What's There To See on the Way to Laughlin from Las Vegas?

I know Laughlin is only 90 or so miles from Las Vegas, but my wife and I will be driving there with our pre-teen children and we could zip right through in an hour and a half, but we'd like to stop the give the kids some sightseeing if there's anything to see. Is there?

The drive to Laughlin from Las Vegas is pretty cool, no matter how old you are, with a number of sights to see along the way.

You head out of town on I-215/US95/US93 (or if you want to drive out on Boulder Highway, you can take in the excellent Clark County Heritage Museum). From either the freeway or Boulder Highway, you leave Henderson and climb Railroad Pass. Just past the top of the pass, US 93 and 95 separate; the new Interstate 11 bypasses Boulder City entirely, but US 93 heads east through Boulder City to Hoover Dam and on into Arizona. You can take a couple-hour side trip to Boulder City and the dam, or you can turn onto US 95, which turns due south on a nearly ruler-straight and nicely paved road for 75 miles till the turnoff to Laughlin, and spend your time exploring the barren desert country off of it.

The first 35 or so miles along US 95, you pass through Eldorado Valley, with the McCullough Range on the west and the Eldorado Range on the east. You’ll soon see the 90-acre El Dorado Energy Solar Expansion Project, one of North America's largest thin-film photovoltaic solar-power plants with its 167,400 solar panels that produce 10 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 1,500 houses. Nearby is a 480-megawatt gas-fired power plant. You can’t exactly visit the place; the road to it is "private." But at least you’ll know what it is.

In another few miles is the turnoff onto NV 165 to Nelson along a 12-mile paved road. Nelson was the first mining boomtown in southern Nevada; gold and silver were discovered in the hills here in the 1860s. It’s a partial ghost town with a handful of houses, a number of mining ruins (take care not to fall in open holes), a defunct Texaco station that’s a favorite for photographers, commercial locations, and Hollywood scouts; it was used in the movies 3000 Miles to Graceland and They Came To Rob Las Vegas. Last we heard, the Texaco station is still full of antiques and headquarters for the mining tours through a couple miles of tunnels in the hard-rock mines nearby. Definitely worth a side trip for the kids to run around.

A nicely paved road continues seven miles east down to the Colorado River and Nelson Landing, where there's a cliff people jump from, though last we heard it's pretty trashy, with people leaving their garbage there.

Back on US 95, it’s 25 miles to Searchlight, Nevada. Here you’ll find motels, two casinos (the Nugget and Terrible's Roadhouse), a parade of billboards for Laughlin, and the town’s historical museum and mining park, one long block off US 95 on NV Rt. 164. Searchlight has had a long and interesting history, even claiming several celebrities as original residents (including former U.S. Senator Harry Reid) and it’s all here in the displays, photographs, and "ghost narrations."

Continuing east along NV 164 (Cove Road), it’s another 14 miles down to Cottonwood Cove on Lake Mohave. On the way, notice the teddy-bear cholla forest -- an amazing sight worth the hour-or-so roundtrip. The Cove is a large facility in the Lake Mead Recreation Area, with a Park Service interpretive center and discovery trail, café, campground, picnic area, RV park, mini-mart and gas station, and marina, not to mention a nice beach on a big lake. All in all, this is a great secret getaway a little more than an hour from downtown Las Vegas.

Ten miles south is the tiny town of CalNevAri strung along the highway that grew up around an old World War II airstrip. A line of single-wide mobile homes and shade trees hug the road on both sides; in "town" are the main café/bar/post office and across the highway is the motel/RV park/minim art/laundromat.

A little south of CalNevAri is the turnoff for Christmas Tree Pass, a 17-mile graded dirt road that twists and turns through the Newberry Mountains northwest of Laughlin. It crosses a 3,500-pass, shadowed by Spirit Mountain, a 5,600-foot peak that was revered by the southern Paiute. See QoD 11/10/08 for the full description.

If you bypass Christmas Tree, the turnoff onto NV 163 to Laughlin is 10 miles south of CalNevAri; it’s 21 miles down to Laughlin through the rugged Newberry Mountains to the casino town.

Once in Laughlin, you can take in the casino strip, Davis Dam, and Katherine Landing and Bullhead City on the Arizona side of the Colorado River.

What's there to see on the way to Laughlin from Las Vegas?

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Comments

Kevin Rough Mar-24-2020

Go Slow in Searchlight

I've been to Laughlin about half a dozen times.  The speed limit in Searchlight is 25 mph.  This is after the speed limit has been 75 mph for the longest time.  I have never driven through Searchlight without seeing a car pulled over.  Every single time there is someone pulled over.  It must be a money maker for someone.

Gregory Mar-24-2020

Virtual trip

There are a few YouTube videos that show the drive from LV to Laughlin (and vice-versa).   Some are a few years old but I don't think much has changed other than the billboards.   This one is pretty good.  You might want to turn down the volume as the music is a bit annoying.  The poster points out highlights during the trip with text telling you where you are at given points.  This one is Laughlin to Vegas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJGKzxd5xDw&t=187s

[email protected] Mar-24-2020

Interesting

Interesting article.  I didn't know how much is down there.

