The heat was turned on for a bit this morning to take the edge off of the cool fall-like weather outside. We left the camp and headed south for Nevada. We have become familiar with mountains of all kinds as they have been our companion since we entered the Mojave desert last Wednesday. In our short jaunt through Arizona enroute to Nevada after leaving Utah, we drove beneath massive walls of desert mountain, the tops of which we could not see from the windshield of the motorhome. We were enveloped by these red, brown and grey stone structures for what must have been 5 miles or so, and then they were gone as we entered open road again. Jonathan later commented that it's not that mountain views have become routine or not fascinating, they have become familiar.
We could feel the heat rise as we descended down toward Lake Mead. Beth found an RV spot located inside Lake Mead National Recreation Area with a water front view. We drove through downtown Vegas past the strip to Lake Mead, about 30 minutes outside of Vegas and used our newly acquired National Parks Annual Pass to gain entry (this entry officially 'paid' for the pass. We now have the remainder of a year to use it for entrance to any National Park.). Upon arrival, the temp was 102. The registration office/store was closed but had envelopes posted on a board outside the entrance with available slots and prices. We chose a lake view. The Ranger told us that Lake Mead was way down and while we would be as close to the water as a motorhome could get, the water would be far away. Sure enough. The water was way down. But, wow, what a view! The water and its surrounding mountains are amazing. A few boaters and jet-skiers are still out as are a few swimmers on the beach below us.
Lake Mead was formed by damming the Colorado River with the creation of Hoover Dam, a 726-ft
high structure which remains the Western Hemisphere's highest concrete dam. Begun in 1931 and completed in 1936 using over 5000 laborers, Hoover Dam's concrete is 45-feet thick at its crest and 660 feet thick at its base. According to the official Lake Mead brochure provided by the National Park Service, "the finished dam held enough concrete to pave a 16-foot-wide, eight-inch-thick road from New York City to San Francisco".
high structure which remains the Western Hemisphere's highest concrete dam. Begun in 1931 and completed in 1936 using over 5000 laborers, Hoover Dam's concrete is 45-feet thick at its crest and 660 feet thick at its base. According to the official Lake Mead brochure provided by the National Park Service, "the finished dam held enough concrete to pave a 16-foot-wide, eight-inch-thick road from New York City to San Francisco".
This is by far the nicest RV park at which we've stayed. The spots are clean and level with concrete pads for the rigs (Good find, Beth!). I hooked up the power so we could make a plan for the night while the motorhome A/C chipped away at the high temp outdoors. We were all tired and hungry but anxious to get a look at the Strip. We changed clothes and headed back toward Vegas. Las Vegas Boulevard eases you into sensory overload with the older hotels on one end that block by block give way to the masses of themed high rises, lights and people. We could not find a place to park so I drove through while Beth, Tessa and Jonathan formed their first impressions of the famous street.
It was time to eat. The only place I felt I could find a place to park was at a huge outlying hotel/casino that boasted a great deal on a t-bone dinner. We pulled off the highway, found a spot to park amongst the other RVers and walked across the vast parking lot in search of the restaurant. The eatery was among a cluster of venues that included a pasta diner, sushi and steakhouse and others. Not knowing what to expect concerning the surroundings or quality of food, we sat down to order. Matthew, our waiter, once he came over, was polite and very professional. Check. He asked for drink orders, we gave it all! He brought the salads in generous portions. Check. The entrees were cooked to order. Check. The meal was good for all. Check. In short, dinner was really good
We drove back to the Lake, hooked up the utilities and settled down for the night. By the looks of Tessa's book and lack of bookmark this morning, she must have finished reading it sometime in the night. Jonathan has a few pages remaining in his book on the life of Walt Disney (shocker!) that he says he'll finish before Disneyland on Monday.
The air has not quit running as I sit here drinking coffee. We're going to do a bit of laundry before driving over Hoover Dam then head in toward Malibu on our last night of this, our fantastic motorhome adventure.
No comments:
Post a Comment