Vegas, Baby!

Laughlin NV... Hot and dry 115 plus.  The Aquarius Casino Hotel was excellent, rooms from $15 per night with Breakfast included... we splurged and took the upgraded $35 room, Ha Ha Ha, almost free!  After 2 days in Laughlin NV boating the Colorado River (Ok, actually riding water taxis from Casino to Casino) we traveled to Las Vegas to meet up with our son Greg and soon- to- be daughter in law Carrie.  Weather same as Laughlin so no report here.  The Tropicana hotel was fully renovated and the pool area was unbelievable.  They played the exact same club music song non- stop at 115 decibels all day and night, but still fun.  Just in case you had not gambled enough they even have swim- up blackjack in the pool.  4 days in Vegas.  Except for no room in 1st class we had a very uneventful plane ride home.  Nice to be home with the doggy our quiet house.

HP

Laughlin NV

No record temp on Weds in Kingman (103 and 104 was the mark)  so we left and went to Laughlin.  116, a tie for the date on Weds.  As usual, impatient Harry did not want to wait for a taxi from the Golden Nugget to our hotel (Aquarius)   It was in plain view but desert distances can deceive.  We ended up with a 1 mile walk,  halfway there we had to mount a long stairway of 120 steps.  Life gives you lemons so we made lemonaide-  ran fast up the long steep stairs, kind of a competition- I won but Teresa did awesomely in the 116 degree heat.  She will never forgive but we really earned our dinner.

The Grand Canyon... is it really that Grand?

Yes, the Grand Canyon is the meaning of the term Awesome!  First, the promised weather observations...

5:20 AM, Sunrise in Kingman AZ 2,000 something feet, 69 degrees, calm and cloudless.  Not really a weather report, more like a report of preheating a convection oven.  Wind gauge was safely packed in my duffle bag but it was windy and 91 degrees at 8AM when we left for the Grand Canyon South rim.  As those from NJ can imagine, at our average 15 miles and hour over the speed limit, and a 75 MPH Arizona speed limit... the 185 mile ride to the canyon was like a ride to the beach.  It was an ear-popping ride, up and down High Desert passes until at 11AM we reached the 7,200 foot edge of the Grand Canyon at Mather's Point.  71 degrees, and if possible it seemed like negative relative humidity- why not, this is my report and  they have below zero temps in the winter...  We wobbled at the edge of the Canyon, unbelievably no guardrails... We saw several endangered California Condors zooming overhead without flapping,  a great day.  On the way down we observed a dust devil swirling tumbleweeds several hundred feet into the air.  Back in Kingman, 92 degrees and after a great dinner we are looking at stars we never see in NJ due to light pollution.  Only thing more awesome than the Grand Canyon is a dark desert sky.

Maybe A quick stop at the ATM before leaving for the airport?  We will be in Vegas just long enough to get our rental car so no need for gambling money.  Forecast Kingman AZ... 5 day forecast Kingman, AZ Wednesday should be 2 degrees short of daily record high, I am rooting for it!

7 Days to go and Hoover Dam bypass bridge

The hoover dam bypass bridge is done now and we will be driving over it 7 days from this evening!!

Arizona fire

 Fire in Arizona, best of luck and safety to firefighters and Please put this out before we get there!


http://www.weather.com/weather/today/Grand+Canyon+AZ+USAZ0088

It's the same weather today in NJ as in our Grand Canyon Homebase

Kingman, AZ 88 and sunny
Randolph, NJ 88 and sunny.

18 Days until Harry and Teresa leave for the Grand Canyon!!!