St. George, Utah to Las Vegas, Nevada

November 3 -10, 2015

Garmin Info with Maps

St. George, Utah to Mesquite, Nevada

Mesquite to Overton

Overton to Callville Bay

Callville Bay to East Las Vegas

East Las Vegas to the Strip

We said goodbye to Glidemaster and started our ride to Mesquite. There would be lots of climbing today riding mostly on Old Hwy 91. The weather was beautiful and the terrain was stark. We rode passed the Kayenta artist colony and through Shivwits Indian reservation. Climbing and climbing. Almost at the top our German recumbent friends cycled by. We all took a break at the summit and then enjoyed a fantastic long downhill through a corner of Arizona and then on to Nevada. A 3 state day! We all rode together down the hill but once we got to flatter ground we couldn't keep up with the Germans. We were in the desert now.  It was something to see so many Joshua trees after being in the mountains for so long. The frontage road we took along I-15 had very steep hills which really slowed us down. As we approached Mequite the sun was setting very brightly right in front of us. It actually felt quite dangerous. We were happy to finally arrive to town and start looking for a hotel. The first place we looked at was a Best Western and they wanted $70 per room. I asked if there was anywhere less expensive and the woman told me to go to the Virgin River Casino. Just as we pulled in we met our German friends who were also staying there. The place was ablaze with flashing lights and the rooms are only $27, $35 with tax! We booked in for 2 nights. After getting settled we met Daniella and Stefan for a crazy big buffet dinner for $15. 

At the summit

State 2 for the day

Desert scenery

Checking into the Virgin River Casino.

We split this casino
breakfast.

We had a relaxing rest day at the hotel and then pushed on to ride along Lake Mead. Some of this ride was on I-15. The shoulder was wide, the surface was smooth and this was another beautiful day.  We turned off the interstate at Hwy 169 intending to go to the Valley of the Fire State Park. At Overton, we met up with the Germans again when we all stopped at the grocery store. This was fortuitous. Googlemaps showed the ride to the park was another 14 miles. Stefan had more information. He said the road continues to the campground for an additional 16 miles with another 1300 ft of climbing. Wow! They decided to try staying at a trailer park close by in Overton and we followed. The trailer park manager said he isn't licensed to accept tents but let us stay in a RV storage lot next door. He also gave us a key for the bathroom so we could shower and wouldn't take payment. Very nice. We all used flat surfaces provided by the stored RV's as a table surface for cooking up our dinners. This wasn't the most comfortable camping situation but it worked out just fine. 

Map of Lake Mead National park

Fortuitous meeting outside the grocery store in Overton.

RV storage lot camping.

The overnight temperature was quite cold and I was reluctant to get out of the tent in the morning. It was so cold Maryann and I decided to go to a cafe a block away instead of making oatmeal outside. All four of us started riding at the same time. Since we didn't go as far as planned on yesterday's ride, today's ride would be much longer. We were all going to meet up to camp at Callville Bay on Lake Mead. This was a beautiful ride through a national park. Maryann had a park's pass that let us both enter. The road had recently been repaved and was very smooth and had rumble strips that were actually cycling friendly. I know that sounds weird but it is possible. The lines were scored thin and not very deep so the tires could roll right over. When vehicle's tires cross the lines the sound changes and the strips are still very effective. A win-win! I really hope road designers will consider this idea for highways around the country.

With Daniella and Stefan

There was a lot of climbing today and it was also very windy. We stopped at a rest area in Red Rocks to make lunch. Keeping everything on the table wasn't easy. There were huge red boulders here. It was really cool and reminded me of the Flintstone's town of Bedrock.  We continued on and the wind was relentless. We never really had a headwind but it wasn't a tailwind either. The noise alone was exhausting.  The day was coming to a close but we still had miles to cover and kept climbing and climbing. Even though we were camping on Lake Mead we could hardly see the water. There was a steep downhill to the campground for a few miles. It was almost dark when we pulled in and the Germans had been there for a couple of hours. They were set up and showered sitting comfortably drinking beer. Oh to be a stronger cyclist!  We got set up and made a good dinner. Daniella was very interested in my cooking technique. They are going to be on the road for another 18 months riding from Patagonia to Mexico. We have seen them make an enormous amount of food in a big pot with rice and veggies. I think they eat double what we do. This was impressive to see.

Lake Mead scenery

Red Rock lunch stop.

Late camp arrival.

Lunch on the road.

