Il Fornaio (a chain) for a carbo-load. Our pasta was quite tasty and our server was even more interesting. She used to ride horses with the Canadian Olympic team and her husband was the chef at One-O-One, the best fish restaurant in London. He has also been a chef for President Elect Trump and might have a chance to cook at the White House!
With lunch over, we prepared for our race. We pinned our bib number to our running shirts and attached the tracker to our shoe. We walked over to the monorail at the Flamingo which took us to the SLS, the last stop on the train and the start of the 10K. I learned a lot about the public transportation at this time. There is a tram that goes around the City Center and it is reachable while weaving through the Bellagio. The monorail, however, is different an operates on the opposite side of the street.
The station at the Flamingo was packed. We could hardly squeeze off the escalator. 45,000 runners were going in different directions. Those running the 10K headed north to the start line, while those running the half and full marathon headed south. It was a little confusing!
We reached the start line about 45 minutes before the 4pm start time and milled around the area on the clear sunny afternoon. We began the race with a view of the Stratosphere. I must say the roller coasters on the top of that building are terrifying!
One of the fun parts of this race, was the fact we left the Las Vegas strip and got to see other places. We ran by the famous A Little White Chapel where Michael Jordan and Joan Collins were married. We passed by more chapels as well as the famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop where the TV show Pawn Stars is filmed.
Soon we turned down the old Las Vegas Strip and eventually we ended up on the current Las Vegas Strip. I’ve never run a race in the afternoon/evening. They usually start at the crack of dawn. This was fun to run by all the lights with the street closed to traffic! We celebrated our finish with a beer before we treated ourselves to sushi at Yellowtail in Bellagio.
I ate here two years ago, and generally don’t return to the same places because I like to try different options, but this restaurant was so good, I wanted to return. I hoped that the food was just as good and met my expectations. It didn’t disappoint. While they change the menu regularly, the tuna pizza always stays under the appetizers. Yes, it sounds terrible, but two years ago the waitress recommended it to us when we wanted one last dish and we had wished we’d ordered it first as we might have gotten two! This time we got it first, and I’m happy to say it was decadent. So was my “protein” roll…solid sushi…no rice. Perfect!
Not only is the food great at Yellowtail, so is the view. We got to see the Bellagio fountain show every 15 minutes. It was a perfect way to end a short weekend in Vegas. ETB
Download it here with this GPSMyCity Travel App Link: On and Off the Vegas Strip
Check out the photographic note cards and key chains at my shop. Each card has a travel story associated with it. 20% of proceeds are donated to charity.
Well, hopefully my quick trip to Vegas with my sister-in-law for the last two Decembers will become a holiday tradition. We have such a good time in the action packed two days. Too bad Katie ended her trip with a long 18 hour travel day home! Thankfully, Southwest came through for me, and I only had a bumpy flight home. The icing on the cake in Vegas this year was being able to see my sister Liz. We didn’t know we were going at the same time!
Katie and I arrived Wednesday, checked into Bellagio, admired it’s conservatory beautifully decorated for Christmas before we found a place for a late lunch. Luckily, Katie is more in tune to the cooking channel than I am, and we tried a new hot spot, Giada. While the dining room was closed, the bar still offered a full menu until 2:30. We were seated just in time. Given I was ready to gnaw off my arm, we ordered the Pecorino cheese with apricot preserves as we expected the plate to come out quickly. With our expectations granted, we dove right in and were not disapointed! Our salads, which were a healthy size, came next and our empty bellies quickly expanded. I can see how the restaurant would be popular, especially in the evening with a view of the Bellagio fountains.
The rest of the afternoon included browsing the shops in Ceasar’s mall and taking a circuitous route off the strip to Treasure Island to pick up our show tickets to Mystere. We purchased tickets in advance, but let the show assign us seats. This provided a big savings online, and better yet, gave us 2nd row seats just to the left center of the stage! We could see the cirque performers shaking during their strength routines and adjusting with all their jumps. It was quite fun to get such a close up view and definitely made up for the mediocre dinner at Fix which was a slight disappointment, but still fun to meet Katie’s friend Beth.
