Hoover Dam, NV

2 Chicas Say do America's Great Wall

2 Chicas know that you know that you have to go to the dam. The Hoover Dam is 30 miles south of Las Vegas and this thing is dang gone big!

Words don’t do it justice, TV doesn’t portray the enormity, and the history of the dam is something everyone should know. 

Chica 2 said she wanted to go rappelling down the side of the dam, but thought better of it.  I think she was unsure which jail she would go to and she knew Chica 1 wasn't going to look for her in two different states!

You also have to walk across the dam from Nevada into Arizona and giggle to yourself as you gain an hour because there is a time zone change at that spot.  

This thing was constructed when quality and beauty mattered.  This is one striking place; marvel at the breathtaking artistry of the dam and say a little prayer for the lives lost building this behemoth. 

Parking can really be a challenge even though there is a parking garage, so plan to visit early.  Walk along the main strip and be careful as traffic jams are common and distracted drivers are dangerous tin pushers. 

More than once, Chica 2 had to be rescued back to the sidewalk.  She wandered into traffic.  Chica 1 had to give the drivers credit, they did yield for children (or at least the child). 

2 Chicas don’t typically take tours as we usually do our own thang, but the behind the scene tour sounds intriguing. So for the tour fanatics go for it! The Bureau of Reclamation has been offering tours since 1937.  They may actually know what they are talking about. Tee hee he

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Great Basin National Park, NV

2 Chicas - Mountain Mommas

So Chica 1, still lacking spiritual inspiration, desired to partake of the Bristlecone Pine trees found at the Great Basin National Park in north eastern Nevada.  

Chica 2 began the drive from Las Vegas complaining of a craving for snacks, so after listening to the whining for an hour and a half, the car veered off the road at a convenience store for a bathroom and snack break. 

While headed to the restrooms, Chica 2 became mesmerized by the ladies shackled together in a line, and shared that she "peed very quietly" so as not to gain the attention of the convicts.  

Chica 2 was worried that one of the ladies would take her hostage, steal her cookies, and escape like something in a poor quality, low budget, made for TV movie. 

So Chica 2 bid her bathroom buddies farewell, and with Doritos in her mouth, candy bar in her pocket, and orange Sunkist in hand, returned to the open range roads of Nevada satisfied for at least another two hours.

This is a very scenic drive with lots of opportunities to stop in ghost towns as well as a number of smaller state parks. Chica 1 was patient with all of Chica 2’s tomfoolery just to get to Great Basin. And it was worth the drive.  

You wind through the most beautiful drive looking down to the valley outside the park. 

The 2 Chicas pulled into the Visitors Center and overheard the Ranger telling a family that if they wanted to see the Bristlecone pine trees, they would have to go out of the park and rent snow shoes to hike out to the area.  

Chica 1 looked over at Chica 2, always ready to go, in her strongest voice,"not today."

We ascended to the very top of the mountain only to find the trails were really closed due to heavy snow. The 2 Chicas mused that the Rangers actually must know what they are talking about. 

Chica 2, always upbeat, ran through the snow with flip flops, accepted a few well aimed snowballs from Chica 1, and posed barefoot for a quick picture in the snow.  Chica 1 pouted but soon got back into good spirits as Chica 2 spread out a wonderful picnic lunch.  

After sharing a moment on top of our little piece of the world, the 2 Chicas descended to another lookout point.

We sat on the bench and looked over a valley inside the park, and together, the 2 Chicas felt the strongest spiritual presence and such a sense of peace.  There was the echo of water rushing in the distance and the song of joyful birds overhead. 

The smell of the crisp mountain air drawn deep into our lungs and the touch of the breeze blowing across our face. The very best thing was the contentment of two friends enjoying another moment in the majesty of God. 

Isn’t that just how God is? When you have a plan and it falls through, He provides the better experience to remind you that He is in charge and He knows best. 

