ANOTHER LAS VEGAS

BEAUTIFUL, QUIET, AND FUN

Red Rock Canyon is one of many natural wonders in the Las Vegas Valley.  Hiking, biking, and climbing are popular resident and tourist pastimes.

ROCK CLIMBERS IN RED ROCK CANYON–20 MINUTES FROM THE LAS VEGAS STRIP

Charleston Boulevard is a major east/west arterial road in Las Vegas.  Travel for 20 minutes east on the Boulevard and Red Rock Canyon looms large; the vista explains the name.  Like rusty pieces of sheet metal, hills are colored and striped by iron oxide bleeding red below a blue skyline.  In January, it can be cold (say 30 to 40 degrees) and windy (say 30 to 40 mph) but on a good January day temperatures can be in the 60s with no wind.

Charleston Boulevard is a major east/west arterial road in Las Vegas.  Travel for 20 minutes east on the Boulevard and Red Rock Canyon looms large; the vista explains the name.

Hiking the Bristlecone Loop on winter days is an oddly quiet experience, even though birds are flying in and out of parched bushes and bleached bark trees, there is little chirping.  Burros track the fields and valleys with an occasional mountain goat peeking down from a ridge.

HIKING THE BRISTLECONE LOOP ON WINTER DAYS IS AN ODDLY QUIET EXPERIENCE, EVEN THOUGH BIRDS ARE FLYING IN AND OUT OF PARCHED BUSHES AND BLEACHED BARKTREES, THERE IS LITTLE CHIPING.

Well-traveled hiking Trails split the terrain leading to tiny snow melt waterfalls, clear water streams and occasional wild life.  Ancient tribes left their mark on sandstone Red Rock Canyon monoliths jutting from dried grass ground.  Climbers cling to mountain face crevices on their way to nowhere to satisfy some untouched need.

A VIEW OF LAS VEGAS IN THE DISTANCE FROM A HIKE UP “MUFFIN”

The Las Vegas Valley packs a lot of life styles within an hour’s drive; i.e. entertainment and dining that rivals New York; Boulder Dam, Mount Charleston, and Red Rock Canyon that offer every outdoor experience  a resident or tourist can think of.

VIEW FROM MT. CHARLESTON–WHEN ITS 100 DEGREES IN LAS VEGAS, THIS 30 MINUTE DRIVE DROPS THE TEMPERATURE TO 80 DEGREES.

SETTING SUN IN LAS VEGAS

As “Borat”, the comic actor says—WHAT A COUNTRY.