We are staying at the Hampton Inn in Kingman. They do not levy a (refundable) charge in case you smoke or vape in your room. Currently there is a citizen with a bull horn down on the street somewhere. Jim thinks he's talking about Palestine and Israel, but we can't hear him well enough to determine which side he's on. It's an interesting choice of activity in a place that is as red as this one is.
We read on Restoration Cowboy that US93 from Las Vegas to Kingman was so rough that the hinges on their toy hauler were broken. Normally we would go that way, but today we took US95 out of Las Vegas, down to NV163 and then to AZ68E to US93 just shy of Kingman. That route was way more better. The great percentage was four divided lanes (not limited access) and the road surface was good. For future reference here is a map snippet. It's a little bit longer than US93, but the roads are good. They did get a little lumpy just past Golden Valley, but not too bad. Once we hit US93 the road surface went to heck in a hand basket.
This is south of Ely. It's scenic.
We stopped in Pioche, NV for gas. It's a former mining town built on the side of a hill. It reminds me of Jerome, but without the tourists. I was driving after leaving the gas station so I failed to get a photo of the house covered in Trump flags and posters, and an out building with a banner proclaiming "No More Bullshit." It's a red part of the state. This is the downtown. There is a good wiki, which can be found here.
A mine head from back in the day. Silver was mined there. There was money to be made in mining.
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Heading further south. This and the Joshua Trees were on US93 out of Ely, before we hit Las Vegas.
These are Joshua Trees. This batch looked really happy, there were many baby trees, so I guess life has been good to them.
Now we are on NV163, south of Las Vegas. It's a pretty drive. There is a fair amount of up down on NV163 as well as AZ68E.
So, how is the Hampton Inn? It's ok. It's old, and hasn't had much done to the rooms. The beds are not great, not terrible. They could be better. There is too much scent in the rooms, it's irritating my eyes. There is parking available for vehicles towing trailers, that's why we're here, for the parking lot. The free internet is really slow, uploading a photo takes time. We would probably come back here if we do this route again.
That's it! That's all I have to say about today.
Just to let you know, I thought Highway 93 from Kingman down to Phoenix was as bad as from Vegas to Kingman. I figure they aren't putting any money into it because they want to build that interstate. If you do take 93 stay in the left lane as much as you can. It's a little better.
ReplyDeleteI spent a lit of time in Pioche and Caliente when I was In my 20s. Had a wonderful friend there.
Thanks for that. We may be done with Kingman completely. There has to be a better route, although I don't know what that might be.
DeleteThe photos of the rock formations are incredible. Wishing you continued safe travels!
ReplyDeletewe took a month long driving vacation a couple of decades ago, drove up to Portland for my niece's wedding and then back south through Nevada and Utah, Arizona and New Mexico and back to Texas. we would always head into whatever town and look for a mom and pop motel as opposed to staying at a chain on the highway. we always had good luck except for one time it was late and the place didn't have any no smoking rooms available and the one we stayed in smelled so horrible of cigarette smoke I couldn't sleep, didn't even want to put my head on the pillow.
ReplyDeleteWe avoid Kingman altogether. The route we take is a bit longer, going through Lake Havasu City, but easier/safer driving and nicer scenery! It's all trial and error I guess and what you, personally, can tolerate!
ReplyDeleteIt's really too bad that some of the most Quaint Small Towns are so Red and filled with Lunatic Fringe Cult Followers, isn't it? Kingman, my Brother lived there for a Minute, Hated it, moved to Cali. *Ha ha ha*
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