Travel Story: Burying bodies in Las Vegas
As we walk into the artificially lit casinos, the oxygen rich atmosphere is electric, acrid smoke hangs in the air. One coin at a time, bleary eyed zombies feed the casinos hunger, the excitement from those who have just arrived mixes with the drunken misery of those who have lost it all. Ladies of the night teeter around on sky high heels, arm in arm with aged high rollers, this is Sin City and anything goes. If you have not been to Vegas, it is a terrible place, and that is the reason you must go!
But we are not here to take our chances against the unfair odds, we are here to ride bikes, and it is time to hit the road. As we wind out of the city, the glitz and wealth, so vibrant in the centre, is replaced with a worn and tired patina, colours faded against the oppressive sun. Million dollar dream homes of those who found a quick fortune now stand vacant after the casino finally retook it all. Dormant air conditioning units rust away as wind-blown sand spills over the marble floors.
As we reach the city limits we pass a few last chance casinos, discount prices tempt those with just a few dollars left to spend. Before this trip, I had always thought that Vegas would be flat, with desert stretching out to the horizon, but I could not have been more wrong. Rugged mountains dominate the skyline, towering above the city, from our distant vantage point the city looks like a shiny jewel in a featureless moonscape.
We arrive at our destination, a trail network high above Boulder City, and roll to a stop. As we unload the heat is oppressive, dust kicks up from our shoes and with no shade or shelter even the ground smells scorched. Small insects and basking lizards scuttle for safety as we climb up the hot road, soft tyres dragging on the burning ground. In contrast to the glitz and deceit of Vegas, the desert is a brutally honest place, an openly inhospitable land where wildness rises from the very earth. Razor sharp rocks wait for those who get it wrong, and rattlesnakes hide under rocks for those who dare to stray off the beaten path. There’s no long list of rules and protocol posted on sites like https://www.bestuscasinos.org/legal/florida/ that you are expected to of read and understood. No the desert needs your instincts to be intact and some real time attention.
As we roll from the road, the speed increases and brings a welcome hot breeze, but caution is needed for round every turn hides a sharp boulder or fierce section of trail. The surface is baked hard and super fast, a perfect race track. Dual compound tyres fight for traction on the shale and rock, while the trail kicks through the spire filled crags.
As we charge round a blind corner, we are stopped in our tracks as in front of us the desert falls away to nothing, no towns, no buildings, just rock, scrub and sun scorched earth as far as the eye can see. As the skin on my forearms prickles in the heat, I look over the desolate land. It is at once amazing, inspirational and scary as hell. You could bury a body out here and totally get away with it.
After a tough day of riding, we walk back though the artificial light of the casino floor, the cold air stings our sunburnt faces. We watch as the next wave of excited, optimistic gamblers fills the halls, maybe I should try a few dollars in the slots, ”Nah. I would rather try my luck with the rattlesnakes”.
Words Trev Worsey Photos: Trev Worsey/Robin Schmitt
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