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| Death Valley camp, morning, October 23, 2016 |
On October 23, 2016, I had the strangest end to a long-distance walk I've ever experienced. It was the last day of a month-long walk from Yosemite Valley to Death Valley in California. I woke up in the wilderness with mountains behind me, desert in front of me. No sign of humanity. I went to sleep in a hotel room in downtown Las Vegas. No mountains. No desert. Just the bright, noisy city.
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| Hotel corridor, Las Vegas, evening, October 23, 2016 |
Las Vegas felt surreal, an aberration. The real world was mountains, deserts, trees, rivers, lakes, wildlife. Las Vegas was bright lights, crammed-together tall buildings, traffic, and endless advertisements for casinos and shows. What strange reality was this?
I wandered into the Grand Hotel where I'd booked a room. To reach it I had to walk through a vast hall of slot machines. In my room a huge television offfere money off the first few bets and told me I could spend my time in Las Vegas gambling without ever leaving my room. That's why the room in this luxurious hotel was so cheap. Money came from accommodation was to lure you in.
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| My hotel. |
Ignoring the gambling lures (I don't gamble so it wasn't hard) I headed out for something I did need: a meal. The hotel didn't offer this. Why eat when you could bet? Outside it was pouring with rain, something I was told never happens here. I wore my waterproof jacket, the first time it had come out of my pack since I set off on the walk. At least there was something natural here. Rain.
The year after the walk I wrote a piece about it for The Great Outdoors magazine which is available here.
I also wrote a piece on the gear I used.
To cope with the strange unreality of Las Vegas my mind switched into detached observer mode. I was not part of this world, I was here simply to watch, to experience a place I never intended visiting again.
I posted some commentary and some different still pictures on my YouTube channel.
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