A Quiet Evening in North Las Vegas

North Las Vegas Travelog #5
Back at the hotel - Sat, 18 Feb 2023, 10pm

Our hike at Red Rock Canyon this morning (part 1, part 2, part 3) tired us out. We've been taking it easy since then.

Immediately after returning from the hike we completed the scenic driving loop around the park. One of these trips we'll hike one of the other trails in the park. ...Actually we did hike one of those other trails once. Maybe even two of them. They were nothing compared to the Calico Rocks hike. That's why we keep going back to it.

After the park we stopped for lunch down in the Las Vegas basin. All those fancy casino-hotel restaurants... and we ate at a Del Taco fast food joint. What can I say? We don't care for fancy food, casinos kind of give us hives, and we like Del Taco. After lunch we stopped at a rock shop the headed back to the hotel.

We've been at the hotel, taking it easy, pretty much since then. We took a long soak in the hot tub this afternoon. This hotel's hot tub is actually working, woohoo! Lately it's been like hotel hot tubs are maintained by the same people who run McDonald's ice cream machines.

We did leave the hotel just long enough for dinner this evening. Again we avoided fancy restaurants at casino-hotels. We went to a local Mexican joint in North Las Vegas. It was really well rated... and wasn't actually all that good. 4.5 stars in North Las Vegas is like 3 star food back home. And there's a line to get in for it.

We're going to try to get to sleep at a reasonable hour this evening. Tomorrow's another early morning to go hiking! Alarms at set for 6:30 and 6:45am.

Valley of Fire

North Las Vegas Travelog #6
Valley of Fire State Park - Sun, 19 Feb 2023, 9:30am

Today was another day of getting up early. I'd say Ugh to getting up at 6:45am twice in a row on the weekend— tomorrow it'll be three in a row when we do the same on the holiday Monday— but it's for a good cause. We're enjoying the great outdoors on our trip to Las Vegas. Especially now, in February, when temperatures in the desert are moderate. Highs are forecast around 63-65° F (17-18° C).

Our trip today is out to Nevada's Valley of Fire State Park. It's about an hour north of Las Vegas. A small, brown sign next to one of the exits on I-15 is all that tells travelers zooming past at 80mph that there's something here. I remember the first time zooming past that sign 20+ years ago, thinking, "Looks like nothing's here." And I was right.... Nothing is there, along the highway. But nestled in a valley 10 miles east is something amazing.



The brightly colored sandstone of Valley of Fire is an ancient seabed. 200 million years ago this desert was an inland ocean. 50 millions years ocean floor rose, the water disappeared, and the sandstone began to be carved away by wind and rain.

These sheer cliffs and spires that put the red rocks on beautiful display are the result of geologic faults. Forces from deep within the earth caused the rock on one side of the fault line to rise and the other side to fall. The erosive forces of wind and rain have continued to carve away at the soft rock.



It's a good thing digital film is cheap because I've shot more than a roll worth before even getting to our first hiking trail today.



And most of that roll+ worth of digital film I've shot through the car's windshield or by holding my hand out the window while driving. It's so beautiful here it's just not possible to stop for everything!

The Pacific ep. 1: Leckie/Guadalcanal

It's been a few weeks since I started watching the miniseries The Pacific. I wrote one blog then got sidetracked with life. Fortunately I'm not far behind on blogging as I've only watched the first 2 episodes out of 10. This blog is about the remainder of episode 1, "Leckie/Guadalcanal".

After the character introductions I wrote about in my previous blog the episode shifts to marines being deployed to Guadalcanal in the Pacific in August 1942. A text overlay notes that this was the first time US forces in the Pacific went on the offensive. For months they'd been defending against Japanese attacks... and losing.

As the soldiers land on the island I noticed their gear, especially as compared to Band of Brothers. In particular Marines units have heavy automatic weapons. Browning .30 caliber machine guns are shown.



Marines travel light... though not quite as lightly as paratroopers in the other series. This Browning gun is heavy. It's got a large water-cooled steel jacket around the barrel. One soldier carries the gun itself; a second soldier carries the tripod it mounts on. I think a third soldier carries extra boxes of ammunition for it. The Army paratroopers didn't have heavy automatic weapons like that.

It turns out heavy weapons like the Browning .30 cal were critical to the Marines' success. The Marines 1st Division lands unchallenged. Japanese forces occupying the island have pulled back, planning an ambush later. The Marines set up positions at the mouth of Alligator Creek near Tenaru Beach.

That night the Japanese attack in force. Wave after wave of Japanese infantry tries crossing the creek. The marines with rifles and handguns can't shoot them fast enough. The Japanese are starting to encircle the Americans. But the teams with Browning .30 cal machine guns blaze away, mowing down entire lines of enemy soldiers.

In the morning the Americans, victorious, survey the battlefield.



There are dead Japanese soldiers, everywhere. The beach is strewn with dead bodies.

Historical records tell us that 793 Japanese soldiers were killed in the Battle of Tenaru. The Japanese Army units underestimated the American Marines. They were better defended, and had more powerful weapons, than the Japanese expected. The battle was brutal. Even finding themselves outgunned, the Japanese did not slow, retreat, or surrender. The Americans had to kill them to the last man.