Brian has to experience the Desert Bar

It is a bit of a drive south to Havasu City but we feel like Brian can’t come this far and not check out the Desert Bar (Nellie B Saloon). We have been and enjoyed this place several times but it is a bit different every time.  Well worth another visit.  The last 5 miles or so of the drive is dusty and bumpy, like always.  But wow, when we get there, we find the place nearly doubled in size.  There are official restaurants, in buildings not food trucks.  Lots more seating surrounding new stages and a huge new bar being built.  They have added restrooms, necessary of course but very boring and mundane compared to the original rustic ones.  There is live music and the band is pretty good – country and oldies rock.  Our first trip to the bar is a bit odd.  What we assume was a stand-in barkeep makes Kent a Margaretta, sort of.  Tequilla and soda water, yuck.  We climb around on the grounds to check out desert views and to scope out the place.     Food is pretty good and the atmosphere fun but I think too developed and the rustic charm is really diluted.  Probably won’t be back this way again.

We stop by Havasu City on our way home to show Brian that “Yes, the London Bridge is really here”.  We stroll, gaze at the lake a bit, shop a little and have dinner out at Burgers By the Bridge.  It is all lovely at twilight as holiday and city lights come on.

Hello burros

 

Another can’t miss when you’re out here, Oatman AZ.  Burros are plentiful today and of course we have to feed them.  We cruise all the shops then take in the gunfight.  It is a little underwhelming.  Just two guys show up and it feels a little unorganized but it is fun all the same.  The mics aren’t working so well making it hard to catch all the silly quips and repartee.     We enjoy lunch at the hotel restaurant…still love those burros ears potatoes, then head on home.

 

Down day

It is windy and cold.  No boating today.  Brian takes the opportunity to wander Fisherman’s trail until the winds whip up dust and bring him back home.

 

Fishing – even a little catching

We finally get a nice day to get out on Mohave Lake.   The sun is bright and warm and we manage to find a couple spots out toward Princess Cove where the fishies are biting.  The lake views are lovely and we hear a (makes me laugh every time) burro bray from across the lake.  It is a fun outing.

Spiders and snakes tortoise

We take Brian out the hike to Grapevine Canyon to see the petroglyphs.  The resident desert tortoise makes an appearance as do a number of large tarantulas.  We explore a bit more of the area while we are out.  It is a fun outing.

 

 

 

Who builds labyrinths anyway?

We head into Laughlin just to see what’s happening and check out an out of the extraordinary attraction, labyrinths.  We stroll the riverside walk.  It is a not-so-spectacular path between the river and back side of casinos but it does have a few nice benches to enjoy the river view.  Worth the steps but not worth repeating, I suppose.  I spot a sign for Pink Box Donuts.  Can’t skip that!  We (Kent and I do, Brian shows more restraint) choose from the assortment of elaborately decorated donuts and snap a pile of pictures.

Now we head to the edge of town in search of the aforementioned labyrinth(es).  After a little stumbling around with directions we come a long a flat spot in the desert to our left, a little parking area, and a tiny sign announcing we have arrived.  We stroll the area to find a half dozen or so elaborate rock paths.  It is all wonderfully done and pretty impressive.  Brian and I cannot resist walking several of them.  Ok, that was fun.

Thanksgiving

I haven’t made a full-blown Thanksgiving dinner in the motorhome since our first year (2010).  Today we have roast turkey – just the breast and carefully chosen so it fits in the 6 ½ clearance of my oven!  Homemade cranberry – thanks Kent for the suggestion, it is delicious.  Mashed potatoes and gravy (thanks Kinder bone broth gravy mix) of course, stuffing – bummed that can’t make any in the bird, and asparagus for our low carb guest.  It is all delicious.  I search out a keto friendly dessert, baked marscapone with blueberries.  That is a disaster – it separates into a water-logged spongey layer topped with congealed grease.  Awful!

Early birthday

Brian flies out on his birthday and we are in town tomorrow so we celebrate early with delicious grilled steaks and of course a cake.  Keto makes cake baking a challenge so I go with a mix this time, Duncan Heinz low carb brownie and premade keto icing.  It looks great and is actually pretty good.  Whew, not another dessert disaster.

 

 

Vegas Day

We head into town for the day and overnight to ease the early morning start to Brian’s travel day.  Our main event, Postcard from Earth at The Sphere at 2:30.  We have all morning to explore the strip and Brian is checking out a Marvel Comics attraction/exhibit.  Scaffolding and light towers still litter the strip causing the suspension of the fountain and other streetside attractions.  That is a bit disappointing but the walk is still lovely.

The Sphere is impressive. First just the structure, then the AI robots the crowd chats with, plus demos of the technology while we all wait in the atrium.  Crowds are too thick and lines too long to get scanned for our avatars…. Brian is the only one of us who actually regrets that!  We find our seats, section 405 isn’t bad, and anxiously await the show.  It is visually spectacular as the screen seems to wrap around us bringing creatures close and seemingly alive (spoiler alert, the spider does jump at you) and soaring mountain views are breath taking.  Sound plus theatre hepatics pull us further into the experience.   I do recommend it.  I am not certain how this all augments live music performances, perhaps?

We end the day with dinner at Peppermill Diner a Las Vegas Strip classic/landmark.  Neon lights and blue upholstered booths create a fun atmosphere. Diner is delicious and a fun way to end Brian’s visit.  If there is a next visit, we might check out their retro cocktail bar.  It looks fun.  We crash for the night at Arizona Charlie’s, an old school Vegas establishment well off the strip.  The focus is definitely the Casino.  It is difficult to even find the hotel lobby/registration desk.  In room amenities are sparce but the rooms are clean and pretty comfortable.  Oddest thing, a Rube Goldberg HVAC using plastic pipe and what looks like a planter box to divert air from the unit in the main room through the wall to the second bedroom.  Very weird and according to Brian not particularly effective.  An easy drive to the airport and comfortable enough for a one-night stay.

 

Happy Birthday and bye!

Brian is off to Texas to rest up a bit before it is back to school for the marathon schedule that falls between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Visits from the kids are wonderful!