No matter how brilliant man becomes, the perfection found in nature cannot be replicated on cd, dvd or 3d, and especially not on a $5 bootleg. Only Chica 2, lawd!!


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Area 51 - Rachel, NV

2 Chicas say “Area 51 Where are you?”

So Chica 2 just kept pestering Chica 1 to go off and find her people, as she pointed to the sky and said “Chica 2 go home”.  

She heard the mysterious Area 51 was nearby and felt a special tingling in the air.  So off we went looking for aliens in the little town of Rachel on the Extraterrestrial Highway.   

Now the 2 Chicas chuckled the entire drive at the signs that forewarned of “Open Range”.  

This means there are no fences to hold cows in, and as we discovered on the road to Rachel, cows sometimes just stand in the middle of the road looking at the driver. 

Chica 2 and a long horned cow had a stare off to decide who would move first. Chica 2 had to be restrained from going out and wrestling the cow to the ground, probably to later be charged with theft of a ribeye.  

Chica 1 convinced Chica 2 that there was no where nearby to remove the horn from unthinkable places should the cow gain the upper hand.  And lucky for the 2 Chicas, the cow moved on to more fertile grazing ground.

As Chica 2 now had a good head wind behind her, she breezed right past Rachel, which to our surprise, seemed to be a city made up of a main trailer with a few additional trailers in the area.  

So after a quick U-turn, the 2 Chicas arrived at yet another American oddity, a small tourist attraction dedicated to aliens. Outside the trailer a diminutive whirlwind rolled tumbleweed through the parking lot.  

We felt like we were in the middle of the wild west until we went inside, there were alien shirts, cups, candy, masks, and other trinkets, as well as a restaurant. 

Since you are here, take a minute and look at the pictures of the cars that tangled with cows.  Chica 2 had a new appreciation for how tough those bovine beasts really are. 

So we grabbed a few items, paid, and got the heck out of Rachel before dark.

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Valley of Fire, NV

2 Chicas say the roof is on FIRE

On day 2, Chica 1 felt her spiritual moment was going to be in the Valley of Fire, the oldest and largest state park in Nevada.  

After driving from Las Vegas out to the park, Chica 1 had to the use the bathroom, and so upon pulling into the park, Chica 2 pulled up to the “pit”.  

Now Chica 2 loves to reference a scene from one of her favorite movies when a kid jumps into a poop pit to see his favorite soccer player. She worries that Chica 1 will fall into one of these park bathrooms.  

So as a caution, if you have not visited a rural park and need to go to the bathroom, they are often shell toilets with a pit beneath that holds the fury of the gates of hell.  

So much for a spiritual moment, that bathroom pit robbed Chica 1 of all her holy dignity.  That was gross!

Back to the Valley of Fire, it is a beautiful park with hot red rock formations and gorgeous desert sand. 

This place really gets its name honestly; it was hot as Friday night fish grease. Chica 2 was petrified of the holes in the ground, thinking that any moment; the serpent was coming to steal her long lost innocence. Whatever…. 

While kidding around, Chica 2 said she always wanted to fall into the sand and do a sand angel. 

So Chica 1 generously grabbed Chica 2’s arm, and flipped her into the sand.  Chica 2 said she landed on her hips on some rocks, but they looked like sand pebbles. Now make that fallen broken down sand angel. Tee hee hee.  

Chica 2, always the good sport, like the phoenix, slowly arose from the ashes and hobbled back to the car, muttering “that’s not quite what I had in mind…nut.”  

Now children, don’t try this at home - LOL.

Driving through the park, the 2 Chicas came across a picnic area which contained historic stone cabins.  

There are similar rock formations as found in Arizona’s beautiful Sedona area, so be on the lookout for Elephant Rock, Piano Rock, and Rainbow Vista.

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Red Rock Canyon, NV

2 Chicas Live in Bedrock

The hot, dry desert air is a shock to the system.  So be sure to have plenty of water and dress appropriately for two climates – hot by day and cool by night. 

