Death Valley National Park

  Death Valley is the lowest, driest, and hottest spot in the US. It’s stark beauty can be explored by driving the paved roadways, by venturing into the wilderness along dirt roads or by walking the many trails. All of this is best done in the winter months when the daytime temperature is still below 90 degrees.  Heavy rainfall last autumn has resulted in a spectacular spring “super bloom”  and the park is filled with visitors. The rain also caused flooding, damaging roads and structures so some areas are closed to visitors.
        
  The park is not very wheelchair accessible but a lot can be seen by just driving along the the roads. We were hindered a bit more by  restrictions on some of the side trips. We fit the length limits but some roads also had restrictions on RVs. We did take Artist Drive which is a short loop through a very colorful volcanic and sedimentary rock. RVs 25’ and under are allowed.

  We also took the short dirt road to check out the strange formations at Devils Golf Course. The parking area is large enough for RVs.
         
   A few short trails are accessible – the boardwalk and salt flats at Badwater Basin (RV parking spaces) and the the boardwalk of the Salt Creek Interpretive Trail. (large lot).


  The Harmony Borax Works Interpretive Trail is paved but the pavement is in bad condition and the trail has up and down grades. Wheelchair users may need to have help. The parking lot is small but usually doesn’t fill.
        
Zabriskie Point Overlook is accessed by a very steep paved trail. Wheelchair users will need to have an energetic helper. Room for RVs to park.
        

  The visitor center is accessible and has long RV parking spaces.
        
We stayed at three different campgrounds, Sunset and Texas Springs, both near Furnace Creek, and Stovepipe Wells on our way out of the park.

  Sunset is just a gravel lot but it never fills because additional sections are opened at needed. Texas Springs is a bit more scenic but the sites are still close together and there isn’t any privacy. We didn’t check the accessible sites at Sunset. The accessible sites at Texas Springs are not much different than the rest of the sites. The fire rings have high sides and the sites are close to the restrooms. No one hesitated about taking the sites so even though they’re marked with a blue wheelchair they get snatched up early in the day.


  Stovepipe Wells is another gravel parking lot. It doesn’t appear to ever get filled.

Park     36.46144, -116.86694

Pahrump, Nevada Boondocking

  Pahrump is a small desert town surrounded by BLM land. Mild winters and easy access to services makes it a popular spot for boondockers but a tolerant attitude towards living on public land has resulted in a number decrepit RVs and shelters cobbled together from scrap material serving as semi permanent dwellings. There’s also a disturbing amount of trash thrown in the washes. However by just driving a mile or so from the center of town it’s possible to boondock on pristine desert land overlooking the town with mountain views in all directions. The easiest way to access the BLM land is to drive east on Basin Ave. The pavement ends at a four way intersection. Everything east of Justin Lane is BLM land and opened to 14 days of dispersed camping.
BLM     36.21514, -115.95841

Pahrump Valley Museum

    The museum consists of a large room with display cases containing items donated by local residents (very little historic information is provided), another room with displays and videos about the proposed nuclear waste storage facility in Yucca Mountain and an outside area with historic buildings and old equipment. The dead giant once held a sign advertising a manufactured home business.
        
  The museum is accessible but some of the video push buttons in the Yucca Mountain display are hard to reach. The outdoor displays are not accessible due to rough terrain. The historic buildings were all locked. None of them have ramps.

  RVs will fit in the lot if parked across the spaces.
  Museum     36.21936, -116.00764

Gold Town Casino

  The parking lot at Gold Town Casino isn’t very big but there’s still enough room for RVs, even large class As.

  This way just a quick overnight stop so we didn’t go into the casino. 
Casino    36.20861, -115.98253

Sandy Valley Road Boondocking

  This beautiful, peaceful boondocking spot is less than 35 miles from the crowds and noise of Las Vegas. It’s located in a flat valley with Joshua trees and mountains in all directions. Head west on Route 160 and look for the left turn onto Spring Valley Road about 5 miles past the little town of Mountain Springs.  Spring Valley Road is a well maintained, although a bit bumpy, gravel road suitable for any RV. Boondocking spots are located along the road almost as soon as you turn off of Route 160 but some of them have been used as dumping grounds. We drove in about a mile before turning left again into a little loop with about 4 or 5 good camping spots.

