Vegas? Take a Hike!

Las Vegas - Sat, 12 Mar 2022, 1pm

After I moved to a hotel off the Las Vegas Strip last night I picked up Hawk at the airport. We're spending the day in Vegas today... but not for the usual things people associate with visiting Las Vegas. We're not gambling, seeing a show, or going to a pricey restaurant that serves Midwestern-ized ethnic cuisine. We're staying in Vegas for a day to go hiking! (And also shopping, but also not where you think; and that's another blog.)



This morning we got up early, packed for hiking, checked out of our hotel, and drove out to the Red Rocks National Conservation Area at the foot of the mountains west of Las Vegas. It's a good thing we left early-ish because the park was already filling up when we arrived. A ranger said that if we'd come a half hour later there'd be a wait of several hours to enter.

At Red Rocks we drove out the trailhead for Calico Canyon and Turtle Head Rock. We hiked Calico Canyon; though in the picture above you can see Turtle Head Rock in the distance (upper right). Turtle Head will have to be a hike for another time. And speaking of another time, I'll post additional pictures from this hike soon when I have time to catch up on processing them.

Why Calico Canyon? Well, first of all, the rocks are amazing, with colors of blazing red, orange, and yellow. Second, it's a fun hike up through a canyon, including several places where hikers have to scramble over bare rock. Third, at the top there's a clear view down to Las Vegas miles away. It's way more amazing than last night's Strip view.

Stay tuned for more!

Late Night to Amarillo

Canyon, TX - Sun, 13 Mar 2022, 1am

After hiking this morning in Red Rocks outside Las Vegas (short summary now; more to come later) we spent a few hours shopping, trolling around for more bowls for our dinnerware set, then drove to the airport. We were in no particular rush to get to the airport as our 6:15pm flight was already delayed 45 minutes.



The delayed flight wasn't the only eye-rolling thing at Las Vegas airport. Although the airport was busy, with every gate in the terminal serving arriving and departing aircraft, and most of the flights seeming to operate at least 3/4 full, the airport's restaurants all seemed to be running on skeleton crews. Hawk went to one where there was one employee seemingly doing everything. I went to another, and it was the same story. The poor gal was running back and forth between taking orders, putting them in the oven, operating the cash register, and boxing up food once it was cooked.

Also eye-rolling was the number of snowflakes in the airport. Especially in the boarding area for our flight to Amarillo, TX, mask compliance was about 50-50. Basically White Texans age 40+ are a bunch of snowflakes. Rules don't apply to them.

Speaking of snowflakes, when we landed in Amarillo we saw actual snow on the ground. Yes, snow, in West Texas! There's a freak cold front passing through that's dropped temperatures, like, 30 degrees from normal.

Picking up our rental car at Amarillo airport was easy. It's a small airport, so the rental desk is right next to baggage claim, and cars are outside the side door. I'm glad I found the number for the depot to call ahead and let them know our flight was late. If I hadn't, the gal at the desk might have gone home at their usual 11pm closing time. We didn't arrive until almost 11:30.

Hawk waited for our checked bag while I warmed up the heat in the car. We're staying the night in Canyon, a town about 30 miles away from the airport that's a lot closer to the park we're visiting tomorrow. ...Er, today, given how late it is.

Canyon has snowflakes, too.... Both the kind on the grass outside, as well as the kind who's an employee inside standing right next to a sign that reads "BY LAW EVERYONE MUST WEAR A MASK IN THIS HOTEL'S PUBLIC AREAS," not wearing a mask.Well, it's 1am now. I've taken a shower to sluice off the grime of hiking and traveling today and I'm trying to wind down for bed. I'd planned to get up early tomorrow for hiking. That plan is in jeopardy now because of the late flight... not to mention also because the switch to Daylight Saving Time comes this morning, robbing me of yet another hour of potential sleep. Ugh, it's going to be a tough morning.

Next: Up Early(ish) to Palo Duro