Hoover Dam/ The Valley of Fire trip

[Stumpy]

Missus and I took a 5 day road trip for the xmas holiday to get away from the shopping lunacy. Our trip was to Nevada First stop was Las Vegas for some gambling drinking and all night fun. We used the Paris Hotel and Casino as a home base and took off to trek a few sites around the Nevada.

First up was Hoover Dam.



Face of the dam



I hung my tele over the edge looking straight down face



The bypass span so Hoover Dam is now just a tourist location. Years ago you had to drive across it.



Looking down at the power plant



Face of Dam



This the run off passage and hole. The diameter was easily 50 feet.



Back of dam



Back water level of Dam


Next up was the Valley of the Fire. We parked, I loaded up day pack and we hiked off to a far mountain and climbed to the top for the view. Was a 3 hr deal. The weather was stunning. 65 degrees tops.



Entering the area. Interesting the Red Rock just popping up.



The Trek up



Backside of the mountain we hiked up



Rock formations



Another one





Years of layers



Years of rain erosion





Nearing the top

All in all missus and I had a good time. We saw other sites but felt these were the most notable

[helge]

Very nice

[Mid]

thanxs , now I've vertigo and am giddy

[withnallstoke]

Great rock picks.
Sent me into a masturbatorial frenzy.

Why did they name a dam after a vacuum cleaner?

[BobR]

Hoover Dam is an impressive piece of engineering. Next time you might want to visit Laughlin, Nevada. It has almost everything Las Vegas does but is located on the Colorado River between Nevada and Arizona. I used to own a vacation house on the Arizona side, quite and enjoyable place.

In the summer you can rent jet skis at Lake Havasu quite cheaply and riding them up the river to Laughlin is a great adventure. Laughlin is as far as you can go because of Davis Dam just north of the City. The hot weather and cool (but not cold) water go great together. This is about the most fun I ever had on vacations, we used to do it every year.

Oh yes, no jet ski scams in the US and riding them 40 or 50 miles up and down a river is great fun whereas back and forth on the open sea would be very boring.

[Agent_Smith]

Glad you enjoyed some of the sights in my neck of the woods, JP. Valley of Fire is a definite treasure, but Red Rock Canyon is a must see as well, and closer to town. There are so many points of interest relatively close to LV -- Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon, Death Valley etc etc. This is the number one reason I've chosen to live here, the natural beauty of the region is amazing.

Bob is correct about Laughlin, my favorite getaway from LV. Nothing like a swim in 50 degree (F) water in 110 degree sunshine :-) amazing how they balance out perfectly.

[Stumpy]

Next time you might want to visit Laughlin, Nevada.

There are so many points of interest relatively close to LV -- Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon, Death Valley etc etc. This is the number one reason I've chosen to live here, the natural beauty of the region is amazing.

BR and Agent Smith. I lived in Henderson for a few years and trekked to all the sites you mentioned. Some are stunning. I went back to a few for the missus who had never seen and I wanted her to see and enjoy. She had a blast. We caught the perfect time of year, weather was 65 to 70 out. Most of the time you cant go out there because you will get out of your car and burst into flames

One of the best times I had was renting a house boat on Mead for a week with a bunch of friends. What a blast. Jet ski's, wakeboard boats.

I have been to Laughlin numerous times with friends and blazed up and down the river. Loads of fun and nice break from the main stream of the strip.

[Bettyboo]

Very nice pictures, thanks JPPR2. America certainly has some lovely scenery.