As we made our way through the pass on I-15 towards Las Vegas, we decided that we would stop at some BLM land called the Jean/Roach Dry Lake Recreation Area. It was easy to get to with a nicely graded dirt road off the paved road, and lots of places to park. Parking on the dry lakebed was an option, but we decided to head a little further in, away from the highway. After we parked, we took the dogs for a walk, and when we came back some people with motos were buzzing around our camper and we realized we had parked in the middle of an informal motocross track. Tom immediately called one of the riders over and told him that we would move, but he told us that we really weren’t in the way and they would be leaving shortly, which they did. We settled in for the evening, and around 8pm we heard loud thumping bass coming from the direction of the lakebed, and could see a line of lights where people were obviously meeting. We figured it was Friday night and the locals were having a party, and went inside to watch TV and go to bed.
After we turned off the TV, we thought the music seemed a little louder, but decided it was just because there was no other noise around, and we both tried to go to sleep. However, neither of us managed to really get to sleep because we quickly realized that it wasn’t our imagination that the music was getting louder, and in addition to the thumping bass, we could hear the rest of the music track, as well as people yelling. Around 3am our aging brains realized that we’d managed to park at the edge of an all night techno rave, and we both kept listening to the music and wondering, as the noise paused between tracks, if it was over. We finally got up around 6:30, and the music didn’t stop until close to 9am. We took a wander towards the lake to see what a rave looks like, but by that time it was just a bunch of cars, a few people wandering around, and gigantic speakers in two U-Haul moving trucks which they were repositioning. We went back to the camper, showered, and got on the road before the next session could start.
After we turned off the TV, we thought the music seemed a little louder, but decided it was just because there was no other noise around, and we both tried to go to sleep. However, neither of us managed to really get to sleep because we quickly realized that it wasn’t our imagination that the music was getting louder, and in addition to the thumping bass, we could hear the rest of the music track, as well as people yelling. Around 3am our aging brains realized that we’d managed to park at the edge of an all night techno rave, and we both kept listening to the music and wondering, as the noise paused between tracks, if it was over. We finally got up around 6:30, and the music didn’t stop until close to 9am. We took a wander towards the lake to see what a rave looks like, but by that time it was just a bunch of cars, a few people wandering around, and gigantic speakers in two U-Haul moving trucks which they were repositioning. We went back to the camper, showered, and got on the road before the next session could start.
The white line under the distant mountains is the dry lake. The shiny things a little to the right of center in the lake bed are the cars that were at the rave. I can’t even imagine how loud it was there since it was plenty loud where we were, which was obviously quite a distance.
This is a video of the rave from our camper, so you can see how far away it is. We did this around 8pm, and you have to listen closely to hear the bass beat. We were really surprised how loud it was by morning.
We left the recreation area and headed for Las Vegas. Neither of us has ever had any real desire to visit Vegas, but since we were so close we took a drive down the strip. That was enough for us, and it looks just like it looks in the movies. We saw lots of people, lots of traffic, lots of noise, lots of lights, and lots of Walgreens, which we haven’t figured out quite yet. We had zero desire to even try to park the truck, and after I took a few photos through the windshield we exited the north end of The Strip and headed for Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument.
We left the recreation area and headed for Las Vegas. Neither of us has ever had any real desire to visit Vegas, but since we were so close we took a drive down the strip. That was enough for us, and it looks just like it looks in the movies. We saw lots of people, lots of traffic, lots of noise, lots of lights, and lots of Walgreens, which we haven’t figured out quite yet. We had zero desire to even try to park the truck, and after I took a few photos through the windshield we exited the north end of The Strip and headed for Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument.
The Tule Springs Fossil Bed National Monument is probably the most disappointing National Park we’ve visited. We’d read lots about it, and it was all about how great it was that a meaningful National Park was just outside Las Vegas. This area is known for the density of fossils which have been being unearthed for over a century. All sorts of dinosaur bones and mammoth bones as well as fossils of smaller and lesser known creatures have been discovered here, and it is near the site of The Big Dig, a major archeological site. However, when you get to the park and start reading the informational signs, the signs tell you that all of the fossils are buried, and you aren’t allowed to dig, so you just have to imagine the thousands of fossils that are right underneath your feet. That’s great, but what you’re seeing is more desert like you’ve seen for hundreds of miles in each direction, and imagined fossils don’t really add anything to the appeal. The desert is beautiful, but if you’re going to a *fossil bed* it would be nice to actually see some fossils. After this realization we tried to go to The Big Dig, which is in a nearby state park, but it was closed. We decided to exit Las Vegas and head for Hoover Dam.