Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Perfect daytrips for Las Vegans: From easy excursions to afternoon staycations

Desert Adventures Kayaking Tour

Mikayla Whitmore

Kayakers take a rest and prepare for a short hike Saturday, Aug. 30, 2014, alongside the Colorado River.

It’s time to step on the gas and break free.

For years, the recession hijacked our uniquely American joy of hitting the road. Las Vegas suffered terribly in the downturn, and it was common for locals to put off buying new cars and to scrimp on maintenance, leaving many with high-mileage rides that weren’t even close to being fit for a day of adventure.

Then there was the price of gas. In May 2014, the per-gallon average in Nevada was $3.80, making a road trip something of a luxury, and sticking close to home the norm.

Now, gas is less than $2.50 a gallon here, and car sales in the U.S. hit an all-time high in 2015 — just shy of 17.5 million, breaking a record set in 2000.

So eat dust, recession. The kids are tucked in their seats, the cooler is stuffed, our sunglasses are on and it’s time to get out. The destination might be a wonder of the natural world, or a charming burg we only know as a gas station off the highway. Even if we stay in the valley, just the act of rolling out resets something primal.

“I was surprised, as always, by how easy the act of leaving was, and how good it felt,” Jack Kerouac wrote in “On the Road.” “The world was suddenly rich with possibility.”

Let’s make tracks.

MESQUITE

Thinking of going?

• visitmesquite.com

• 877-637-7848

• Estimated drive time from Las Vegas

• 1 hour, 10 minutes (81 miles northeast)

Surrounded by hiking areas and home to five golf courses tucked in the red foothills of the Virgin Mountains, Mesquite is a quaint destination worth the quick drive.

If you’re after pampering and amusement in a much mellower setting than Las Vegas, the community of about 16,000 is home to three casinos with spas and entertainment. CasaBlanca Resort has a poolside summer series featuring such acts as rock and Broadway tribute bands and a comedy-hypnotist, while the Virgin River Hotel boasts a 65-game arcade and a buffet with a Saturday-night special of prime rib and crab legs for $15 (go ahead, gasp). And the Eureka shakes things up with Author Palooza on June 22 (wine and cheese and literature!), not to mention the July Fourth Rockets Over the Red Mesa fireworks show “with a touch of Sinatra.”

If you prefer that outdoor Mesquite experience, a splash-pad park opened in May 2015. And for the really adventurous, there’s Skydive Mesquite — the state’s largest full-service drop zone — and a spectacular hiking spot known as Little Finland.

The name has nothing to do with the Nordic nation, stemming instead from unique rock formations that look like gargantuan fish fins breaking the surface of the land. Formed by wind and water erosion in red sandstone, they add up to a jagged yet delicate spectacle.

While it’s worth the drive, getting there isn’t easy: Little Finland is nearly 40 miles from the highway and accessible by a road that can only be traversed using an SUV. Those in-less rugged vehicles face a hike of at least 3.5 miles to reach the scenic payoff.

GRAND CANYON

• Estimated drive time from Las Vegas

• West end: 2 hours (130 miles)

• North Rim: 4 hours, 25 minutes (265 miles)

Just one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, that’s all.

At Grand Canyon National Park, there is obviously sightseeing, but don’t forget camping under thick trees, Jeep touring, mule riding, rafting and trekking the canyon from end to end. The North Rim doesn’t draw as many visitors as the South Rim, because it’s harder to reach, so it offers the sprawling vistas and exploration opportunities without the huge crowds. On cool summer nights, its lodge — an actual stone’s throw from the staggeringly beautiful crack in the planet — is a great place to catch the dusk on a rustic patio.

So what’s a petroglyph?

On rocks that face the desert sun, particles of clay, organic matter and other materials get baked into what’s known as varnish — a layer of brown or blackish discoloration. Petroglyphs are made by chipping into the varnish to reveal fresh rock. The petroglyphs across Nevada are thousands of years old.