While Katie attended the Expedia conference, I crossed the street to enjoy breakfast with Liz and Ron at Mon Ami Gabi. Liz’s mushroom brie omelet was tasty! We moved on to try our hand at Blackjack. Ellis Island is just a few blocks off the strip and offers $5 hands and pays 3:2 on blackjack. The only problem was the cards didn’t go our way, but at $5 a hand we got to play for a while. Ron bid us farewell while we went on to Tableau at the Wynn for lunch. Of course, the Wynn was basically at the opposite end from where Liz was staying so we spent the next hour or more walking all the way to the MGM Grand while taking detours through the Venetian and a few other places to enjoy the decorations and browse the shops.
As the sky turned dark (by 5 pm), Liz reunited with Ron, and I returned to the Bellagio to meetup with Katie for a final dinner. Katie picked the best restaurant I’ve been to in Vegas I think. Perhaps it helps to go without expectations. Yellowtail is a sushi restaurant in the Bellagio with a small patio that offers a spectacular view of the fountains. We arrived at the restaurant early (around 6) and got a premium table on the patio under the heat lamps. During our relaxing, dining experience we enjoyed about six fountain shows! And as much as I absolutely love the fountains, I think the food may have topped everything. The albacore pizza drizzled with truffle oil was true ecstasy.
Our night continued in the sports book where we caught the end of the football game and then we tried our luck at the poker slots. I won half the money back that I lost at Blackjack…not bad to go home with a pocket book only $25 lighter! We managed to stay up a bit later while enjoying a nightcap in the bar just near the guest elevators to the spa tower before we finally called it night to catch our morning flights. ETB
Check out the photographic note cards and key chains at my shop. Each card has a travel story associated with it. 20% of proceeds are donated to charity.
I was fortunate to go on an unplanned jaunt to Vegas with my sister-in-law Katie who was attending an Expedia conference. She mentioned she was going about a month ago, and I decided, what the heck…I could handle a few days in Vegas…who couldn’t?
We landed on Wednesday morning, checked in to Ceasar’s, though a room wouldn’t be available until 4pm…we had a good six hours to kill. The most entertaining part of check in was to hear the spiel on up-charges. I think it took the woman at the counter longer to tell us about the early check in, internet per device, and minibar fees than to confirm our reservation…we both started laughing. So much for the $99 room!
After check in, we grabbed a fantastic breakfast at Serendipity with one of Katie’s co-workers, Stacy. The portion sizes were huge…I highly recommend splitting. After filling our bellies, we walked the calories off while enjoying the Christmas decorations at all the hotels and shops. We began at Ceasar’s and wandered through the Forum shops to the Bellagio. I think we covered several miles just to go next door! We rode the rail to the City Center, checked out Aria and backtracked to the Cosmopolitan before ending at Olive’s at Bellagio to enjoy the fountain show! The amount of poinsettias at Ceasar’s and Bellagio were insane…I can’t imagine the cost. Having stayed in Vegas multiple times, never at the same hotel twice, Katie and I decided we liked Bellagio the best. The decorations, the Chihully, the fountains, and the central location are just perfect! After resting our legs at Olive’s, we crossed the street to visit the Venetian and its shops before finally ending at the Mirage, the sponsor hotel for the National Finals Rodeo. I’ll say, there were lots of Cowboys sporting Wrangler’s and BIG buckles.
Our hours of strolling called for a room, and we waited in line with the masses to finally find out our room number. Katie, Stacy, and Casey headed to an Expedia event while I opted for the Terry Fator show. A ventriloquist, Terry, sounded exactly like countless famous singers while singing with his mouth closed in his Christmas special. He was quite good and funny! I met Katie back at Ceasar’s, and we tested our luck at video slots…shockingly, I broke even. Generally, I give my money away :-). It was a nice way to end the night!
On Thursday, I had the day to kill while the rest of the group which now included Tammie attended educational sessions. Honestly, there was no way I could spend the whole day gambling…it’s not my thing, so I rented a car and visited the Hoover Dam and the Ethel M chocolate factory.
