....But not to gamble or go to shows. I have a week in between school getting out and the start of my summer training, and so I'm heading to the Vegas area to go a couple things:

1) check out the airport near the strip that shuttles workers to and from Area 51.

2) Climb Tikaboo Peak, which is the only (legal) place that has a decent view of Area 51. I plan on camping there overnight at least one night (possibly more, if I can) with a camera and video recorder. I've heard many, many stories of people seeing some pretty weird shit from there, and it DOES offer a decent view of one of the major runways.

3) Get some snapshots of the "shoot on sight" signs, as well as get as close as I can to the main gate before getting chased off by the MiB.

From what it looks like, I think I'll be leaving on the 17th, and be gone for four or five days. Obviously I'll bring back plenty of pictures, and (assuming my phone works on the mountain...it may not...will post instant updates if I hear or see anything of interest.

Tell me that is not the most kickass vacation ever.

(Actually while I'm there, I also plan on going to one of the desert National Parks outside of Vegas. There are a couple, and I hear they're all pretty damn incredible. Wouldn't want to miss those.)

Optimist With Doubts wrote:

Put $20 on red for me. And if you absolutely must not gamble, then have fun.

Well, for you Opti, I'll throw a 20 on red. Why not.

^ Well, I DID plan on provoking the guys at the front gate just enough to chase me off...

Also Klimb, I totally didn't connect on the fact you're from Vegas! If you know of anything in particular that I really need to see/visit (I've never been there before), let me know.

I just wish Star Trek: The Experience was still around.

^ Oh, I'm not planning to actually attempt to breach the airport security lol. That would get my ass kicked in so many ways it wouldn't even be funny, and probably ruin my military career too. Still, you can see the private terminal and runway their jets take off from. It doesn't look like anything special and it'll just be a bunch of airplanes and stuff, but I'm an Area 51 junkie and its only a block or two off the Strip, where I'll be anyway. I couldn't in good conscience NOT go sneak a peak. (McCarran Airport is the name of the place, by the way. They (and I do mean They with a capital T ) have a high security private terminal there.)

I'll definitely be spending at least one night checking out the Strip, just so I can say I did it. And even though I'm not a gambler at all, I'm sure I'll waste five bucks playing poker or Blackjack just...cause.

The park I was thinking of going to was the Vally of Fire. I've seen pictures of some of the rock formations there, and it looks completely awesome. Although if there's a different park you'd recommend over that one, I'd be more than willing to take a suggestion.

(Incidentally, this a picture of some of the "Janet Airlines" planes that shuttle the workers. I'm sure I'll come back with very similar pictures:

Funny you should comment; I was just uploading my photos and getting ready to do a post about this! It actually turned into much more than just a Vegas area trip; we ended up doing this whole Southwestern Loop kind of thing. It was awesome though, and we had a great time. Behold (and sorry about the photo proportions being slightly off; its the most consistent resizing job I could do):

First major stop was Tombstone, Arizona, home the famous gunfight that involved Wyatt Earp and Doc Holiday. Naturally, we had to visit Boot Hill:



And of course, the O.K. Coral itself:



Meteor Crater was next. This picture doesn't do it justice; this crater is MASSIVE. I can't even begin to imagine the kind of energy and forces that created it:



After that, it was on to Carlsbad Caverns. This was one of the best parts of the trip. Absolutely indescribable. I've been to the Grand Canyon before, and this was way, way more jaw dropping for me. Unfortunately most of the pictures I took don't look great because of the lack of light, and the dimness of the camera flash. Still, there are a couple formations I had to snap shots of.

Yeah, I know this looks like a dong, but if you look towards the top-middle of the pillar there, you may be able to spot the uncannily headcrab-like formation I was trying to take a picture of:



HOLY SHIT IT'S CTHULU!!!!! (Well it would be if it wasn't so damn dark. I swear, this thing looked EXACTLY like I imagine Cthulu would look--tentacles hanging off his face and everything):




Next, we hit Roswell, New Mexico--a name I hope everyone's familiar with. Sadly the crash site itself is on private land that's not open to nosey amateur ufologists such as myself, but I did get to see the International UFO museum:



I also ran into a cunningly disguised utility droid while hanging around the visitor's center:




On the way into Nevada, we stopped (in the middle of nowhere) to visit the Very Large Array, the...very...largest...array...of radio telescopes in the world. For some reason almost all of my pictures turned out blurry except for a couple. Luckily I had one that turned out VERY well indeed to make up for it:



And at the entrance:




The Hoover Dam was on the way too:




After a very (VERY VERY) long drive, we made it to Nevada, and a very tiny town (and by town I mean trailer park out in the middle of nowhere) named Rachel. This is the closest human settlement to the infamous Area 51, and also the home of the (almost equally famous, if you love UFO lore) Little Ale'Inn:



But I didn't drive out there for the hotel. I wanted to see the base! ...Or at least get as legally close as possible without getting my ass shot of or thrown in Ft. Leavenworth. This is actually the back entrance to Area 51; you can't get close enough to the front entrance to see anything at all (the buffer "kill zone" is too big):




On the way towards Vegas, we also stopped at the ALSO famous "black mailbox" on Mailbox Road. This is the only human landmark for miles in this area, and also a spot that provides one of the best (legal) views of the airspace over the base. Its a popular and quite well known meeting place for people who want to go UFO hunting. (And don't let the color fool you--the original mailbox was black, until the rancher who owned it got sick of UFO hunters stealing it. So he bought another one and painted it white to try and throw them off. As you can see, it didn't work):



As we were driving away, we had a very clear view of the main road that leads to the main gate of Area 51 itself. We saw several vehicles headed down it towards us. Probably just tourists who drove up to the border just for fun. But then again...who knows?



And just to cap off that part of the trip perfectly, we even found our own little UFO. ...Or at least a cloud that looked like one:




Then--FINALLY!!!--Vegas itself! Contrary to what it looks like I am NOT drunk in this picture. This was just after a day that consisted of almost 10 hours of driving, and another couple hours of walking around the strip. Very, very long day.



Vegas itself was...okay. I am NOT a city person; lights and noise and people drive me insane. I'd much rather be out in the middle of nowhere, on a big plot of land with no one around. So Vegas, to say the least, is not my style at all. It WAS impressive though. The sheer amount of STUFF and people, and money is mind boggling. The drunk teenagers really started to get on my nerves after a while though, especially the one who almost threw up all over my boots. It was a good experience and I'm glad I went, but I don't think I'd ever feel the need to go back to Vegas proper. (Despite the fact that, after much cajoling, I finally sat down and played some five card stud and actually managed to win $40.) The desert surrounding it is beautiful though, and New Mexico is the new state I plan on moving to if Alaska won't take me back.

So overall, awesome trip. Don't think I'd have changed much of anything. An extra day to be able to drive down and see the Trinity test site would have been amazing, but you can't do everything. I highly recommend seeing any and all of the things I've discussed here, ESPECIALLY Carlsbad Caverns. Holy crap was that amazing.