I live to chase adventure…which is why when my friend told me he was celebrating his birthday in Las Vegas and wondered if I could drive up, I instantly said “yes”.
Of course, that was before I checked MapQuest and learned it would be a 9.5 hour drive. But whatever. It’s Vegas, Baby! And I’m driving there!!
Yes, I admit that while I do love Sin City, I was more psyched about the drive. You see, driving through the Mojave Desert with the wind whipping through my hair for a Vegas weekend is one of the things on my bucket list.
So at 8 a.m. on Saturday, I tossed a couple of cans of Red Bull and about 6 bottles of water in the car and off I went. It was actually quite liberating packing all these liquids as when I normally fly to Vegas, I always have to go liquid free (I try to never check luggage. In fact, I can live out of a carry-on for a week – just ask my friends who went with me to Hawaii last year).
WATCH OUT...THE DESERT IS A GAS GUZZLER
Anyways, if you ever decide to drive from Sacramento to Las Vegas, let me tell the trip over to Bakersfield is b-o-r-i-n-g. I mean dead boring. There was nothing to see, but I also had a sucky iTunes mix that wasn’t really happening either.
But once you pass Bakersfield, it gets kind of cool – because that’s when you hit the Mojave Desert...and it's gorgeous. The mountains are spectacular and the little bush-like trees add enough variety to keep it interesting. I'll just give you a word of warning: If you hit Bakersfield and only have a little bit of gas left in the tank, fill up. I didn't and literally coasted down the mountain on fumes.
No really. It hardly took any gas to cut across the flat parts of California, but as soon as I started the drive up the mountains, the gas drained out of my tank like crazy. The warning light went on when I was about 20 miles up the mountain with another 30 to go until I reached the summit.
Yes, I panicked - just a bit.
I turned off the AC, opened the window, detoured off the highway in the direction of the nearest gas station --which was in the middle of nowhere and 45 degrees in the opposite direction. You know how they say you should sometimes take the road less travelled? Well, at that moment I was on THAT road -- and I was the only person on it. There were no cars or people in any direction...and let me tell you that you can see pretty far in the desert.
With my car flashing it's warning at me, I prayed I would make it to the little town on the Indian reserve in time -- or at least close enough that I could walk in my flipflops. Thankfully, it was mostly downhill and I was able to take my foot off the accerator for the last 16 miles and roll into town. Yes, I counted them.
After that, I filled up everytime I made a pit stop.
VEGAS REALLY IS IN THE MIDDLE OF NO WHERE
You know when you fly into Sin City you can see the lights in the distance? Well, when you drive during the day it's not like that. It sometimes feels like you will never get there because all you see for hours and hours is beige dirt, beige mountains and sprinklings of plants, which I hear if I did this trip in June would be beige too.
Don't get me wrong. It's still beautiful and I would do the trip again in a heartbeat. But it's kind of like being in the first Star Wars where the sand people live. At any moment, I expected an army of creatures to arise from their camouflage and add some life to the area.
Of course, because I was going to Vegas, I imagined these creatures to be dressed as glitzy celebrity impersonators who would break out in some disco song -- but maybe that was iPod playing tricks on me. Nine hours in the car, with the windows open and the desert wind blowing at you can do that to a person.
Of course, because I was going to Vegas, I imagined these creatures to be dressed as glitzy celebrity impersonators who would break out in some disco song -- but maybe that was iPod playing tricks on me. Nine hours in the car, with the windows open and the desert wind blowing at you can do that to a person.
Anyways, even with all that desert and open road, Sin City is hidden. Not until you are about an hour away can you see any sign of it. But when you do...WOW!
After driving 9.5 hours, I quickly showered and washed the Mojave out of my hair and met up with my friends for a night on the strip. Less than 12 hours later, I was back on the road for the return trip.
Was it worth it? Heck, yes!!!
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