We really enjoyed our two months of volunteering at Lake Mead National Recreation Area. We met some great people and learned so much about the park and the area around Las Vegas. When you mention Las Vegas, most people just think of casinos and gambling, but we discovered much more in this beautiful desert area. Hopefully you’ve been following along as we’ve highlighted some of our adventures. This post will wrap up the last of our activities before the many changes that happened due to the Covid-19 virus.
Boulder City
The small town of Boulder City is right next to Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam. There are about 16,000 people in this town that was originally created to house the workers contracted to build the Boulder Dam (later called the Hoover Dam). We enjoyed the charming shops and restaurants here, as well as the monthly Wine Walk. I especially liked all of the outdoor sculpture exhibits (there are 67!) and thought one particularly apropos right now: it is called “Alabam” and memorializes those who swept the workers’ outhouses and kept them well supplied with toilet paper!
Lake Mead
During our 5 days off each week, we continued to explore the trails and beauty inside the park gounds. There are 6 different marina areas (where Mike could dream of owning a boat) and so many hiking, biking, and jeep trails for all different ability levels.
As March arrived, so too did many of the desert flowers. The colors were amazing and much more vibrant than I had imagined for a dry, desert area.
Black Mountain Trail
Just at the edge of Boulder City is the Black Mountain Trail, a 5-mile round trip hike which includes slow inclines, steep switchbacks, and at the top, amazing views. At the summit there is a nice bench where hikers can sit and enjoy the scenery: Las Vegas to the north, Lake Mead to the east, Boulder City to the south, and the Black Mountains to the west. We also ventured off to the Red Mountain overlook which was another 0.8 miles further (top left corner of picture below).
Lion Habitat
Lions, giraffe, and birds –oh my! To the south of Las Vegas in Henderson, the Lion Habitat Ranch is a nonprofit animal sanctuary which is the home of the original MGM lions. Now the lions, descendants, and some adoptees have their very own 8.5 acre ranch where they can romp and play…when they are not sleeping an average of 18 hours per day!
We saw a lion trainer’s talk about these majestic animals. He spoke about how they work with the lions and their daily schedule. As he tossed meat treats onto the clear window, we got to see the lion up close from just on the other side of the glass! In the video below, one lion started roaring and all the others were answering as they “checked in” with each other.
Also on site is Ozzie the painting giraffe. His pictures are for sale and help support the facility. We were lucky enough to attend his 6th birthday party and to help feed him some lettuce leaves. In addition to the lions and giraffe, the facility houses ostriches, emus, tortoises, and macaws. The Lion Habitat Ranch was very clean and the animals seemed well cared for by knowledgeable staff and volunteers.
Las Vegas
Since Mike loves cars (his second car was a 1969 Shelby Mustang) we had to make a stop at the Shelby Museum in Las Vegas. We had a very interesting tour guide who regaled us with stories about Carroll Shelby’s life and showed us many of his cars. It was even interesting to me since we had recently seen the movie Ford vs Ferrari.
The last time we were in Vegas we saw the volcano at The Mirage, so this time we explored the Bellagio Hotel and Casino. The fountains outside perform to music every 30 minutes in the evenings.
The inside of the Bellagio was amazingly decorated for the Chinese New Year. The Botanical Garden area features elaborate floral displays that are changed 5 times a year and cost in the millions of dollars. This year is the Year of the Rat.
Everything in Vegas is so over the top— so many lights, people, casinos, shows, and stores. We saw a cool shop inside the Bellagio that had a chocolate fountain up in the ceiling that ran down into the shop.
Two interesting items I’ve never seen before were alcoholic gummy bears and a shoe dispensing machine… in a bathroom!
We were lucky to be able to watch the very talented Cie Rangel compete in the 2020 Vegas Shoot archery competition. Her family is from San Angelo too–it was nice to see friends from home!
Outdoor Nature Areas
We also checked out several beautiful outdoor areas to the northwest of Las Vegas. The Desert National Wildlife Refuge was created in 1936 to provide habitat and protection for desert bighorn sheep. It is the largest wildlife refuge outside of Alaska and encompasses 6 major mountain ranges and seven distinct life zones. We didn’t see any bighorn sheep but the views were definitely awesome.
Red Rock Canyon Conservation Area is another amazing place. Whether you want to hike, rock climb, have a picnic, or just enjoy the scenery along the 13-mile Scenic Drive, beautiful sights await you. The 200,000-acre park has tall red sandstone formations, huge limestone outcrops, prominent geologic thrust faults, and dinosaur footprints and other fossilized remains. We visited on a rainy/cloudy day so we just drove along the Scenic Drive with the intention of going back again, but park closures started after that and we didn’t get to return for any hiking.
One weekend, we traveled 2 hours up to St George, Utah, with friends Steve and Joan. Along the way we stopped at the Virgin River Gorge for some great views.
Next, we went through Kolob Canyons, which is a separate section of Zion National Park. Luckily, Steve and Joan knew all the great places for enjoying beautiful scenery and picture taking!
On the way home we visited Snow Canyon State Park. This 7400-acre park is situated between lava flows and soaring sandstone cliffs. Red, orange, and white Navajo sandstone dominates the landscape that offers outdoor adventures for all ages.
Now that we are all staying at home, it is especially fun to revisit some of these amazing places through our pictures. We feel so blessed to be able to travel and enjoy the beauty of our country. Hopefully we will be able to do more exploring in the near future. For now, stay safe and we’ll see you again down the road!
In case you missed any previous posts about our Lake Mead adventures, here are the links:
Hoover Dam: An Engineering Wonder
Great recap and beautiful pictures!
Thanks Joan– y’all made our time at Lake Mead so fun and were key in helping us find so many great places to see and photograph!
Very nice write ups and super photos!
But what the heck is a shoe dispensing machine!? OK, a shoe polishing machine I can understand but a dispensing machine?
Thanks Stu and Sue. I had never seen a shoe dispensing machine either! Their website says they are perfect for when a woman is out in high heels and her feet get sore and tired. You can easily carry these rollable shoes in a purse or buy them on site. Who knew?! lol
The photos are stunning! Also love the Shelby museum – we loved Ford vs. Ferrari too!
Thank you Pam. I am not usually a big car person, but I did like the movie and the museum. It was really interesting to hear about Carroll Shelby’s life too.
You definitely made the most of your time before everything shut down. Some beautiful areas, for sure. We still haven’t been to Snow Canyon or Kolob Canyons, but they look beautiful. Vegas is always so much fun. There’s always something that makes you stop in your tracks and say “wait… what???” Love it!
Hi Laura, We are still figuring out the traveling thing–do we want to see a new place each week or do we want to stay longer and really see it all? We did enjoy all the beautiful sights in and around Lake Mead and having 2 months definitely made that happen. I highly recommend both Snow Canyon and Kolob Canyons. We just did a quick day at each, but would like to go back again and stay for awhile.
Wonderful pictures and narratives. We enjoy your trip too, its almost like being there. Be safe
I love being able to share our pictures and adventures–so glad you are enjoying it too!
WOW! I really enjoyed this BLOG post with all of the informative content and picturesque views. Robin you are an outstanding travel writer and travel blog tour guide. I will be ready for your next adventure.
Thanks, Sandi. You should definitely explore this area one day! We look forward to sharing more trips as soon as things open back up.