Chica 2, after a bout of heat related dizziness, got a large drink of water and pointed the car in the direction of Red Rock Canyon. 

Located only 17 miles from the Vegas Strip, the beautiful red and sandstone rock formations are a pleasure to the eyes.  

While the 2 Chicas did not see any burros or big horn sheep, just hikers going up on the rocks, it was still beautiful to gaze upon the rock formations throughout the park.

The 2 Chicas hiked a little bit and Chica 2 climbed up on a rock to survey all she could see while Chica 1 busily looked for a bobcat, but to no avail.  

The 2 Chicas really were in awe at the thought that this canyon once was underneath the ocean! 

Chica 1 pointed out the strata in the rock while Chica 2, gurgling like a fish and pretending to drown, was becoming annoying. 

But you must admit a peculiar respect for her living in the moment. 

Take a second, park you butt on a bench, and watch the little sparrows and birds play and fly between the flora and fauna in the park.

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Nevada - Introduction

2 Chicas take Las Vegas by Storm

There’s more to Las Vegas than gambling.  You have the bright Vegas lights, extravagant fabulous shows, Elvis impersonators, and over the top, cheeky souvenirs.  

Many consider Nevada to just be a desolate and barren land with a small five mile strip that contains resorts, and more glamour and glitz than found in Hollywood. 

While the 2 Chicas agree that after dark, Las Vegas has one of the must see scenic byways, but there is also some must see stunning scenery outside of town.

Chica 2 always wanted to go to Vegas, but never considered herself a gambler. She could not imagine being holed up in a large smoky lobby with the constant music of ringing slot machines. 

Upon arrival in the great gambling capitol of the United States, Chica 2 was raring to get out and explore.  

Walking through the airport, it was clear that this is truly a Mecca for those broke but with hope, the plucky and lucky, and the down and a few clowns.  

Immediately your senses are overwhelmed by the flashing lights, the chinging sound of slot machines, and the clanging noise of coins hitting metal. 

But within a few moments, Chica 2 would realize her dream of doing Vegas her way (as Frank Sinatra sings in the back ground)! 

The 2 Chicas avoided the overcrowded Las Vegas Strip and headed to a little piece of paradise right outside of town!  

The Las Vegas Strip is a scenic drive and the 2 Chicas encourage you to drive it at night, be really careful, and take a picture at the iconic Welcome to Las Vegas sign.  

The strip is action packed all day and the freaks really do come out at night.  The sidewalks are packed and the hotels are everything you ever read or heard about, and for those of you traveling with children, the hotels have become more kid-friendly.  

Everything is over the top so watch for drivers taking pictures out of their windows of the Eiffel tower, medieval castle, pirate ships, the circus roller coaster, the pyramids of Egypt, an erupting volcano, MGM Grand, Bellagio, Caesar’s Palace, New York City skyline, and the list can go on and on. So have fun and leave the driving to someone without a camera in their hand!

2 Chicas had a little time to explore the time side of Vegas at the Las Vegas Outlet Center (down the street from the airport), Prime Outlet and lots of shopping if you need to kill time between adventures. So be on the lookout for great bargains.

We had a wonderful time eating at Big Momma’s Rib Shack and Soul Food Restaurant. 2 Chicas have to say this soul food restaurant was the biggest hit yet.  This restaurant had a menu that would not play with you.  

We loved everything we ate here and unlike other restaurants, they had what was on the menu.  To all our restaurant entrepreneurs out there, there is nothing worse than having a sign saying on the menu – fried corn and when ordered, the response is, “we just ran out”; fried chicken – we just ran out; mustard greens – sorry baby, we just ran out….

Big Mommas had it all and it was on fire.  Ribs, greens, macaroni and cheese, sweet potatoes, pinto beans, fried chicken, baked chicken, chicken and dumplins, cabbage, dirty rice, black eyed peas, and on and on.  This place gets a 2 Chicas thumbs up, snap, and tongue slap."You go Big Momma" in my huskiest voice.

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