The last time I visited the Hoover Dam, I was with my dog during my travels around the USA, and I wasn’t allowed to park in the parking garage, so I couldn’t take a tour, as I didn’t want to leave him in the sun, despite being in a camper with the shades down, windows open, fan on, and it being a cool day. So I was very excited to take the tour of the dam and power plant as I had heard so many good things about it.
The Hoover dam was originally constructed to control the flow of the Colorado River which flooded crop lands or dried up depending on the snow melt from the Rockies. California couldn’t afford to take on a project to protect its farmland (what’s new?), so the Federal Government along with seven other states formed the Colorado River Compact in 1922. The river was divided into an upper and lower half, and the states decided the apportionment of each basin. In 1928, Congress authorized the construction of the Hoover Dam.
Construction began in 1931. First, the river had to be diverted from its river banks. It took four pipes 60 feet wide and 3/4 of a mile long to divert the river. In addition, rubble was dropped in the river bed on either side of the planned dam site to create a lower and upper coffer dam. Concrete in the amount found in a cement mixer was lowered into multiple forms for four years! The dam was built in a “lego” fashion. The statistic that fascinated me the most, however, it the dam wasn’t connected to the sides of the canyon. They planned for the force of the water to flex the concrete into the sides. If I were the chief engineer, I’d hate to miss my calculation by a millimeter!
Somewhere between 96 and 102 people died during the construction of the dam, for which there is a memorial on site. I believe 96 workers died on site, while other workers died of unrelated problems off-site. It is rumored that bodies are buried in the 660 feet thick concrete structure, however, this is not true. When the concrete was poured in the 25 ft by 25 ft up to 25 ft by 60 ft forms, it only rose a 2 to 6 inches, thus it was easy to find anyone who had fallen in. Further, this type of concrete structure would not function properly with a body buried in it, as it is different from other dams like Montana’s Fork Peck Dam where 6 bodies are buried which don’t threaten the structure of the dam due to the way it is constructed.
The first generator in the power plant wings of the dam began operation in October of 1936. These generators were the largest of their kind at the time and have yet to be replaced. They are operated to produce hydro-electric power, and the revenues produced from selling power has paid off the dam in full plus interest. Now the power production covers all the operating costs of the dam, thus it could stay open during the government shut down, as it is self-sufficient. The power is sold at cost because the government is not allowed to make money…perhaps they should change that policy and help reduce the Federal Budget!!!
In addition to controlling the floods and irrigating crop lands down river and producing power, the dam also provides water to 20 million people in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Tucson and other southwestern cities with the creation of Lake Mead, America’s largest man-made reservoir that took two years to fill. The lake stores 9.2 trillion gallons of water when filled to capacity, though it is preferred to keep the lake below capacity so that the spillways are not forced to be used. In it’s existence, the spillways have only been used twice, once for testing and once for real. Fortunately they worked!
After my visit to the dam, I ventured to the Ethel M chocolate factory. Aside from the fantastic dark chocolate cover salted caramel as well as toffee, this visit was a bit disappointing to me. I have been through a few factory tours, and this one was small and not too busy. I only saw about two of the seven workers actually doing something! I did get a quick view of the boilers, conveyor belts, and the candy being packaged before I tasted a piece of chocolate in the gift shop and then strolled through one of the world’s largest cactus gardens. I suspect the gardens would have been spectacular at night as just about every cactus was wrapped in lights…I’m thankful that wasn’t my job…I’m sure a few fingers were pricked.
Upon return to Vegas, I dropped off my not-so-good car from Hertz which is another entertaining story itself. I booked the car on Priceline while standing at the Hertz counter as they would not honor the rate otherwise, and then the woman proceeds to tell me they don’t have that type car. She was going to call around to different locations because I selected 8:30 am, and it was 8:15…really?!? I picked 8:30 because I anticipated paper work. Perhaps I should have chosen 8:16! Don’t offer a car if you don’t have it or provide an upgrade. Eventually, she offered me an upgrade. They could use some work on their customer service and their cars!
