Day 15: Breakfast, Cold Table Games, and Hot Sports Book.

Today was a much more relaxed Vegas day, which basically means we only lost track of time twice instead of six times.

We took it easy in the morning, then eventually wandered off to breakfast around lunchtime, because apparently Vegas operates on its own time zone where breakfast at noon is completely acceptable behavior.

After that, we headed downtown to the casinos. The gambling gods finally threw me a small bone when I hit four 4’s on the poker machine. It wasn’t exactly “buy a private island” money, but it was enough to briefly make me feel a bit better before the table games reminded me who was really in charge.

The tables, unfortunately, were about as friendly as airport security.

Sports betting, however, was a different story. Vegas covered the ½ goal and won by one goal, and OKC covered the 6½ points by winning by 13. For one glorious evening, my picks were smarter than my Pai Gow decisions.

Dinner was excellent, and afterward it was back to the hotel to finally get some sleep.

The funny thing about Vegas is you can feel completely exhausted, look at the clock, and realize people back home have been asleep for many hours. On Eastern Time, it is 1:00 in the morning. My body currently has no idea what state it’s in, what time zone it’s in, or whether it should be asleep or ordering dinner.

Day 14: Crazy Fremont Street Sights, Meditation, and the New York Knicks Steamrolling the Cavs.

I walked around Fremont Street this morning and saw some truly unforgettable sights, and honestly, I wish my brain had an “unsee” button. There was a girl wearing only pasties, a very large man confidently rocking a bikini, Superman scrolling on his phone,  King Kong wandering around, and someone who looked suspiciously like Alice Cooper on a three day bender. 

Later, I checked out of the Golden Nugget and went to a group meeting where people talked about spiritual solutions. It was a nice balance after the visual chaos of Fremont Street. From there, I went to the Grace in the Desert Episcopal Church and did a walking meditation through their labyrinth. It was one of the nicest labyrinths I’ve ever walked. I try to seek these out whenever I have time, mostly because they are peaceful, calming, and usually contain far fewer people wearing bikinis they absolutely should not be wearing.

I had a great meditation and felt surprisingly centered for someone spending time in Las Vegas.

Later, I met up with my good friends John and Sue at the Planet Hollywood Casino, where we’re staying. We went out to dinner, watching the Knicks game and Canadians game, then headed back to the casino to continue watching the New York Knicks absolutely annihilate the Cleveland Cavaliers, 130 to 93. That made 11 wins in a row for the Knicks, and somewhere in New York, people were already planning the championship parade route.  However, we need 4 more wins.  We haven't been to the finals since 1999 and haven't won since 1973.  

We also watched the Canadiens lose in overtime to Carolina.

Tomorrow, we’ll probably head downtown again, but I will try to avoid all the crazy people. 

Day 13: Vegas - Walking With No Elevation Gains

Yesterday I gained another hour and officially arrived in Las Vegas on Pacific Time. That makes three time changes in less than a week. At this point my internal clock has completely given up and is just guessing.

Another thing I noticed immediately when I got here, yesterday the temperatures were almost 100 degrees. Today it only got to 95. Apparently in Vegas that qualifies as “cooler weather.” 😎 

I actually got a great night of sleep last night, almost 10 hours. Honestly, after all the driving, hiking, walking, climbing, and pretending I was outdoorsy in Utah, my body probably thought I had entered a medically induced coma.

Today was intentionally a very relaxing day, and honestly, it was needed.

I spent most of the morning laying around, relaxing, showering, and enjoying the fact that there were no cliffs, narrow hiking trails, or giant rocks requiring me to climb over them. 

Eventually I wandered downstairs and did a little gambling, mostly playing open hand pai gow. I lost a little bit, but not too bad. In Vegas, losing slowly somehow counts as a victory.

After that I grabbed some lunch, walked around for a while, and then settled in to play Let It Ride, one of my favorite games in Vegas. I ended up playing for about three and a half hours and actually won a little bit.

I listened to some bands for a while, wandered through the casino a bit more, and just enjoyed not having to wake up at sunrise to fight 600 hikers for a shuttle bus.

Later on I grabbed some dinner and brought it back to my room because apparently I have officially reached the age where “bringing food back to the room and relaxing” sounds more exciting than partying in Vegas until 3:00 a.m. I cannot even imagine doing the things I did in my twenties today. 

