07OCT07 - Las Vegas, NV (viva! viva!)

 This morning was a very early start for us because we wanted to stop and sightsee at several different areas before hitting Las Vegas. The first stop was the ghost town of Rhyolite, NV, within five miles of the RV park we had just departed. If we had known this, we could have done it the day before; oh well. The information for Rhyolite says it is the most photographed ghost town in Nevada, and has been in numerous movies? We are not sure why, because there is very little left of it, as compared to other ghost towns we have seen. Anyway, if you are interested in pictures of it, check out:

www.ghosttowns.com/states/nv/rhyolite.html

http://www.rhyolitesite.com/

Right next door was something much more interesting, the Goldwell Open Air Art Collection! The art collection was started in 1984 with Belgian Albert Szukalski’s ghostly version of the Last Supper (rumor has it that these figures were the basis for the Ring Wraiths in the “Lord of the Rings” movies). Truly fascinating!

http://www.goldwellmuseum.org/

Next up was the drive into and through Death Valley National Park. After doing this we can see why so many cars and RVs get into trouble doing this when their vehicles are not in perfect operating condition! We entered the park on the eastern edge at an elevation of over 4000 feet and immediately started descending for ten miles on a very narrow, switch backed, road that quickly descended to 200 feet below sea level!!! No wonder when the summer temps are in excess of 110 degrees, that people get stranded. Anyway the scenery was fantastic and the displays at the visitor center were well worth the exhilarating drive.

We next stopped at Death Valley Junction, CA. This “town” (and we use the term loosely) is home to the world famous Amargosa Opera House. Turns out one Marta Becket got stranded here in 1967 and discovered an abandoned hotel with a small theater. It was her epiphany to stay here, renovate the theater, and perform (turns out she was a trained ballerina). So for forty years she has been doing just that on Saturdays, whether or not there was an audience. In addition over four years she has painted every inch of the theater walls and ceilings with beautiful murals.

http://www.amargosa-opera-house.com/

As we finished our day’s driving into Las Vegas, we made one mistake. Normally when we plan out a day’s drive, one of us writes detailed directions on a 3by5 card, and the other reads it as we drive along. The detailed directions were written the night before; but unfortunately the writer forgot the most important thing written, and no one bothered to read them as we entered the city limits! So because of these two oversights we missed the north beltway and ended up driving into heart of Vegas on US 95, navigating through numerous construction zones, and then trying to find I-15 North at a spot the locals call the spaghetti bowl!

Eventually we made it to our RV park in north Las Vegas at Nellis Air Force Base. Once we had recovered from our drive through Las Vegas, we had dinner, and decided to check out Sin City. Since our RV park is right on Las Vegas Boulevard, otherwise known as The Strip in south Vegas, we figured that we would just drive south until we hit the bright lights of The Strip. After fighting stop and go traffic for an half hour, we decided to exit downtown and check out the Fremont St Experience.

Fremont St was (and is) the location for the smaller downtown casinos. The Fremont St Experience was created to “compete” with the glitz of the mega casinos on The Strip. The Experience consists of a canopy that covers five blocks of Fremont St. The canopy consists of millions of colored lights controlled by computer; and underneath the canopy is a dedicated pedestrian walkway. Every hour at night the businesses under the canopy (including casinos) turn off their lights and a stunning light and music show is performed. And throughout the evening hours are different types of free outdoor entertainment. In addition, the city of Las Vegas has salvaged some of the classic neon signs from demolished buildings, and these are illuminated and displayed throughout the downtown area.