Hi. My name is Colt. I am five years old. This is the story of a Las Vegas vacation that I am taking with my dad. He is writing most of this down for me because I will not be very good at reading and writing by myself until next year. My mom decided to go to England for the London marathon with my Aunt Shelly this year. My dad says mid April can be cold and wet in London and the people there eat weird stuff, so we are going to the American desert instead. That happens more often than not in our family. In June, my mom went to Curacao (hot and sticky) and my dad and I went to Colorado. In November, my mom went to North Carolina (cold and windy) and my dad took me to the Bahamas.

Dad, Mom and Me

Me in the Bahamas

When we go camping in Florida, we take our Ford van. It is actually a motor home with a bed, sink, toilet, microwave oven and air conditioners. I like it better when we take the tent, but we only get to do that if we are going really far away. This is how I describe camping to my friends at school, "First you get on an airplane. Then you get on another airplane. Then you rent a car and go somewhere. Then you pitch the tent…". The desert is far enough away from where we live to leave the Ford van and take the tent.

Prickly Pear Cactus

Last year in Colorado, I learned about cactus. If you are climbing up a hill and start to slip, don’t grab a cactus! I don’t like cactus. I have also been learning about rattlesnakes. I used to think the end with the buzzer on it could hurt you. Everybody tells me it’s the other end you have to watch out for. I think I’ll just play it safe and stay away from both ends.

Western Diamondback Rattlesnake

We went to the Outdoor World store in Fort Lauderdale. I bought a two piece fishing rod that we can put in the duffel bag with all our other camping gear. I also bought a flashlight shaped like a fish and a package of camping food. When we got home, my dad prepared the camping food for me. It was something like Lipton noodle soup without the cup. My dad asked me if I could stand to eat it when we went camping in the desert. I said it was OK, but I would rather sit down. My mom thought that was funny.

I got my dad to mark our departure date on the calendar. At the end of each day, I get to put an "X" through that day on the calendar and count the days left until the start of our vacation.

On the Plane

The trip from Florida to the Las Vagas was really long. The pilot said he was taking us over Mexico to stay away from a big storm over Texas. That added an extra hour to our travel time.

As soon as we landed, I knew we were in the desert because I saw a big pyramid with a mummy in front of it. I told my dad that I wanted to go there. He said OK. I got to throw coins into a fountain inside the pyramid.

Luxor Hotel

Circus Circus

We went down the street to the circus. I got to play on a bunch of fun rides and eat lunch inside the Adventuredome. After lunch, we checked into our hotel and went for a walk. We got to see a talking statue at Caesar's Palace and a pirate show at Treasure Island.

At the grocery store, I got to ride in the shopping cart one last time bacause my foot still hurt from too much walking. I saw a McDonald's with a really neat playground on the way to Hoover Dam and asked my dad to stop. He said we needed to get to the boat by 8:00, but to remind him on the way back. We drove across Hoover Dam to Willow Beach Marina and I ate donuts while my dad rented the boat. Once on the lake, I tried fishing for a little while, but decided that exploring would be more fun.

Lake Mohave

Ringbolt Hot Springs

Our first stop was Ringbolt Hot Springs. We hiked up a canyon, climbed a ladder and got to go swimming. On the way back to the boat we saw two roadrunners. (Beep beep!) Our next stop was Boy Scout Hot Springs on the other side of the river. The Boy Scouts were there and helped us dock our boat. I got stuck climbing up the canyon and had to get my dad to help me down.

We camped at an "island". My dad called it a "box canyon" because it only had water on one side, but I think anywhere you can only get to with a boat is an island. While my dad was setting up the tent and cooking steaks, I got stuck climbing the walls twice.

Up the Hill

Big Rock

Climbing the Wall

Saline Valley

We took the boat back to the marina and drove back across Hoover Dam. I got my dad to stop at the McDonald's, but they were cleaning the playground. We went to Bonnie Springs Ranch where they had a gunfight and hanging (just a show - nobody really died). That afternoon we drove out to Saline Valley to camp by the springs.

My Canteen

We stayed at Saline Valley most of the day and then drove to the foothills of the Sierra mountains to camp for the night. There we ate spaghetti and climbed rocks.

Dad! Help!

Snow in the Sierras

After breakfast, we climbed up to get some pictures of the snow capped peaks. I wanted to go play in the snow, but they were farther away than they looked. While crossing the Inyo mountains, I blew lunch and my dad almost hit a cow.

On the way back to Las Vegas, we stopped to swim in fish lake. That's where I learned that carp don't eat people. Back at Las Vegas, we played at the Sega Gameworks and rode the train at the MGM.

Jack

Back to school.