The Broncos played Thursday night, so Katie and I plopped ourselves down in the Ceasar’s playbook lounge and cheered on Denver. The area was somewhat split between Bronco’s and Charger’s fans, and it was fun! A friend of mine from Houston, David, happened to be in Vegas so he joined us as the rest of the girls slowly filtered in. We didn’t make it down to the playbook by game-time, so we had to wait until half-time to place any bets. Unfortunately, the Broncos weren’t very good to us. We didn’t have to suffer through the whole game though, as us girls went for dinner at Mesa, a Bobby Flay restaurant. I must say the Queso Fundido and the Banana Cream Pie were mouth watering good. I ordered the lambchops for my entree, and they were cooked to perfection, however, I’ve learned chipotle sauce is not my most favorite. I think I’m happiest with simply garlic pepper on the chops. Having said that, the mint chimichurri sauce was tasty, and the overall dinner was great!
From dinner, which was in Ceasar’s, we went to our show, Absinthe, located in a tent in front of the hotel. The best way to describe this show is an extremely crude, erotic Cirque du Soleil. According to others, it is one of the hottest, best shows in Vegas. I have to say, I was a little grossed out when the emcee licked the top of a bald patron’s head! I’m glad I wasn’t in the front row. The show was funny and engaging. I always find myself holding my breath for those acrobats!
From the show, we tried our luck in the casino once more. Tammie was a big winner on $20. She pocketed $250. I once again broke even, and Katie, well her luck wasn’t the greatest, but she was using her Christmas money from last year, so it lasted a while…almost a whole year! That’s about all I can say about Vegas, as we were back on the plane Friday morning…just a quick jaunt of fun! ETB
For notecards and key chains, visit My Shop on this website.
Petey and I left the Wal-Mart parking lot early, stopped for a shower at my gym, 24 Hour Fitness, and proceeded toward Hoover Dam. I wanted to tour the Hoover dam and bridge. Tours are offered on a first come, first served basis starting at 9 am.
We reached an overlook where we took in the views of Lake Mead before continuing a mile further where there was a security check point. I joined the RV line. I presumed they’d at least check my propane tank like I had experienced in crossing the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. Nervous about carrying my .38 pistol on Federal property which is illegal, I at least unloaded it at the overlook. Continue reading “Day 169 – Hoover Dam and Bridge”
Day 168 – Nevada 93, May 14, 2011
I awoke about 30 minutes before I heard the Reveille sounding at the nearby Air Force base signaling the 6 am wake up call. It briefly reminded me of summer 
camp – my only experience with a bugle call. After a morning of errands including a doctor’s visit (see Thought of the Day), a stop at the Verizon store to address problems with my air card, and a stop at Camper World to address a propane tank challenge, we finally visited Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area to the west of Las Vegas. I used to wonder why anyone would want to live in Las Vegas, but aside from the gambling and shows, the area does offer some fine scenery and recreational areas.
A 13-mile, one-way horseshoe loop leads visitors past stunning sandstone cliffs 
to countless turnouts and an assortment of hiking trails from easy to strenuous. Having been in sub-65 degree weather for most of the last six months, I chose the moderate ¾ of a mile Lost Creek – Children’s Discovery Trail to navigate in the beating, yet in my opinion welcome, sun. Petey, on the other hand, would have welcomed the shade.
The rocky trail wound past different plant life to a seasonal waterfall. Lizards
scampered across our path as we skipped over the rocks where we met two guys who said the waterfall isn’t far away. Oh, I thought to myself, I figured it would be dry by mid-May. With my hopes set high, we turned the corner, ducked under some boulders to a shaded area where I heard some water trickling. I turned a circle before I noticed the waterfall. It will probably be dry tomorrow – not quite Yosemite!
In addition to the display of hues in the sandstone cliffs, patches of orange and yellow wildflowers sometimes interspersed with purple, pink, and white blooms bedecked the desert floor presenting a kaleidoscope of colors. While I enjoyed the 
landscape, the highlight was to spot four bighorn sheep. I had been keeping my eyes peeled for the cliff side dwellers on several of my recent drives. I was so delighted to see them, and I have to thank fellow tourists for gawking out the car window, I may have missed them again. They sure blend into the environment!
