Thursday, January 30, 2014, American Coach Association (ACA) Rally, Las Vegas, NV

We drove a short 12.1 miles (6,809.0 trip/66,290.1 total) from North Las Vegas, NV, to the Las Vegas Motorcoach Resort at the south end of the strip. It was a short drive, but I was concerned about the heavy traffic and aggressive drivers. I think we were lucky with our departure time since the trip went smoothly.

The Las Vegas Motorcoach Resort is a very nice, upscale park with a lot of $1,000,000+ coaches and a lot of amenities. We are here to attend an American Coach Association (ACA) Rally. Since we are on the west coast (and we are members of the southeast chapter), there are only a few of the attendees that we have met previously, but we will have a lot of new friends before we leave. There are 61 American Coaches here and a lot of very nice people. Our site had been beautifully landscaped providing us a lot of privacy, while only being a few steps from all of the activity at the clubhouse.

Many of the sites were decked out with extensive outdoor kitchens and fireplaces.  

Just down the road from the resort, we visited the Silverton Casino and Hotel. They have an 11,000-gallon tank in the lobby that is home to more than 1,000 fish and more than 100 different species. Apparently, they have a mermaid show sometimes, but we just watched as the resident ichthyologist fed the rays and sharks. You could walk around the tank and view it from every direction - something you usually cannot do.

Joani got a few "artsy" shots of lighting over the bar in the casino area.

Connected to the Silverton was a Bass Pro Shop. It was undoubtedly the largest one we have ever been in at 160,000 sq ft (nearly 4 acres!). I know it is sexist, but this sign still made me laugh (Joani at least thought it was funny enough to take a picture). With all of the wildlife on display, it almost felt like visiting a museum.

I think #3 is my favorite.

The evening meal and first official gathering of the rally included tri-tip steak, chicken breast, and kielbasa sausage with some great beans, bread, salad and pie. We were stuffed before we left for the evening!

Wednesday, January 29, 2014, Ethel M. Chocolate Factory Tour and More Strip in Las Vegas, NV

We explored another small portion of the strip in Las Vegas, NV, including Ceasar's Palace and The Bellagio. The extent of the decorations for the Chinese New Year was amazing. Keep in mind there are 12 Chinese years and each is represented by a different animal. This is the year of the horse. That means the rats, oxen, tigers, rabbits, dragons, snakes, goats, monkeys, roosters, dogs and pigs are waiting somewhere for their year to come around. Then, of course, there are decorations for every other holiday and special occasion as well. The casino has to have acres of warehouse to store their seasonal decorations.

The opulence is staggering. It should be obvious to anyone entering the establishment that the money all comes from gamblers who lose, but everyone thinks they might be the one to hit the jackpot and leave rich.

Joani found we could tour the Ethel M. Chocolate Factory. It was on the way to Costco so why not?

These guys were rolling out some pecan brittle that looked pretty good, but they didn't offer us samples. We did get to sample a little piece of chocolate, but I can't say it was really all that special. 

It was not clear why but outside the factory they maintained several acres of cactus gardens. They were very well maintained and quite extensive, but since we have become pretty well acquainted with cactus by now, we didn't spend a lot of time there. They claim they generate enough electricity with their solar panel farm to power the entire candy making operation.

Tuesday, January 28, 2014, Exploring the Strip in Las Vegas, NV

While staying in Las Vegas, AZ, Joani had to have a picture of me in front of the famous "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign. It was difficult to get the picture without all of the other people in there - it was a pretty popular spot for a souvenir photo.

We found a gallery with photography by Jeff Mitchum. I aspire to be that creative. I would be proud and happy to hang one of his pieces on our wall, but the one behind me (below) runs around $10,000, so it's not likely we will have any of his work decorating our home.

Who knew there would be a four-story M & M's store? They even had a 3-D movie!

I thought about having some "Beverly" in the Coke store but decided against it. The Beverly is a really bitter grapefruit drink that is supposed to be popular in Italy. I tried it at the "World of Coke" in Atlanta and after the first few minutes of gagging it started to grow on me.

We only walked along a small portion of the strip including, New York, New York, MGM and Paris. Maybe we will actually go inside a few of them before we leave!

Monday, January 27, 2014, "The Fremont Experience" After Moving to Las Vegas, NV

By 8:00 in the morning, nearly all of the trucks in the Flying J in Kingman, AZ, had cleared out so we didn't have to dodge anyone leaving. It was only 107.4 miles (6,796.9 trip/66,278.0 total) to our site in Las Vegas, NV, and I just could not wait late enough to arrive at the park after their 3:00 check-in time (fortunately, our site was empty and we were allowed to check-in early.)

We crossed a new bridge just downstream from the Hoover dam that must be quite a sight. We don't know since it really needs to be viewed from another vantage point - from the road, you can't really see anything, but you can tell you are a long way above the river.

