"Touring America 2008"
'Las Vegas & Death Valley'
The first night we arrived in Las Vegas we stayed just out of the town and the next day found the Circus Circus RV park where we stayed for a further two days. As well as being within easy reach of the action on the 'Strip' by bus, this park had a very nice swimming pool. The walking distances involved in catching the bus and walking up and down the strip which is actually over 4 miles long were quite tiring and a relaxing swim in the pool was very welcome.
During the first day we walked the length of the strip from Treasure Island to The Excaliber Hotel; next door to Excaliber they were renovating the Luxor at a cost of over $20 million. As one local said to us every hotel being built had to be more expensive than the last. We had coctails in a bar opposite the Bellagio which had a water fountain display on at the time. Later in the evening we sat in the same bar and watched the fountain display under lights which was fantastic. There was also a singer in the bar which added to the atmosphere. We resisted the temptation to spend all our money gambling on the slot machines but it was quite an eye-opener just how many people play the machines which are in every hotel, shop, cafe, almost without exception. I value my hard earned money too much to risk it in this way.
After a couple of days it was time to move on taking route 160 to Death Valley via Mountain Springs and Pahrump. At Pahrump we stopped at an RV park which was a revelation with a superb air conditioned building with gym, bar, hot tub and other facilities. Outside there was a fantastic little pool with waterfall and we enjoyed it so much that when we left the next day to go to Death Valley, we booked in for the following night which meant we had to return at the end of the day, but well worth it. We learnt that Pahrump was originally owned by the Shoshone indians and that the town are making a serious attempt to bring in gambling casinos to rival Las Vegas - a bit to do still there I think but the picture shows a casino built since we visited the town.
Death Valley is quite something. When we planned our holiday we were told that you cannot get insurance if you travel through there before September 12th and that if your RV breaks down (and the air conditioning stops) the safest place is underneath the vehicle. Our travel schedule meant that we didn't reach Death Valley until the 23rd September so we guessed we would be OK unless the RV broke down(!!). At this time of the year, temperatures average from 25degC at night up to 45degC at the height of the day. Death Valley is the lowest place in the North American continent, the lowest point being Badwater Basin at 282ft below sea level. When the sun heats the ground, that heat is then radiated upward, but the dense below-sea-level air acts as a blanket and reflects the heat back. In addition, the high valley walls trap rising hot air and recycle it back down to the valley floor, where it is heated by compression. All I know is that when we got out of the RV for a very brief time in the centre of the valley the hot dry air took your breath away and we got back in sharpish. Fortunately, the museum and other places where tourists could get out of their vehicles were at the edge of the valley and it was not so hot and bearable there; even so you still could not stay out too long.
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