I did ponder for a while on "Minim Art".  I thought it was a museum of modern minimalistic art which seemed like a strange feature for a laundromat, but then I realized you actually meant "Mini Mart"!  :-)

Larry Stone Mar-24-2020

name changes

i think the searchlight nugget changed its name to terrible's road house.  the other slot casino is in the gas station that also has a mcdonalds.

Reno Faoro Mar-24-2020

trip to LAUGHLIN

This article was excellent . Very informative . However , after many bus trips to LAUGHLIN , i'm happy i went but not on my list anymore . GO DEARBORN FORDSON .

Neal Gale Mar-24-2020

stop at the new bridge

another very worthwhile side trip :  head toward the Hoover dam , but stop at  new bridge . You can walk across the bridge for a great view of the dam .  Even better is the displays explaining all the engineering that went into the construction of the bridge .

Ray Mar-24-2020

And beyond Laughlin

I know the article is about the trip between Vegas and Laughlin, but once you're there, and as you said, across the river to Bullhead City, (side note, buy gas there, it's MUCH cheaper), go to Oatman. The burros in the street and the whole atmosphere there is a nice side trip

rodfan Mar-24-2020

Thanks!

We always rent a car when visiting. This was such a well described day trip! Sounds like we can head out early and still get back for my “pool time”.  I may be in my 50s, but my pool time is VERY important to me!  (Seattlelite, not a ton of sun here) Thanks again

Kevin Lewis Mar-24-2020

Speed traps are fun

The speed limit in Searchlight is 25.0000 mph. You will be ticketed for going 25.0001. Similar limits are in effect in Nevada "towns you have no choice but to pass through" such as Tonopah (notorious for the 25.0001 mph ticket) and Hawthorne. The latter nails you by posting three 45/35/25 mph speed limit signs out in the middle of nowhere, when you can see the town is still nine miles away. You say "WTF??" and then slam on the brakes, but it's too late--those red lights come on in your rearview mirror.

Waylaying passersby has been a primary source of revenue for small, isolated towns since ancient times, and Nevada's crap little burgs have it refined to a science.

Deke Castleman Mar-24-2020

This in via email from Jeannine

The side trip from the Laughlin destination  was great and we went all the way down to the river.   It was fun and interesting and well worth the time.  You're pretty isolated down there, too, so that's probably good, too, in these times.   Fairly steep grade, though.  Have fun!
Keep writing!  We like it and need it, especially right now.

Bumbug Mar-24-2020

Alternative route

There is an alternative route to Laughlin which is a little farther but also interesting. I usually take it back to Vegas from Laughlin just for variety, but you could do it going to Laughlin as well. You would take I15 south which would take you into California. Just before the CA line you'll see the Fashion Outlets of Las Vegas at Primm with various attractions (not all of which are still open). In that area, just over the California line, you'll find a store which sells lottery tickets. I've read that it sells more lottery tickets than any other store in the country. Keep south on I15 to Nipton Road and take that to the east. It takes you through some really interesting country and a couple of very small towns. When you cross the state line back into Nevada it becomes NV 164, Joshua Tree Highway, and has some very interesting desert scenery. It will take you directly into downtown Searchlight where you can turn right on NV 95 for the rest of the trip to Laughlin.

gaattc2001 Mar-24-2020

"They Came to Rob Las Vegas" (1968) starred...

Gary Lockwood, Elke Sommer, Jack Palance, Lee J. Cobb, and Jean Servais. Despite the title, the plot centers around an armored car heist in the desert. Las Vegas appears mostly in stock footage. They make the usual mistakes: for example, driving by the Four Queens and then five seconds later, the Sands.
Most of the desert scenes were shot in Spain, but it's nice to know they got to the Laughlin area for a little bit. There's also a shot of the armored car coming up the I-15 grade West of Primm--but Primm didn't exist then.  
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063684/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0

We've been visiting Laughlin for years, and have driven that route many times. I'm afraid Laughlin will be hit even harder than Las Vegas by the current crisis. Besides casinos, there's hardly anything there but a few gas stations and fast-food outlets. Of course, there's Bullhead City, Golden Valley, and even Kingman, all somewhat economically dependent on Laughlin. 
That might make a good QOD.

Anthony Curtis Mar-24-2020

Fordson Reference

That jolted me. I went to Fordson, then switched to Edsel Ford.

CLIFFORD Mar-25-2020

Return to Vegas

On your way back to Vegas, turn west in Searchlight on NV164 and enjoy the Joshua Tree forest until you end on I15.  Head north and check out Primm's Desperado Roller Coaster, Fashion Outlet Mall and the Bonnie & Clyde Death Car at Whiskey Pete's Casino..Continue north and finally stop at the Pioneer Saloon in Goodsprings (look for the sign off I15.)

Question of the Day - 24 March 2020

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