We visited Valley of Fire State Park, north of Las Vegas, Nevada.
A cheeky squirrel found some food in the picnic area (no, we didn’t feed it):
We visited Valley of Fire State Park, north of Las Vegas, Nevada.
A cheeky squirrel found some food in the picnic area (no, we didn’t feed it):
We visited Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area near Las Vegas, Nevada.
Entrance station; timed-entry reservations required:
Visitor Center:
Gift store:
Exhibits:
Tortoise:
Jackson the burro:
Picnic:
We did a hike to a waterfall:
One night while staying in Las Vegas, we went to the strip for a nice steakhouse dinner and The Beatles Love Cirque du Soleil show.
The Mirage hotel:
The Mirage foyer:
We were early, so played some slot machines, to make an offering to the gods of luck:
Then checked out a swag shop:
And The Beatles Shop:
Then went to the Stack restaurant for dinner:
Martinis:
Salads:
Steaks:
Adult tater tots:
Desserts:
Professional photos:
Food and beverage:
The Love show (they were okay with photos, a little unusually, so of course I took a bunch):
The Mirage:
We stayed at Oasis Las Vegas RV Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Campground Reviews listing.)
A large RV resort, just down the road from the Vegas Strip.
Dates:
Weather:
Noise:
Site:
Utilities:
Internet (in usage priority order):
Amenities:
Our ranty review on Campground Reviews:
Large resort, near The Strip
This could have been so much better than it was, but the annoyances started early and kept adding on:
– Upon arrival, we had to wait for a long line of RVs to be checked in. When it was our turn, we found out why it took so long: they checked every rig for the “RVIA sticker”. I’ve never had that before and it was weird because our rig was originally bought in Canada so it had a different sticker than they were used to. Look, if you’re just looking to keep Schoolies and homemade conversions out of the park “for insurance reasons”, I get it, but when someone shows up in a pretty well-known make and model, just wave them through.
– Once you get inside the gate, you have to sign some paperwork and head inside to registration, which was incredibly slow even with four people on duty. Got through that process where I signed as much paperwork as when we sold or bought a house.
– On our way out the door we were accosted by a “Good Sam Rep” that had obviously been waiting for the tired and weary travelers to try to Shanghai them into a timeshare presentation without knowing what was going on. We were halfway through signing up for the seminar when we cottoned on to the shenanigans and walked out.
– Got to our “Premium Pull-through site” and it was quite a squeeze to fit the 40′ motorhome and tow vehicle on the pad. We had to unhook and park the truck diagonally across the pad to keep our bumpers out of the road, also being sure to avoid the lamp post, the garbage can, and the sprinkler heads.
– They have an extensive rule booklet, but nobody else seemed to read it and nobody in the park actually enforced the rules.
– Went to soak in the hot tub, which is a welcome perk after a day of driving, and despite being “adults only” there were many, many children jumping into it with no parents around.
– Wanted to partake in the café, but it was only open sporadically. The one time we did get in, though, the martinis were strong and the tater tots were amazing.
– When you leave the park and come back you have to sit in the long line of RVs checking in because there isn’t a separate line for checking in versus returning.
– On the other hand, it was a conveniently short drive to The Strip.
We camped at Oasis Las Vegas RV Resort in a Motorhome.
Tip for Other Campers: Convenient to The Strip, but if you want a bit of nature and amazing scenery, Red Rock Canyon and Valley of Fire are each a decent day trip.
Interactive map:
Campground map:
Our site:
When one enters the park, they first need to check in with security, that hands over a registration form:
Then one parks in one of the several registration lanes:
And goes into the office:
To the registration desk:
They really like their paperwork and inefficient procedures. Perhaps necessary with such a large park, but it didn’t seem very streamlined.
Swimming pools:
We used the hot tub, though despite all the signs about no kids in the hot tub, there were several that used it:
They have family and adult swimming pools; this is the family one, which nobody was using as it wasn’t heated — so of course all the kids were in the adults-only pool. Yay:
A fairly large store:
Always nice to have an on-site restaurant too; we had dinner there once (and were going to another couple of nights, but they were closed — having an onsite restaurant is well and good, but having it closed unexpectedly is almost worse than not having one, though I know lots of restaurants struggle with staffing nowadays):
Tasty martinis; yes, they had a full bar:
Jenn’s sandwich and tots:
My burger and lots of fries:
Also nice when an RV park has a mail room; we got several packages delivered here:
Outdoor game area:
Bathrooms:
Other RVs:
The elevated freeway was very near, resulting in a constant hum of noise:
The big Las Vegas airport was also nearby, so planes would frequently fly over:
The entrance at night:
A nice RV resort; not great, but good, and close to the Vegas attractions. We might stay here again, but would probably prefer to try another place, or go back to Lake Mead.
Living full-time in a 40-foot motorhome while continuing to work poses some challenges. One is simply where to work.
For those who don’t know, I am self-employed as a macOS and iOS app developer. My company is Dejal; I am the developer of Time Out for Mac, a popular break reminder tool, and Simon for Mac, a pro tool to monitor websites and servers for changes or failures, plus a couple of iOS apps. I also do macOS and iOS consulting, helping other people create great apps — currently SheetPlanner for Mac (and soon iPad), a powerful spreadsheet/planning tool, and NewsBlur for iPhone and iPad, a popular RSS reader.