The west end, which isn’t in the national park but is part of the Hualapai Indian Reservation, offers three prime viewing points, a helicopter/boat tour, horseback-riding and chances to learn about Hualapai culture. The bucket-list attraction is the Skywalk, a glass-bottomed, U-shaped walkway that juts from the canyon’s edge, 4,000 feet above the floor. If there’s one view worth a road trip all on its own, it has to be this one.

• Valley of Fire State Park: For a hiking option that’s easier to reach but just as breathtaking, there’s Valley of Fire State Park. Roughly midway between Las Vegas and Mesquite off of Interstate 15, the park features moderate trails snaking through rock formations that mash up Mars and Dr. Seuss, and are the canvas of 3,000-year-old petroglyphs.

LAUGHLIN

Thinking of going?

• visitlaughlin.com

• 702-298-3321

Upcoming shows on the Laughlin strip

• Kenny Rogers, June 25, Edgewater Casino Resort

• Rockets Over The River fireworks displays, July 2-4

• Styx, July 16, Edgewater Casino Resort

• Dwight Yoakam, July 23, Edgewater Casino Resort

• Pirates of the Colorado River Regatta, Aug. 11-14

• Hank Williams Jr., Sept. 24, Laughlin Events Center

• Dolly Parton, Sept. 30, Laughlin Events Center

• Estimated drive time from Las Vegas

• 1 hour, 20 minutes (90 miles south)

Laughlin is a full-service day-to-night playground: fishing, boating, hiking, horseback-riding, sightseeing and more, plus the city’s charming strip of casinos and clubs.

The Colorado River runs right next to it, so of course you have the option of a private cocktail tour of the waterway on the Celebration, the pride of Laughlin River Tours. When the premium menu includes chicken wings and “smokey links,” you know you’re in for an unfussy good time.

Spotlight attractions near the city include Grapevine Canyon, offering a spectacular array of petroglyphs about 7 miles west of Laughlin — so many that devotees caution newbies not to step on markings at lower levels to get a glimpse of others.

For a less rustic option, there’s the Colorado River Heritage Greenway Park and Trails, nine miles of winding paths for walking, bicycling and riding horses.

And when you’re ready to come back to civilization, the community is home to nine casino-resorts (including its own Tropicana that glows green in the night!) offering a total of 10,000 rooms, 60 restaurants, a bowling center and numerous spas, nightclubs and spots for Champagne brunch. When you’re used to competing with 40 million tourists a year for that kind of fun, 2 million isn’t even a challenge.

PAHRUMP

Thinking of going?

• visitpahrump.com

• 775-727-5800

• Estimated drive time from Las Vegas

• 1 hour (60 miles west)

Pahrump is a classic example of goodness we miss because it’s right under Las Vegas’ glowing nose. For starters, it has something you might not expect in a town of 36,000: Jetpack America. The adrenaline-charged attraction, anchored at the lake at Spring Mountain Motor Resort & Country Club, offers a chance to soar up to 40 feet in the air using the same technology that powers Jet Skis. Packages start at $180 for 20 minutes, and kids as young as 5 can fly with an instructor.

If the idea of being rocketed by jets of water isn’t so appealing, enjoy the club’s white-sand beaches and Tiki bar on Saturdays and Sundays, when its private lake opens to the public from noon to 8 p.m. And don’t miss the track complex — a state-of-the-art, 4.5-mile raceway with driving schools and an upscale clubhouse. Operators purchased the site for $6 million in 2004 and have made $22 million in improvements since.

Pahrump is better known for its two wineries, Sanders Family and Pahrump Valley, the latter hosting an annual fall grape-stomp for your inner Lucille Ball. Other corners boast four casinos, two golf courses and miles of trails.

The outdoor richness explodes 30 miles northwest of the city, in the Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. The 24,000-acre, spring-fed refuge, named for the abundance of trees, is an environmental treasure in the desert, with 26 varieties of plant and animal life found nowhere else in the world. And about 20 miles beyond that, the 500-foot-tall Amargosa Valley Dunes are a playground for dune buggying and sand sledding.