In the morning we all got packed and started riding up the steep hill back to the highway. It wasn't as hard as I had expected while I was riding down the night before. The wind was, again, very strong at our side.  We exited the national park at Hwy 147 and had another big climb before a wonderful downhill into East Las Vegas.  On this climb we found lots of empty shell casings. It looked like people come out here to shoot empty bottles out the air. There was also a ton of shattered glass on the road's edge. Today we were staying with Warm Shower hosts that live just 2 blocks inside civilization. The neighborhood isn't great but Jan and Pete's home was brightly painted and they welcomed us warmly. This very interesting couple has traveled and lived all over the world. They have worked in Antarctica as well as small atolls in the Pacific.  We had a great time. They have a fire pit in the front yard.  While we were sitting out there we saw a very weird thing flying low in the sky. It didn't seem to be moving very fast and we watched it for at least 10 minutes trying to guess what it was. I figured it was some publicity stunt from the Las Vegas strip. We also wondered where it went. Did it land or fall to the ground?  Jan was a fabulous cook and we had a great meal of chili cooked with peppers and veggies from her garden.

Maryann with Jan and Pete

In the morning there was all kinds of commotion going on outside. The street was blocked on both ends and there were many bomb squad vehicles. We heard very loud Bang! Bang! a few times. There were helicopters flying above and also lots of guys walking in front of the house wearing full bomb protection. I, of course, went out to get the scoop. The bomb guys were all in a great mood.  A crazy man down the street had been shooting off a gun in his house.  The loud noises were flash bangs set off by the bomb squad to distract the guy but they didn't work. A dog was sent in and took him down.  Boy, that was a lot of excitement!

Bomb squad outside the house

I took some pics of the bomb squad and went to post them on Facebook when I saw a lot of posts about a UFO people in California, Arizona and Nevada saw last night. The pictures were exactly what we saw in the sky last night. WOW! Later, I read stories that it was a missile shot from a submarine off the coast of southern California. Sure seemed weird that a missile would be shot off and fly over Las Vegas. I guess no weirder than seeing a UFO, huh?!?

Later in the day Maryann and I went to get our hair cut and run a few errands. Then we enjoyed another fantastic meal with Pete and Jan. They were so much fun. I think this ranks up there with one of the most exciting Warm Shower stays I've ever had.

There were a few reasons to go into Las Vegas. First, I wanted to reconnect with my friend Dina from college. She also works for one of the Cirque du Soleil shows and I really wanted to see her in it. Maryann was also able to meet up with a cousin that was staying on the strip for a nursing convention. On the road, we also heard from Lee, a triker we know from the BentRiderOnline site. He lives in Henderson and wanted to get together. We decided to go to the strip and hang out for a couple of days. Maryann had stayed at Circus Circus before and knew it was really cheap. We got checked into rooms at the motor manor building and our trikes fit right into the rooms. The room rate was only $21 but there was another $21 resort tax. Still, $42 for a nice room is pretty cheap!

Myrtle at
Circus Circus

I also had something else to take care of in Las Vegas. The Olympus camera I brought for the trip just wasn't working out. It is too big, heavy and bulky. The lens I have for it is 14-40mm which isn't enough range and I really need to get a bigger zoom lens for it. But I know changing lenses while I'm bike touring is more effort than I will make. I just want to quickly snap pics and decided to buy a small super zoom P&S like I have used on previous tours.  I picked up a Panasonic Lumix ZS50 with 24-720mm super zoom lens that is small enough to fit in a pocket. The camera only weighs 8.5 oz, has an electronic view finder, shoots in RAW and has wifi for quick file transfer. One of the biggest beefs I have with these small cameras is dirt always gets into the sensor and then you have spots on the pictures. I use the camera mostly outside which doesn't help. Cleaning the camera costs as much as buying a new one. Well, for the first time, I was told about a camera warranty extension that covers sensor cleanings and lens replacement. The warranty costs $65 for 3 years. Fantastic, done! I packed up my Olympus with the tripod and table top mailing the 8 lb package home. I'm sure the picture quality will suffer because the Olympus lens and sensor are far superior. But, I really just want to quickly snap pics on the go while I ride. So far, all my pictures have only been used on the internet and I haven't found the quality to suffer noticeably with the smaller cameras.

Red Rocks canyon (taken with Lumix)

The next morning we called triker Lee and he took us on a drive to Red Rocks Canyon just 20 miles outside Las Vegas. What a beautiful place!! He said there is a good group of trikers that live in Henderson and they take the trikes out to the canyon quite often.  I was really glad I got to see this special place. It was also great meeting Lee and hearing about the Henderson triker scene.

Later in the day, I met up with my college friend and we had a nice lunch catching up on old times. Dina is such a sweet person! She arranged for Maryann and I to see her show Mystère.  We met her before the show and she was in full make-up. Dina is one of the singers and it so fun to see her work. I loved the show and want to see it again. Cirque du Soleil shows have the wow factor down to an art form and every one I have seen has been world class entertainment. Mystère was the first of the Cirque shows to get it's own permanent stage in Las Vegas and has been running for over 20 years. The show was just extended for another 5 years too. 

Dina in full make-up before the show.

Dina, with arm raised, singing in full costume. 

Oh my goodness, this last week has been action packed. We have seen so much and met so many wonderful people. From Las Vegas, we are going to be riding south to Arizona to get on the Southern Tier bicycle route.