Honestly though, after all the driving, running around, and hiking through Utah, a day off was definitely not a bad thing. My body needed a recovery day. Even my sneakers looked tired.

Tomorrow should be fun because my good friends John and Sue arrive from Arizona. So tonight is one final peaceful evening before the next chapter of the adventure begins.

Day 12: Miracles, Hiking, More Red Rocks and Canyons, and Resting in Vegas.

A miracle happened this morning, I got up at 5:30 a.m. to get to the Zion Canyon Visitor Center before 7:00. Honestly, if you know me, this may be the most shocking event of the entire trip.

I got there around 6:45, and apparently every other human being on Earth had the exact same idea. There had to be 500 or 600 people already in line for the first shuttle buses. The craziest part was the line never seemed to get shorter. Every time I looked back, it somehow looked longer, like a Disney ride for people who enjoy sore knees and dehydration.

The shuttle system itself was impressive though. Buses just kept rolling in nonstop. It reminded me of my old roller coaster park strategy. Back in the day, the key was always to go to the biggest rides first, then work your way back toward the front of the park. Same thing at Disney, go straight to the back and work in reverse while everyone else crowds the entrance.

So naturally, I stayed on the shuttle all the way to the end at the Temple of Sinawava. Apparently everyone else had the exact same brilliant strategy because most of the bus stayed on too.

I walked the Riverside Walk Trail, which was beautiful, but absolutely packed with people. It was supposed to be about 2.2 miles with some inclines and narrow sections. At the end, the trail turns into water and a lot of people continued hiking through the river. I decided that was the universe telling me, “You’ve done enough this trail, we don't need to be on the news as a drowning victim!” So I turned around and headed back before I ended up floating toward Vegas.

Ironically, after leaving the Sinawava area, the rest of the shuttle stops heading back down were not even that crowded. So my carefully crafted “theme park expert strategy” worked.  Somewhere Walt Disney himself was probably applauding. 😎

One thing I noticed immediately, about 98% of the people hiking looked under 40, and at least 60% looked under 25. When I was 25 years old, there was absolutely no chance I was voluntarily waking up at 5:30 a.m. to hike through rivers and climb rocks. At 25, my idea of exercise was spending by elbow at tossing down Johnnie Walker Black on the rocks. 😎

I also took the trail from The Grotto to Zion Lodge. Most of it was easy and quick, except for one section with uneven rocks where you had to climb up and down awkwardly like a mountain goat with back problems.

At one point I slipped a little bit, and while trying to save my phone, because apparently the phone’s safety became my number one priority, I went down farther than I expected. It was mildly embarrassing because a lady and her daughter stopped and asked if I was okay and wanted to stay with me for a bit. I told them I was fine, brushed off my pride, and continued on like nothing happened. Internally, however, my body filed several complaints. Then I got to see a huge turkey on that trail. 

The views throughout Zion were unbelievable. Temple of Sinawava, Big Bend, Weeping Rock, The Grotto, Zion Lodge, Court of the Patriarchs, Canyon Junction, the history museum, and even the visitor center all had stunning scenery. Everywhere you looked there were towering cliffs and giant rock formations. 

By the end of the day I was completely exhausted, but it was a great day. I was up way too early though. It is now around 7:00 p.m. in Las Vegas, and instead of going out and doing Vegas things, I am seriously considering going to sleep soon. Apparently hiking Zion transforms you into somebody’s grandfather. I could have did the majority of the crowds grandfather. 

One funny moment happened after I finished hiking from The Grotto to Zion Lodge, besides going down. I stopped to get some food, grabbed a water, look at the menu, and ordered a wrap with hummus. The woman behind the counter told me they were not serving lunch yet. I thought that seemed strange until I realized it was only 10:30 in the morning. So instead of lunch, I ended up eating breakfast. 

The drive to Vegas was actually pretty easy. Traffic has honestly not been too terrible since leaving New York City, which still feels shocking to me.

For now, I am planning to relax, hit the pool tomorrow, maybe do a little gambling, and possibly catch a show. I looked into hockey tickets, but after Vegas won the last two games, ticket prices skyrocketed faster than my heart rate climbing those Zion trails.

One final observation, the weather here is hot as hell. It feels exactly like Florida in August, except with slot machines everywhere.