• Annual Fall Festival. This event debuted in 1964 and features carnival rides, a rodeo and a parade that makes the town — and traffic on Highway 60 — stop for over 50 floats. It’s happening Sept. 22-25. Admission to the festival grounds is free, plus $30 for the carnival and $10 for the rodeo.

DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK

Thinking of going?

• www.nps.gov/deva

• 760-786-3200

Beatty

Near Death Valley, the small town offers lodging, restaurants, bars, a museum and more. And there’s a ghost town 4 miles west called Rhyolite, where a building about a century old still stands thanks to sturdy walls made of more than 10,000 beer bottles.

• Estimated drive time from Las Vegas

• 2 hours, 20 minutes (125 miles northwest)

Although Death Valley is known mostly for being the hottest place on Earth, it actually got its name from a group of pioneers who got lost there during the winter, only one of whom is believed to have died.

That said, it’s an inhospitable place on the surface; the average annual rainfall is just 2.36 inches, a little more than half of what Las Vegas gets on average. But residents are plentiful. Coyotes, ravens, roadrunners, ground squirrels, lizards, rattlesnakes and scorpions call it home. In the higher elevations, there are mountain lions and bighorn sheep. Life Valley, anyone?

Make a plan to see it again in the spring, when the desert expanse becomes a blanket of wildflowers, such as mariposa lily, lupine, paintbrush, pincushion and desert dandelion. There’s even an online Wildflower Report at desertusa.com, with a status meter and lots of photos uploaded by visitors.

If you’re into trivia, the park is home to the lowest point in North America: Badwater Basin, 282 feet below sea level.

• Good ideas: Drinking 2 to 4 liters of water per day (even more if you’re active), visiting during those spring blooms after damp winters, and stopping at the visitor center.

• Not-so-good ideas: Bringing your dog (there’s not much for pets to do) and going in July if you don’t like heat (the temperature has soared as high as 134 degrees).

Preparing your car for summer heat

When it comes to Las Vegas weather, your car is a lot like you. For much of the year, the conditions are wonderful. No snow, mild temperatures — great. Even better for the car, there’s not much rain to get under the finish or into the undercarriage and cause rust. But then comes June, and your car can suffer just as much as you do.

Tires can get so hot that they come apart. Engines can overheat, and radiator hoses can blow. Air-conditioner parts can go bad, and refrigerant can run dry. So, it’s a good idea to prepare your vehicle to handle the heat, especially if you’re planning a trip.

Ross Hanna has been servicing cars for years in Las Vegas, first with Smart Auto and now as the co-owner of Smart Tires at 3105 E. Sahara Ave. Here are his insights on summer-izing a car:

• Change your oil regularly. “They’re always critical — especially during the summer when the engine is running at a higher temperature,” he said. Some shops in Las Vegas offer changes from as low as $9.95, but the average is more like $30. The cost can go much higher depending on how much oil the car uses and whether it requires synthetic, which is more expensive than the regular kind.

• Check tire pressure once a month, and adjust as necessary. It’s important to check the tires when they’re cool, because that’s how manufacturers base their recommendations. Tire pressure will measure higher in a hot tire because the air heats up, too. Another important tip is to use the car manufacturer’s recommendations for tire pressure, not the tire manufacturer’s. The correct settings can be found in your owner’s manual or on a sticker generally placed in the glove box or driver-side door frame. Proper inflation allows the tread to wear evenly, which prolongs the life of the tire. “We can have the same car, the same tires and we can drive the exact same amount of miles on the same route, and I can make my tires last two times longer than yours if I check my pressure and you don’t,” Hanna said.

• Have the air-conditioning system serviced, and have the radiator flushed and refilled. Most shops offer a deal on both jobs; Hanna says the cost should be about $60. While they’re at it, they should do an under-the-hood check and see if any other work needs to be done, like replacing brake fluid, changing belts and so forth.

• Get a sun shade for the dashboard, or keep the dash clean and moisturized with Armor All or a similar protectant.

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