The thought of returning to the Wal-Mart parking lot in the late afternoon sun was simply unappealing, so I directed VANilla to the northeastern suburbs of Las Vegas where we visited the Valley of Fire State Park. As we entered the park, the landscape was somewhat dull – small hills covered 
in sage brush. What have I done, I thought? That sure was a long drive to end the day in this park. A few miles later, basically a valley of fire stood before me. Rust colored sandstone peaks tinted with streaks cream and tan peppered the area.
Since the $10 entry fee was somewhat steep for the short period of time I planned to be there, I asked the park attendant for the “can’t miss” highlights. He suggested White Domes. VANilla climbed the 8-mile winding road until we reached the parking area, where Petey and I trudged along a very sandy 1.25 mile loop trail. The path led us around numerous multihued rock formations and past a stone wall that 
appeared to be rather old. The ruin was actually built in 1965 for the movie “The Professionals”. According to the sign, over 45 commercial photo shoots take place in the park every year. A few other noteworthy movies that have been filmed at the park are “Electric Horseman” and “Star Trek Generations”.
Upon finishing up our hike at a snail’s pace, we made a few more stops at attractions we had passed as we hurried to White Domes – Rainbow Vista, Mouse’s Tank, and Beehives.
Rainbow Vista’s name says it all. An overlook allows visitors to gaze into the valley outlined with a rock rainbow. An artist would need 64 shades of earth tones to paint the view.
Mouse’s Tank was named for a renegade who used the area as a hideout in the 
1890’s. The tank is a natural basin in the rock that collects 
rainwater that sometimes remains for months in the dry climate. Personally, I didn’t find the stagnant pool of water that fascinating, but the petrogplyphs carved into the rocks lining the trail were spectacular – some of the most well-preserved I’ve seen on my six month, 30,000 mile journey.
Another interesting sight on the trail was one particular wildflower. The seed 
pods looked like popcorn and felt somewhat like paper mache. Some of the pods concealed a dark purple flower which reflected a violet tint on the outer casing. I’ve never seen anything like it, and Petey still hasn’t. He was still huffing and puffing from our last jaunt, so I let him rest in VANilla.
Our final stop before leaving the park was at the beehives, also aptly named. Over the years, the wind, rain, heat and cold shaped a large sand deposit into rocks that look like beehives.
We returned to North Las Vegas to spend another night in the Wal-Mart parking lot to take advantage of cell phone and air card service. I plan on visiting Hoover Dam in the morning before making my way toward the Grand Canyon. ETB
Day 167 – Nevada 93, May 13, 2011
I don’t know, Route 93 from midway between Ely and Baker to Las Vegas could compete for the loneliest road in America. Attractions seemed to be spread at least 60 miles apart. I wasn’t feeling spectacular, so that could have subtracted from the amount of attractions I would have normally visited.
Our first stop was Pioche, known as the bawdiest, most lawless town in Nevada in the 1870’s. As the town’s population swelled to 7,000 during the mining days, legend has it that four dozen men died “with their boots on” and only two were ever brought to justice. According to my Reader’s Digest book, the local cemetery, boot hill, recorded some of the shootings and shenanigans. I visited the cemetery and saw some graves from the 1870’s, but must have missed any unique
I also visited the Million Dollar Courthouse. The town leaders floated bonds in 
1871 to construct the new courthouse, and it took until 1938 to pay the debt off. Due to all the interest associated with the bonds, the courthouse earned its name! I’m certain a few other bond projects in more recent history have followed in Lincoln County courthouse’s footsteps.
