Monday, January 2, 2017

Endorphin adventures road trip to Vegas/Red Rock Canyon

So here's another Endorphin Adventures, or Squirrel and Studley tale. These two guys met in 1989 and over those 27 years, Studley has trekked halfway around the world, from Australia, to visit Squirrel seven times now...but who's counting. Each time we simply just catch up, where we left off, a few years back; it's as easy as that. Even if it's in a different country. 

This time I flew to Calgary, where Squirrel lives now and we had a road trip down to Vegas. Twenty hours driving, gave us a chance to catch up and bring us up to speed with each others lives. As soon as we hit Vegas, we leapt out of the van and launched into a little hike to loosen up the legs, we didn't waste any time. Most of our hiking was in Red Rock Canyon, just out of Vegas. Other hikes were down near Lake Mead and hot springs near the Colorado river. 

Squirrel planned the whole thing, I simply just followed. He is a master of the plan and keeps a mean list, in his pocket, at all times. I am very lucky to have a friend like him. I am also fit enough to keep up with him, which helps immensely. Every day was planned to perfection and he knows Vegas like the back of a dealer's hand.

I feel there is no need to comment on each photo, on this blog entry; a picture really does paint a thousand words. We are simply hiking/scrambling to the top of a mountain each time. We park the van, walk through beautiful desert, through beautiful canyons, up a wash, over a rock fall, and climb over bigger rocks, until we get to the top. It's as simple as that. But you need to look how much fun we are having, hiking, scrambling and wriggling through little cracks in rocks or shimmying up bigger cracks or pulling ourselves up ropes on trickier bits.  

Check out the beautiful desert scenery; the rich colours of the rocks and the hardy vegetation. You can tell that we are happy just being a part of it, there was something magical about the colour of the rock; it calmed you, yet inspired you at the same time. Our hikes took longer than the hiking notes in a book suggested. It was nothing to do with us being in our fifties, we just stopped and admired the scenery and took a gazillion photos, which added an extra hour each way. I'm happy to race the authors of these hiking books up the mountains on another occasion, if a fast time is important. 

So these photos show ten days of good clean, healthy fun, shared by two great mates, in a great location.  We hope that other people can experience something as good as we did. We both sincerely apologise to the gambling state of Nevada for not spending/losing and average of $534 per person in a casino. We did eat in some lovely restaurants in the casinos, so hopefully that will count. 

So until next time my friends- where Squirrel said he is coming over to Australia in a few years time. We can't wait.

Cheers

Studley and Squirrel

Keeping Red Rock clean

???


Looks like Studley made it to the top of the spire in the previous photo.

Looks steeper than it is.....


Where's that rope?

Pine box drop....



Arizona Hot springs....on the way down to the Colorado River


Spirit Mountain...Near Laughlin


Magic Mountain




Contrails over Vegas

Grey Cap Peak





Piazza San Marco...in the Venetian

On top of the Muffin


Nature's custom made sofa



Moon rise in the Bellagio



Studley missing Lib





Gunsight notch peak (can you see Vegas under Studley?)

Home of the massive Burrito.  This is now in place of the the Pizza joint I worked at many moons ago.





Studley above the Colorado

Left to right:  Encore, Trump, Wynn, Venetian, ?




















Red Cap Peak


Studley the master photographer.



Ceasar's front desk


One of the Red Stone Peaks summits by Lake Mead

Goldstrike Hot Springs

Studley leaving a trail of dust as he rides the scree.



Spirit mtn



This was astounding.  I hadn't seen any cirque shows and stayed away from youtube, so as not to spoil it.











Squirrel gets his kale fix on the drive down.

Back yard of the Air B and B we stayed at.

Ramon and Studley climbing at the Hanger back in Cowtown.


Studely trying to emmulate the form of the champs above him.

....this helped

Early Xmas before we left for Vegas

Rissotto...mmmm

The Coach and the Champ

You can also access some of Studley's creations on Sway by clicking on the links below.

https://sway.com/vG6Bqj4n6aa1e5pG

https://sway.com/dTcESyu52ZPLfV3U

https://sway.com/j9DG1dxnwdkOLfZB

 https://sway.com/BGm9l5sNjnPMdLKw