The lands where Arizona, Nevada and California meet is a vast desert wasteland. A zombie apocalypse in waiting. A place where people come to disappear from the world, and if disturbed may very well ruin your day. It’s desolate, lonely, and unforgiving. My favorite place to explore. Rumbling along the dusty back roads, I see…
Tag: Nevada
The Bootlegger
I never watched an entire episode of Parts Unknown with Anthony Bourdain. Its not that I had any dislike or aversion to the TV show, I just never had time to fit it into my schedule. When he passed away though, I saw clips of his final season, which included a trip to Las Vegas…
Las Vegas for some Magic & Cheer
Sin City is about equal in driving distance from Salt Lake City and Phoenix, so it works out perfectly for my family to meet for a weekend. My niece had her Cheer Competition and I needed to keep a promise to my nephew. I arrive mid-afternoon on a Saturday, and we all decide to go…
Emerald Bay
I have a few hours remaining before my flight, and so I decide to take the long road around Lake Tahoe so I can stretch out my time. This brings me to Emerald Bay, a spot I’ve forgotten all about from my previous trips out here. I decide to hike down to the water’s edge…
The cabin at Dollar Point
The smell of pine is strong as I make my way around the scenic beauty of Lake Tahoe. It’s the beginning of the summer season and the towns are starting to come alive with tourists. I find my A Frame cabin in a place called Dollar Point, settle in, and marvel at the view from…
Lake Mead
Perhaps the last time I was on a jet ski was spring break in 1996 when I went to Lake Havasu with some friends. Maybe it was with my last serious girlfriend when we went to Bear Lake in Utah. Regardless, it’s been a damn long time, and this needed to be remedied. Lake Mead…
Ubehebe Crater
The name is so ominous, Death Valley National Park, that I believe most people are turned off just by hearing the name. This is just fine by me, as the solitude and vast emptiness you find here only adds to the uniquely special feeling you can find. This trip marks my third time exploring Death…
Turning a corner at Bootleg Canyon
A wild hair was gnawing at the base of my neck to get back on my mountain bike. When I get back into something, I go full throttle. I wake at 4am and head on up to Bootleg Canyon in Boulder City, Nevada to get my ride on. Four hours later I arrive to a…
The Rocky Mountain Sheep of Willow Beach
We end our eight mile kayak down the Colorado river at Willow Beach, Arizona. During our time on the river, our guide was always telling us to look up at the mountain tops for signs of Rocky Mountain Sheep. Animal sightings though were sparse until the end. As we are waiting for the…
Kayaking the Colorado river
My kayaking adventure with Evolution Expeditions entailed eight miles of awesomeness down the Colorado river. Due to the construction of the Hoover Dam, the river only flows when the dam releases water downstream, so we found that kayaking would be more work than anticipated. It was time to work those arm muscles, and paddle…
Secret Hot Springs
We are all sitting on the shores of the Colorado in the early morning light, waiting for our kayaks to arrive. John, our guide, lets us know they should be here within half an hour, but in the meantime, would we like to go hike up a slot canyon to some natural hot springs?…
My hike to the Colorado river (prelude)
5am in Vegas, and the party was still going strong in the streets. I quietly sip coffee and wait for the Evolution Expeditions van to swing by and pick me up. Today is the day I will kayak eight plus miles of the Colorado river. We arrive just after 6am to the trail…