After visiting Pioche, we stopped at Cathedral Gorge State Park. What an interesting place! Multi-colored buttes, about a foot wide, yet very long rose abruptly from the valley floor. Each one was 
separated by only a foot or so which created a maze that visitors could explore. As I entered an area, with Petey in tow, I met a few locals that pointed at about a three foot crawl space. They said if I didn’t mind getting dirty, I could crawl through the opening to a 
larger area and find a rope I could climb up to top. On my hands and knees I shimmied through the space, but Petey was not interested in taking part. And frankly, I’m not quite as adventurous as I used to be so I contorted back through the gap and promptly found a trail that led to an overlook. Stairs seemed like the more civilized (and easy) way of exploring.
After a few hours of wandering around the park and quick shower at the state 
park campgrounds, we moved on to Caliente. I just pulled off the road, rested, shockingly found a Radio Shack where I picked up a fuse for my inverter that wasn’t operating correctly, and tried the local pizza – another nice surprise. My book only called for one more stop between and the outskirts of Las Vegas, so I opted to forgo the Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge and drive through the evening into a sea of lights where I found a Wal-Mart in North Las Vegas for the night. I plan to attend to a variety of issues while stores were open on Saturday. ETB
Day 166 – Loneliest Road in America, May 12, 2011
I started the morning at the local coffee shop. It seems like almost every town in 
America has a coffee shop these days. I grabbed a drip and muffin to go and sped along Highway 50, also the Lincoln Highway, for 75 miles until I reached Ely. Here I picked the Convention Center and Visitor Bureau to stamp my survival guide. With my five stamps, I can now claim that I have survived “The Loneliest Road in America”. I plan to mail the postage paid card to the State of Nevada to receive my certificate signed by the Governor!
While in Ely, Petey and I noticed a sculpture garden across from the Chamber of Commerce. Spent 150MM, 75MM, and 88M rifle shells were used to create a 
figure that resembles an indigenous desert plant. Another sculpture large sculpture represents ore tipples which were used to load ore for transportation from the mines. A sculpture of steel scrap resembling a pagoda paid homage to the many oriental who labored in mining work.
After visiting the sculpture garden, geocaching took Petey and I for a walk along some side roads past countless mural covered buildings, next to the Nevada Hotel, through a cemetery, and finally to the Nevada Northern Railway. We found three of the four. One was going to draw too much attention, so we moved on. I really like the cache hidden at the Nevada 
Northern Railway, which once served local copper mines. I had planned to tour the former depot and rail yard regardless, but I wouldn’t have crossed all the tracks if it hadn’t been for the hidden ammo 
can. It was great because I would have never expected to find such a large cache nearby…perhaps a micro. It was hidden with the permission of the staff. I picked up a travel bug attached to a used shotgun shell and plan to drop it at another location soon. I addition to finding the cache, I got to walk in buildings that shelter the trains to get an up close look at the old steam engines that transport tourists around on the weekends. It’s not often visitors can just meander around a working rail yard…what fun!
After a morning spent in Ely, we continued on to see the Ward Charcoal Ovens, 15 miles outside of town. The ovens were constructed by Italian masons to produce charcoal. The ovens, 30 feet in height and 20 feet in diameter, held 35 cords of wood. It took tree crop from 5 to 6 acres of land to fill one oven. The hills around mining camps in the 1800’s were stripped bare. Each cord of wood produced 30 bushels of charcoal which was hauled to smelters to reduce the ore. One ton of ore required the use of 30 to 50 bushels of charcoal. As railroads penetrated the west, charcoal was replaced by coke made from coal, and the charcoal industry faded. I was simply amazed to see the well preserved condition of these enormous ovens.
Leaving the ovens along a dirt road, we got the pleasure of witnessing two 
pronghorn grazing in the sage brush covered valley. I’ve never been able to get so close to a pronghorn. I stopped right in the middle of the road for a good long look. We resumed our travels to the Great Basin National Park and Lehman Caves. We arrived just in time to pick a campsite, do a little housekeeping, and to sign up for the three o’clock tour of the cave explored by Absalom Lehman in 1885. I may not have gone on the cave tour except the parent I met yesterday at Grimes Point raved about it. I must say, the cave was special in selected ways.
