Sunday May 16, 2010

We spent a night (notice I did not say “restful” night) in Kingman Arizona. The campground was right off Highway 93, the route to the Hoover Dam and Las Vegas. Between the highway traffic and an incessant train whistle, sleep was at a minimum. They must have all the hearing-impaired train conductors on the route through Kingman because everyone else can hear the train coming. The trains let five long, long whistles to let every man, woman and child in Kingman know that a train is crossing a track. Lol

We are on the road before 7:30, prepared to travel the 67 miles to the Hoover Dam. The road is a great one but it will never be named the world’s most scenic highway. Boring. As we approach the Dam, we are directed through a security stop. Homeland Security officers board the motor home, looking for explosives, we think. They also checked outside storage and even the area where the propane tanks are located. Friendly guys and we are happy they are there. Sad that terrorism is a concern at the dam.

Once we passed the test, we were ushered on down the road. Our first stop affords us a picture from a high vantage point, but all we can see is a portion of Lake Mead. Lake Mead is a dammed portion of the mighty Colorado River. You can see pleasure boats on the lake. It is Sunday and so probably everyone within driving distance comes to the Lake Mead Recreation Area if they have a boat or want to swim. Las Vegas is only 30 miles from this area, so it probably attracts that crowd as well.

We always thought that the Hoover Dam was in Nevada. Wrong. It is actually in Arizona. The Colorado River forms the border between the two states. We drive down to the next plateau, which offers a parking lot that will accommodate a motor home. We get out and check out a closer view of Lake Mead. It is a glorious day weather wise and the lake looks very inviting. It’s only 9:00 AM, but it is already quite warm. It is quite a walk to get to the visitor’s center. One must walk completely over the dam and then enter the Visitors’ Center. We begin the hike, which is not for the faint of heart. All along our walk, we can view Lake Mead on one side and the Hoover Dam on the other. The water that is pulled from the lake is pulled 200 feet down so you don’t see the water entering the dam looking like a bathtub drain. The dam was built between 1931 and 1935 to stop the flooding created by the Colorado River. The dam provides water to Las Vegas and the area. Additionally, the dam creates electricity that is used by millions of people.

We spent almost two hours walking and walking. We took way too many pictures but no matter which way we looked, we saw a new angle. When we went into the visitors’ center, one of the guides told us that a new bridge is being built over the dam and will open in October. It will offer a great vantage point currently not available. Darn! Looks like we will have to visit again. This engineering marvel is a testimony to the spirit of our country. Over 1,000,000 people visit the dam each year.

Once we walk back to the motor home (and up no less than 100 steps), we take off west and cross the dam into Nevada. Boulder City is the first town in Nevada and is a ‘burb of Vegas. It is about 25 miles to the Strip from Boulder City. As we leave this border town, we begin our descent into the desert where Las Vegas is located. If you have ever flown into Vegas, you have seen the mountains that surround the area and the glittering lights of this gamblin’ town.

Not sure if any of you have ever watched the show “Pawn Stars” on the History Channel. It is a three-generation team that runs a pawnshop on the strip. They get the weirdest people coming in to their shop to pawn anything and everything so that they can gamble. I told Dennis that I wanted to see the place. We located it on Garmin (actual name is Silver and Gold Pawn Shop). That was our first destination. We pulled the motor home into the parking lot. Had it been slower, I would have set up a shot with the motor home in front of the building and Dennis standing in front of the motor home with his pockets pulled inside out. It was crazy busy. We took each other’s pic in front of the sign and went in for a few minutes. We didn’t see any of the stars of the TV show, but it was fun nonetheless.

We then went to the old section of Vegas to get the iconic “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign. We found it! We then took some photos of some of the old and worn motels from days gone by. It was really busy with foot traffic. The temperature by this time (around noon) was 94 degrees. It is a dry 94 and so it feels like 85 or so in Port Huron. We walked a few blocks and then headed back to the motor home. We then studied the map of the city. We started rethinking our plan to hoof it around the new part of Vegas. There just isn’t any public parking in the area. People fly into town and take taxis so public parking lots just aren’t prolific. Besides, the real estate is probably so expensive on the strip that putting in a parking lot is a low priority.

Since we decided we want to come back to photograph the Hoover Dam, we’re thinking we’ll come back and shoot the town the right way. They have cheap packages to Sin City all the time.

In the meantime, we made two swings down Las Vegas Boulevard, shooting through the windshield and the side windows. Not a problem for me, as I’m the passenger. Dennis, on the other hand, has a steering wheel in front of him. Every time we stopped at a light or in traffic he was snapping away. Not sure what Oprah would say. She has a campaign against texting while driving. She hasn’t sad a word about taking pictures. lol Sure wish I had cleaned the windshield before we hit town!

We leave town after a couple hours, heading northeast towards Zion National Park. We should be there by 7 PM. Tomorrow, we will visit one of the great national parks.