  There are signs of ATV usage and target practice so this area may be busy on weekends. We had it all to ourselves on a Wednesday night but mid-morning a couple of guys came to target practice, shooting into the hills  at the base of the mountains.  They left after a hour or so and all was quiet again. Boondock
35.9935, -115.60662

Shelby Museum

  Carroll Shelby started racing cars in the 1950s and over his short career set 16 U.S. and international speed records. When he was forced to quit racing in 1960 due to heart problems he started building race cars. His first cars used a British AC Ace two-seater roadster that had a hand-built body with a steel tube frame, and aluminum body panels. Shelby installed a high performance Ford V-8 and named the car Cobra Mk1. About 1,000 Cobras were produced. From 1965-1968 Shelby used Ford Mustangs as his base for the Shelby Mustang GT350. Shelby America still modifies customer supplied Mustangs and Ford F-150s for a modest charge of $45,000 – $55,000. :-D  Shelby keeps all of the take-off parts.
        
The museum includes about 30 Shelby cars, a few story panels with the history of Carroll Shelby and the cars, a viewing window that looks out on the garage, and a large gift shop. Free tours are given twice a day.

  The museum is accessible.

  The parking lot is large enough for RVs but may be crowded during tour times. Free on-street parking is also available.
 Museum    36.07213, -115.17926

Hoover Dam Casino

  RV and truck parking is located in a gravel lot across US 93 from the casino. Most trucks stay on the lower level so the upper level is quieter. Parking in the paved lots on either side of the casino may also be allowed.

  This is a good location for visiting Hoover Dam and Lake Mead. A short paved trail that leads to the Historic Railroad Hiking Trail starts at the edge of the western parking lot.
Casino      36.00821, -114.78543

Cirque du Soliel Mystere

        
  Mystere, the original Cirque du Soliel show, has been performing at the Treasure Island Casino since 1993. Since we’ve never seen a Cirque du Soliel show this one seemed to be the best choice from the eight  possibilities. We weren’t disappointed! The show is an amazing display of acrobatics and strength with a bit of comedy between set changes.

  We’ve found that it’s easier to go directly to the show box office to buy tickets for wheelchair accessible seating rather than trying to figure out ticketing and pricing on the internet.  Wheelchair seating is often limited to one area of the theater which means that no matter what ticket price level you chose you will be seated in the only available seating. This is exactly what happened at Mystere. We bought the least expensive seats but were seated in the most expensive section - the worst seats in the best section but still very good seats - eight rows from the stage and bit off center.
 Mystere      36.124601, -115.170713

Southern Nevada Museum of Fine Art

 CLOSED  We’ve been seeking out the lesser known and little visited sights in Las Vegas. This one was a very pleasant surprise. It’s on the second floor of the Neonopolis mall which is tucked into a corner at the east end of the Fremont Street Experience and is easy to overlook. The museum features changing exhibits of contemporay art. The current exhibit has a wide variety of styles and mediums - beautiful and interesting work but since photography is not permitted all I could get is a photo of the exterior.

  The museum is accessible.

   We’re staying at Main Street Station RV park, within walking distance of the Fremont Street Experience. The casino also has a large parking lot where RVs may be parked for the day.
 Museum          36.17005, -115.1411

Pinball Hall of Fame

   Tim Arnold, who operated a game arcade in Michigan in the 1970s and 80s, is the sole owner of this collection of over 200 pinball and arcade games. A few go back to the 1950s but most are from the 60s, 70s and 80s. All of the games work and cost between $.25 to $1.00 per play. This is a non-profit operation with all money after expenses donated to the Salvation Army. 

  The arcade is accessible. They have a fun wheelchair parking symbol painted in the parking spot. :-)
                     
The parking lot is large enough for RVs.
   Hall of Fame     36.10116, -115.13032