Extending only a quarter-mile into the limestone and marble at the base of Snake Range, it isn’t as grandiose as Mammoth Caves or Carlsbad Caverns, but it has fantastic formations, including the typical stalactites, stalagmites, columns, draperies, flowstone, bacon, and soda straws as well as rarities such as shields, helictites, and cave popcorn. The speleothems take centuries to form drip by drip. In this particular cave, based on the average precipitation, it takes 100 years for the formations to grow one inch!
Shields are two circular plates fastened together like a clam shell. Often times, 
stalactites and draperies hang from them. Lehman Caves is known for its abundant shields. Cave popcorn looks just like the edible type and helictites appear to defy gravity as they attach themselves to a stalactite but grow out and upward as opposed to down.
Having recently gone caving on my own in lava tubes at 
Lassen Volcanic National Park, I think I gained a greater appreciation of caves as well. The thought of Absalom Lehman and his several guests who explored the cave by candlelight without a passageway is simply incredible. I was so thankful for a guided path and lights to enjoy the beauty 
of the cave. The colors changed from greys to greens to pinks to browns. While most of the cave was adorned with countless formations, some of the walls and ceilings were smooth from a heavy flow of water. In addition, this time of year, water still pooled on the floor in an area known as the King’s and Queen’s Bathtubs and the Swamp.
Knowing how long it takes for the speleothems to grow, it was slightly 
disheartening to see the damage created from early visitors, but at the same time, it was neat to appreciate the history. These folks inscribed their names and dates into the cave ceiling with their candles. Unfortunately, they also took a souvenir with them, but I’d take one too if I were allowed. The cave was also special because visitors were able to travel so close to the formations. Cameras actually worked and didn’t capture complete darkness.
After the lovely tour, I joined Petey in VANilla and snaked up Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive to Mather Overlook. The overlook sits below Wheeler Peak and provides a view of the Great Basin from which the water doesn’t leave. The rivers in this area don’t drain to the Pacific Ocean; the water stays in the basin. We wound back down the mountain and stopped at the Osceola Trail where I took a quick walk along a tiny creek as a rabbit scampered across my path to Osceola Ditch.
In 1872 over $2 million of gold laid buried in Dry Gulch, but too little water 
made large-scale operations impossible. In 1889 construction began on an 18-mile aqueduct to carry water from Lehman Creek to the mining area. Almost a year later, the aqueduct was complete at the cost of $108,223. The ditch was abandoned in 1901 as inadequate gold production coupled with water shortages from dry winters did not yield enough profits.
We continued the rest of the way down the mountain to our campsite and called it the day. ETB.
Day 165 – Loneliest Road in America, May 11, 2011
Petey and I hung out at the RV Park for a while this morning to take advantage of electricity, the internet, and laundry. We finally hit the road around 10 am made our first stop Fallon to collect our next stamp. We didn’t stay long in the town, but instead followed Stillwater Road to Stillwater Wildlife Management Area and Refuge.
We passed by several farms until we arrived at a series of shallow lakes that once 
made up Lake Lahontan. 12,500 years ago Lake Lahontan covered 8,600 square miles, 4.5 times the size of Grand Canyon National Park. The Stillwater Wildlife Management Area and Refuge would have been under 700 feet of water. The lake began to dry up 4,000 years ago which resulted in the area marshes here today.
I only explored a tiny portion of the 224,000 acre park as I took the Auto Loop Tour around one of the small lakes. I spotted a variety of birds and even a snake before VANilla hauled along the gravel road to the exit where we turned east toward Grimes Point Archaeological Area, home to countless petrogplyphs and a hidden cave. The cave requires a guided tour. I happened to arrive to area while the local 
school was on a field trip where a late-arriving parent suggested I join the group. I passed and turned toward VANilla, and he said, “Oh, I saw you around town. You’re from Texas. You were just at Stillwater.” Yep, VANilla sure can stand out, I 
thought. He told me all about the events in Fallon…the Spring Wingfest this weekend to watch the migrating birds, the rodeo, and the Canteloupe Festival held in September. The area is world famous for its canteloups. He ran up the hill to join the school group as I ventured to the other part of Grimes Point to walk Petey along the trail past Indian rock art as pilots from Top Gun practiced maneuvers overhead.