The campground is part of the Main Street Casino operation and is within easy walking distance of lots of downtown attractions. We noticed that the Main Street Station Casino had changed every outside light to a CCFL bulb. My guess is that the total was at least a 6 figure number (Joani guessed "millions").

Another couple of blocks down the road was "The Fremont Experience." The entire street was closed to traffic and was covered with a programmable array of LEDs. Joani recognized the street as the one she and her brother wandered down as teens almost 50 years ago.

The Heart Attack Grill was loaded with humor. The waitresses were dressed as nurses and diners wore bibs that looked like hospital gowns as they ate their quadruple by-pass burgers and fries cooked in lard. The butterfat shakes included a pat of butter on top. It was quoted by Guinness as the "World's Unhealthiest Restaurant" serving one burger that contained 9,982 calories! If you finish the quadruple by-pass they will help you out of the place in a wheelchair.

I loved this restaurant's sense of humor, but not enough to eat there!

No, I'm not really down to my high school weight - I was cheating in case anyone passing by was looking.

We walked back to the Fremont Experience after dark and did a little more people watching. The ceiling display showed stars moving along as if we were traveling through space. The effect was riveting and I only wish there had been a place to sit for the show.

On the hour, all of the casino lights were turned off while the intensity of the ceiling was increased. The '60s psychedelic light show was accompanied with some seriously loud '60s music. Everyone just stood still and looked up at the ceiling for about 10 minutes until the show ended, the lights returned and things went back to normal. It was like a cheesy sci-fi movie where all the earthlings are under the control of the alien in the machine.

This show was amazing (and free)! 

With the help of the internet (google "Las Vegas freebies"), you can find so many free gems for the non-gambler!

I'm sparing you when it comes to the people watching! I wish I could un-see a few of the street performers!

Sunday, January 26, 2014, Move to Kingman, AZ

It was time to head towards Las Vegas, NV. Since it was more than 300 miles, Joani planned it in two segments. The first leg made it to Kingman, AZ, a reasonably pleasant 231.8 miles (6,689.5 trip/66,170.6 total). Before we left Casa Grande, AZ, we filled up the coach. We had bought enough groceries to get a $0.20 per gallon discount on 35 gallons of diesel at Fry's, so we took the opportunity to fill up. I was pleasantly surprised to find we averaged just over 9.5 mpg over the last 900 miles!

At one point on Arizona highway 93, we headed downhill into what looked a bit like the Grand Canyon. It was, after all, the Colorado River below the Hoover Dam.  

We stopped at a Flying J for the night. It had to be one of the busiest we have ever visited. There was a steady stream of trucks in and out. I am amazed at how well the drivers can back a 53-foot trailer into a space with no more than 3 feet to spare on either side. They also seem to have it pretty well calibrated just where the back of the trailer is. Look at the spacing between the two trailers below.

We were extremely lucky to get one of the last pull through parking spaces. There was another motorhome on our street side for the night allowing us to extend the bedroom slide.

Thursday, January 23, 2014, Saguaro National Park, Kitt Peak Observatory, Tucson, AZ

I really wanted to visit Kitt Peak National Observatory in Tucson, AZ, but had no idea that there was a National Park on the way. Good thing we had the whole day and nothing else planned. The Saguaro National Park included some very desolate areas with lots of interesting cactus. They had an excellent Visitor's Center that included some short walks with the different cacti labeled so we could learn the difference between the Ocotillo and the Cholla. I think the park was remote enough that it might have had really dark skies for astronomy, but I will have to find out on another visit.

The drive up to the observatory complex at 6,875 feet was significantly less stressful than the drive to Lick or Palomar. Of course, the lack of hairpin turns was great, and the lack of falling rocks and bicyclers helped, too. At the top, we enjoyed a picnic just outside the visitor center (jackets were needed since it was a bit cooler at altitude) before we joined a tour of the facilities.

The entire Kitt Peak complex is located on an Indian reservation, so the gift shop included some interesting, original Indian horse hair miniature weaving. They were pricey but tempting since they were nicely sized for our limited living space. We ultimately left empty-handed.

The large basket in the middle is only 1 1/2 inches tall.

The rationale for an observation deck, three stories above the ground and one flight of stairs below the telescope, was never explained, but we did enjoy the view.

The 4-meter telescope design was essentially copied from the Hale telescope on Mt. Palomar. Apparently, it will be used for the next few years to search for "dark energy," according to our docent.

Since the Saguaro National Park was on the way home and the sky was starting to get interesting, we decided to stop in again for some more exploration. We drove a loop road recommended by the park ranger. It was beautiful and scenic, but he should have mentioned it was an unpaved road that limited us to about 5 mph. We started to worry about getting out of the park before the gates were locked at sunset.

This field of sheep near the park provided Joani with an interesting photo opportunity as they generated a thick cloud of dust just grazing.