Vegas Baby, Yeah?

After many trips (20+ and counting), I've realized that you're either a Vegas person or you’re not. Theresa and I are definitely Vegas people! We love the ridiculousness of it all, the booze, the gambling, the unparalled people watching, and the plentiful outdoor activities that reside within an hour of downtown.

We recently headed out there to celebrate Theresa's birthday and, the flight out notwithstanding, had a blast. The flight brought up an interesting topic that Theresa and I debated over drinks: should very large people have to purchase an additional seat to accommodate their size? This came up because Theresa was seated next to a very large woman that I would guesstimate at between 400 and 500 pounds. She required an additional seatbelt to accommodate her size and liberally spilled over into Theresa's space, impacting her in-flight experience. During out discussion, I was somewhat torn between the rights of the large woman and the impacted passenger. I had seen her pass on the in-flight snacks so perhaps her size is due to some sort of glandular issue. This was when Theresa informed me that while I slept she pulled out a copious amount of Popeye’s chicken and quickly consumed it. So much for glandular issues! I’m still a little torn but I think the rights of the many outweigh the rights of the few.

Anyway, after a night of playing poker at the Flamingo, we headed to one of my favorite climbing areas, Mt. Charleston. For those who don’t know, Charleston is about 45 minutes northwest of Vegas and has several limestone climbing areas, all lying above 6000 feet. I think it’s one of the best summer destination areas in the US, offering lots of routes up to 4 pitches on excellent rock with no humidity. Our destination was Robber’s Roost, an area that I hadn’t been to before with about 50 routes. The high in downtown was 97 but, at 8000+ feet, we got quite chilly at the Roost even in sweatshirts. Dale and his wife Tiffany(?), Vegas locals whom I met several years ago, happened to be there in down coats and seemed more comfortable than we were. I’m always amazed when climbing at Charleston that we never run into anyone but locals, despite it being a well known area in a super-touristy city. Yes Charleston has some chipped holds but so does Maple and it’s overrun with people. Perhaps it’s the difficult climbing style and solid grades that keep it off the summer road trip map. Another option is that many climbers aren’t “Vegas people”. They dislike the din and visual overstimulation of the strip and think the whole area is like that. I’m curious to hear the thoughts of others about this and to hear what people who have actually climbed at Charleston thought of the place.

That night I took Theresa out to dinner at Gallagher’s Steakhouse at the New York New York. She’s a big fan of steak and Gallagher’s features dry aged beef which can be hard to find. Our meal was excellent, starting with chilled king crab, moving on to our entree of steak with creamed spinach. The creamed spinach was a little too creamy, not in the same league as the creamed spinach at Hal’s in Atlanta. The highlight of the meal, at least for me, was dessert. We shared a molten chocolate cake that has to be one of the top five things I’ve ever eaten. Simple, rich and delicious and served with a small dollop of ice cream and a large mound of homemade whipped cream. We were also impressed by their house wine, a Washington winery named 14 Hands that produces an excellent Merlot.

The next day found us at the pool, enjoying perhaps the last chance to swim before the chill of winter sets in. That night was a more casual evening with a quick dinner with a stop at Max Brenner’s Chocolate by the Bald Man at Caesar’s to try his most intriguing chocolate pizza. Not the greatest thing I’ve ever eaten although still very tasty and quite different. The menu is filled with interesting options so we’ll definitely be back. Our flight home was, fortunately, uneventful and now we’re back at the grindstone.