SW Adventure

[Lapchik]

Monday, May 25th, 2026 (forgot to check mileage, 540 something I think.)

I didn't get a really early start, but earlier than usual for me. I thought Mojave preserve would be full of people like Joshua tree, but it turned out to be the opposite. Hardly anyone was in mojave. Had I known that I could see Joshua trees, little scurrying lizards, and the amazing valleys surrounded by mountains there, without the tourists stopping to take pictures of every rock, I would have completely skipped Joshua tree.

I was worried about traffic in Las vegas, but I was going the wrong direction for traffic. Headed in, I barely had to wait behind anyone at a stoplight. Leaving Vegas today, towards California, at the end of a holiday weekend, would have been a nightmare. I noticed the traffic picked up significantly at the California Port of entry choke point. It was unmanned, but you still have to slow down and go through the stalls. Westbound traffic on the interstate was about 30 to 40 miles an hour from there all the way to Las vegas. That's nearly 50 miles. I drove right down Las Vegas boulevard with light easy traffic past the MGM grand, the Luxor, the flamingo, Bellagio, and the horrific circus circus. If hell is real and they custom tailor tortures to you, I'll just be stuck in circus circus with no way out. I'm not a gambler, so the only money Vegas got out of me was about $40 for a shirt, candy bar, and a couple gallons of gas. I could maybe see going back in the future for a show or two, maybe eat somewhere fancy, but the entire town just seems like a cheap amusement park surrounded by a great big sketchy neighborhood. Well, nearly surrounded. All the traffic coming to and from Los Angeles doesn't go through that part of town.

After filling in that checkbox on my big list of places to say I've been to, I went North to the extraterrestrial highway, the teapot Arch (where I met some dirt bike guys), and then over towards Utah. I have another big list of places I'm trying to get to, but this one specific to the Johnny Cash I've been everywhere song. There's a landlocked lighthouse in cedar City, and I missed my exit on the interstate so I just held up my grand tour flag and let my 360 camera take some video. When I get home, I'll have to go back through the footage and take a screen capture. From there, I swung through Zion national park. Not sure if it was a fluke or what, but no one was stationed at either entrance gate. I drove in, drove through, and had a wonderful sunset cruise. After that I flew down the hill to Kanab where I got the nicest $90 hotel room imaginable. The last couple rooms I got at that price were a little on the crusty side, but this is one of the nicest hotel rooms I've stayed in, ever. I think memorial Day marks the end of the season for a lot of the places with desert climates. I got the kids a couple little trinkets at the gift shops while I was waiting for a table at the rocking v cafe, which had a wonderful waitress and really good food.