Sand Mountain is a large sand dune that looms above the flatlands. Sand from 40 miles away is blown to this area and dumped here as the wind can’t carry it 
over the mountains. Many visitors come here to ride ATV’s and to sandboard (like snowboarding, but in sand). Given I had neither an ATV or a sandboard and I had just showered, washed all my clothes, and cleaned VANilla, I simply admired Sand Mountain from the road, though I mistakenly missed the ruins of the Pony Express station at its base…bummer!
About 16 miles east of Sand Mountain, we came across the Old Shoe Tree, a giant cottonwood filled with hanging shoes. The tradition is said to have started following an argument between newlyweds during which one tossed the other’s shoes into the tree. Upon reconciling, the other reciprocated and folks have been adding footwear to the tree ever since.
We continued past the dry bed of ancient sea, some of which was decorated by rock artists. Instead of finding graffiti sprayed on cliffs, drivers will find small 
rocks place near the roadside spelling names or claiming love for a significant other. Soon we began climbing the road from the salt flats to the mountains where we visited another old, silver mining town, Austin nestled in the mountains. Just outside of town lies Stokes Castle, a three story rock tower, built in 1897 by one of the town’s mining barons.
Within the town, visitors can find three old churches, an old courthouse and the Gridley Store. First, I stepped into the courthouse in search of my third stamp…success! I have to give Nevada credit for turning Life magazine’s statement that there is nothing to see on Highway 50 into a tourist attraction! I could think of some other roads that might be more entertaining to drive when provided with a little history and a simple goal. After visiting the courthouse and snapping a photo of one of the churches which was under renovation, I pulled up to the Gridley Store.
The Gridley Store was constructed by Reuel Gridley in 1863. He is remembered for losing an election bet. Gridley bet on his democratic party winning the 
election; however, the republican party won, thus as the loser he had to carry a 50 pound sack of flour to Clifton a mile away. Upon honoring the bet, he auctioned the sack of flour to raise money for the Sanitary Fund, forerunner of the Red Cross. The bag of flour was auctioned so many times that it raised $175,000 by the end of the Civil War.
VANilla chugged over Austin summit, wound along the mountain road as Antelope Peak and Summit Mountain towered above, and eventually arrived at Eureka, around 70 miles to the east. Here I chose the Opera House to stamp my “Nevada Passport”. The Opera House, constructed in 1879, is fully restored and is still operational. A gallery downstairs showcases local artists’ mixed media and paintings while the opera hall is used for performances and conventions. The ladies at the Opera House were fantastic. They asked, “How have you enjoyed the drive so far? Do you have the CD? Are you going to the museum?”
“I’ve love the drive so far. Other states should take some cues from Nevada. I didn’t know there was a CD. And yes, I plan on walking around a town a bit.” As I explored the Opera House, they called over to the museum and found a CD for me! The CD explains the history of the towns and the mining activities along the Pony Express route. While I was snapping a photo of the opera stage, a man who was setting up the stage said, “Let me put the backdrop down for you. It’s really great.” A painted backdrop operates as the curtains. As I waited, I noticed a program to A Broadway Extravaganza being presented by the Eureka High School Band and Choir tonight. I thought to myself, I should stay, but I kind of wanted to press on to Ely and spend the night there.
From the Opera House, I crossed 50 and walked a block to a side street where the museum was located in the Eureka Sentinel Building. The building, 
constructed in 1879 for $10,000, was designed by C.M. Bennett. The Eureka Sentinel was published in this building until 1960. The printing press still sat in the back room whose walls were covered in old newspaper headlines. The upstairs housed a variety of antiques including an old stove, old typewriters, and furniture. I chatted with the museum curator briefly about my trip, camping around town and Ely, my next destination. After our chat, instead of continuing on, feeling slightly under the weather, I kept VANilla in her current parking spot, enjoyed the High School performance of a variety of Broadway songs, and slept on the streets of Eureka. A good choice! ETB.