Carlton's log, day 1, Red Rock

Well another trip to Vegas. This time however, I met an associates "wife" and we went in search of free fun. Our first stop was Red Rock, just north of sin city. The day was beautiful and brisk and we began in the Visitors Center. There were very nice exhibits, a photo contest -winner's display, and all kinds of opportunities to get into nature and learn more about the native Nevada desert. We took the self tour and read the info, walk the grounds and then headed for the drive loop around and up towards the main attraction: petroglyphs and pictographs!

The first go round we evidently missed the particular drive off the main loop and so we just got back into the park and drove around again! We found the right spot and made the very short walk to the pictographs of Native American hand prints. (You can see one, faded but there, red print in the center of the photo; and there are about six or seven more that go to the right -very difficult to see.) About twenty feet down the path there is a large roasting pit, larger than my living room, it was a roundish shallow pit filled with gravel that the Native Americans used for...roasting!

As we drove around the loop we came upon wild burros, who have been fed by so many tourists they have no fear of us. They saw the car, crossed the road and walked up to the passenger side window looking for a snack! Several cars began to stop and before long the burrows were eating bagels and scones from Starbucks. There you go. I predict they become as the bear in Yosemite... and that's not a good thing. Stop feeding the wild life folks. It's like the saying goes: "Feed a bear (or a burrow) and sign it's death warrant." They become conditioned to snuggling with the tourists and when nature takes its' course (Siegfried and Roy) the normal course of action is death to the animal. Stop feeding the wildlife.

Any who the day was great. It was a good day to be out in the fresh air, walking around and catching up on "old" times! The next time you are in Vegas, may I suggest a trip out to Red Rock for some EASY hiking, gorgeous views, a few burrow sightings and a history lesson for the kids. You may even see some rock climbers like we did...oh my heck, on straight up rocks...fantastic!