Around Boulder City

We've been out doing things every day, I haven't blogged about them and now I'm afraid I'll forget something.    Bear with me.

One afternoon we went to the Hoover Dam.  Dave expressed interest in taking the tour and we wanted to check the area out first.

We encountered huge crowds of people, speaking many languages.  We drove over the dam, dodging tourists stepping blindly out into the lanes of traffic to get the perfect photo, and found a parking place high above the dam.   Closer lots charge $10 for the privilege.

I was content to view the dam from the back, Dave walked down and over it for a birds eye view.

Since I had the camera and the phone, we have no pictures from the top or over the side.    You'll have to read someone's blog who is braver than I am to see those kinds of shots.

After walking through the crowds on the dam, Dave decided he wasn't all that interested in taking the tour after all so we continued with our day.

The small historic area of Boulder City is a charming place.   Lovely little bungalows and well tended green community parks.

One of the grassy parks is right up against the mountains and a pretty large herd of bighorn sheep come down in the afternoon to enjoy the beautiful clover lawns.

 
Some doze in the shade, some graze and some come seeking companionship.

watch out young lady, he's spotted you.....

oh baby baby

Most of the commercial buildings in the "downtown" area are geared toward tourists, as you would expect.   The ones that aren't are filled with "memorabilia",  antiques and other junque.    There is a very new and complete airport on the south part of the city.    We noticed a large fleet of sightseeing planes and helicopters.

Whenever we find ourselves in a new area we inevitably end up at their airport and the nearest body of water.

In our wanderings we came across what looked like a very new park, or at least a new section of the Clark County Wetland's Park.    The sound of water running in the middle of the desert is always a magnet for us.

We saw a number of ducks, the always present coots,  a great blue heron, cormorants, yellow rumped warblers, swallows and more as we drove and walked along the waterway.   Beautiful, and just minutes from the glitz of the Las Vegas strip.

The last few days we've been sightseeing a little more aggressively.   Yesterday we drove north to the Valley of Fire State Park.   I have too many pictures for this post so I'll tease you with one and do another blog later.

And, today we took a great Jeep drive along the Crane's Nest wash (NP61) and then a beautiful hike down to Lake Mohave (aka the Colorado River) with Lewis.   Here is a picture to hold you til I get another blog post out.