Skip to main content

Day 18 & 19 - Las Vegas to Grand Canyon

If I could change one thing about my road trip plan so far, I would've bought the van in North Carolina months in advance, got it insured, checked out metchanically and converted to a camper before setting out on the road trip. The van stuff has been a bit of a hassle-- but it has worked out int he end. 

I drove five hours from Phoenix to Las Vegas on Tuesday in order to pick up my official proof of automobile purchase from the Hertz Dealer and get my car registered at the Nevada DMV. The last step to a legit legal Nevada vehicle. 

I wanted to get the DMV registration done that day but would've had to wait in line all night to be seen. So I got a cheap hotel in vegas, lost $100 gambling at poker:(, and got an early spot in line to get the van registered. A family friend's address would serve as my Nevada address. After resolving a minor issue with my Nevada insurance, I got my Nevada plates, paying $434 in fees--thieves. 

I drove to Walmart and bought a plug and play SiriusXM satellite radio tuner which I installed and activated in the parking lot.  I need more tunes man.  I also picked up a roll of Reflectix insulation (similar to what windshield sunshades are made out of). I plan to cut the Reflectix into panels to cover the side and back windows for privacy and for insulation at night. 

Then I booked it out of town and drove the four hours to Grand Canyon, arriving an hour before sunset, just in time for some photos and a brisk walk around the rim. It's rather chilly at a high of 63 today at Grand Canyon. I'll spend the next few days hiking the south rim and maybe a dayhike into the canyon. Very happy to be back in the beauty of the west!  Zoom in on the panoramic photo to see where the last photo was taken!!




Labels:

Comments

  1. UnknownMay 17, 2015 at 12:16 PM

    It looks like you had a great time but I don't see any pictures of Las Vegas. I remember that I made a trip like that to grand canyon and Vegas 3 years ago and it was amazing. I booked a hotel with Reservation Counter and I had spend a week on that trip. It was quite an adventure.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 43 - Capitol Reef

Capitol Reef, a national park centered around a 90 mile ancient seabed reef was next on my list. A sensationally scenic three hour drive from Bryce, back through Escalante, and then through a national forest led me to the park.  A stop by the visitor center to get the lay of the land and insider info on local free BLM campsites complete, I set out on Chimney Rock trail up the the top of the first reef to get a view.  Yes sir!! The weather was ideal for hiking and the views completely blissful, but I was frankly tired today. I set out along the scenic road down the west side of the reef and remember wanting to take a nap-- but still having a sense of urgency to complete the desert portion of my trip-- I pushed on and set out to hike down the Capitol Gorge and Grand Wash canyons. The Capitol Gorge had a "Pioneer Wall" with inscriptions from the early 1900s and the Grand Wash had a nice narrow section with towering canyon cliffs all around. I took a photo of the surrounding reef...
1 comment
Read more

Day 35 - Escalante River

Our group of eight intrepid but novice backpackers and two incredibly experienced guides gathered for breakfast at 8am to meet, greet and bulk up for 5 days in the Escalante River area. We laid out all our gear to ensure we had the needed hiking, camping and survival supplies and drove to our trailhead for departure.  We hiked along a trail following the course of the Escalante River for a mile or so before getting to our first of many river crossings. Wet feet were not something we could avoid so we simply hiked across and sometimes down the river. When the river ran close to the canyon walls we knew we would have to find a shallow entry to the river, then cross the river to the bench on the other side.  Guides Andrew Skurka and Alan Dixon offered instruction along the way on map reading and route finding and information on local vegetation and geology and how the knowledge of both helped make your off trail travel more efficient. For example in geology their were two main ro...
Post a Comment
Read more

Day 54 - Great Sand Dunes

I awoke to clear skies, a dry mattress and pillows, a second hot shower and a waffle-filled motel breakfast. I decided to head east to Great Sand Dunes National Park in order to climb 700 foot sand dunes surrounded by snow-covered alpine mountains--a rare site.  Just about every road in Colorado goes over a pretty high mountain pass eventually, and this three and a half hour journey didn't disappoint.  And Great Sand Dunes didn't disappoint either. After securing a dune-side campsite and waiting out a rainstorm, I set out to climb the dunes for a sunset view. Great Sand Dunes is also famous for its Medano Creek wave-like flow and ankle-deep water, making it popular with young kids. I hiked through it and started climbing the dunes, first to a high dune on the east side and over to the next highest dune and then the next highest et until I got to the highest one-/ properly called High Dune. I sat down, setup my phone to capture a time-lapse of the beautiful sunset my eyes were ...
1 comment
Read more