When we were considering what kind of RV to buy, we considered toy-hauler fifth-wheel trailers, so we could convert the garage area into an office. Or a fiver or motorhome with bunks, that could be removed and converted into a tiny office; I quite liked the look of the Fleetwood Discovery LXE 44B, with the bunks at the rear.
Ultimately a dedicated office wasn’t deemed an essential feature. When we decided on a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, one point in its favor was a pull-out keyboard tray at one of the dining seats.
But after we actually bought our coach, it turned out that the most convenient desk for me was a simple lap tray. (And we eventually removed that keyboard tray as part of making a liquor cupboard.)
I already had a lap desk that I had used for TV dinners in the homestead, and it works very well for a laptop, too. I can sit on our couch and work comfortably, or take it outside. I’m writing this sitting on a swing seat on a nice sunny day (in the shade of our awning):
More often I use it while sitting on the couch, sometimes with Paladin’s assistance:
To make it more portable, I have velcroed my MacBook Pro to the lap desk, using self-adhesive velcro dots. So it can be removed, but typically remains attached. It’s secure enough that I routinely carry the tray around by its handle, with the laptop hanging in space.
I also velcroed a portable solid state drive to the tray; it is my backup drive. And the tray has a slot where I can temporarily put my iPhone or another drive.
I find the built in keyboard, trackpad, and display of my laptop to be perfectly adequate for my needs. But when I want a little more screen space, I can attach a SideTrak Swivel 12.5” display, giving me plenty more room for reference material or an app I’m debugging.
The display is magnetically attached to a plate on the lid of the laptop:
So when not needed, it can be simply unplugged and pulled off:
This setup works really well for me, giving me the flexibility to work inside or out as the mood (and weather!) dictates.
A timelapse of driving our RV, a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, 114 miles from Kingman, Arizona to Las Vegas, Nevada.
We drove our coach 114 miles, about two hours of driving, from Kingman, Arizona to Las Vegas, Nevada.
Here’s the map route, heading northwest:
An interactive map, with our stops marked:
I-40:
Interesting rocks:
Rough road:
Interesting rocks:
Lake Mead National Recreation Area:
6% downgrade:
Bridge:
Hoover Dam and Lake Mead:
Entering Nevada:
Lake Mead:
Artwork:
Las Vegas:
Our destination:
After Grand Canyon West, we went back to Kingman, and had dinner at a classic Route 66 diner.
Welcome to Kingman:
Route 66 buildings in Kingman:
A drive-through Route 66 sign:
We had dinner at the Mr D’z Route 66 Diner:
Menus:
Special shakes:
I had (with Jenn’s help) a lavish Chocolate Pot of Gold shake:
Fries and burger with bacon, egg, hash browns:
French toast etc:
Route 66 truck:
Old police car outside the diner:
I may have knocked a few years off my life with that shake and dinner, but it was tasty!
We visited Grand Canyon West, a commercial operation of the Hualapai Tribal Nation.
On the way there, we enjoyed seeing lots of Joshua trees and snowy mountains:
The sign for Grand Canyon West:
The main terminal; there is lots of parking, an airport, large heliport, and gift store here:
One catches buses to reach the other two areas:
The first stop is Eagle Point:
Do you see the eagle?
A selfie:
The main attraction of Grand Canyon West is the Skywalk, a horseshoe-shaped glass bridge that extends 70 feet out over the canyon:
We went to the restaurant for lunch first, which had a great view over the Skywalk:
No personal belongings allowed on the Skywalk:
Line:
We put our stuff in a locker:
They have photographers on the Skywalk to take posed pictures:
Some stock pics of the Skywalk that came with our photo downloads:
After we experienced the Skywalk, we headed outside and looked at some Native American tribal structure exhibits:
Then caught a bus to Guano Point:
Posing ravens:
Nice Grand Canyon views:
This point is named for a guano mine (harvesting bat droppings for fertilizer); there are still some ruins of a tram used for that operation:
A long line for the bus back to the terminal (it was much longer when we joined it):
On the way back to Kingman, “Expect Cattle”:
Yep, cows were expected:
A fun experience, and a different perspective on the Grand Canyon.
We stayed at Kingman KOA Journey in Kingman, Arizona. (Campground Reviews listing.)
We were going to stay somewhere else, but changed our plans due to our NIRVC stay, so this was a last-minute reservation.
Dates:
Weather:
Noise:
Site:
Utilities:
Internet (in usage priority order):
Amenities:
Our review on Campground Reviews:
A good place to stop between Phoenix & Vegas
This was a last-minute reservation as we had to change our plans between Phoenix & Vegas. The KOA website is always straightforward and convenient. The staff were nice and helpful, including guiding us to our spot. We had a nice end patio spot with a view of the mountains. There’s a small bit of noise from the interstate, but not too bad. Roads inside the park were a little tight on some of the corners. We camped at Kingman KOA Journey in a Motorhome.
Tip for Other Campers: Convenient day trip to Grand Canyon West and the Sky Walk.
Interactive map:
RV park map:
Our site:
Patio:
The electrical pedestal was a bit strange, with the outlets on the side:
And the two 50 amp switches were not connected:
Sign:
Entrance:
Office:
Closed swimming pool:
Mini golf:
Playground:
When we arrived we had to wait for this RV and Jeep to untoad, as they didn’t make the turn after the entrance:
Other sites:
Mobile homes for 55+ long-term residents:
Mountain views: