It was warm already as we left town at 2:15AM, so we got our sweat on while climbing towards Valley of Fire State Park.

  

The road through the park was about 25 miles long, and we didn’t see any cars the entire time. We felt very isolated; the only visible light sources, besides our own, were the moon, stars and the far off glow of lights from Vegas.  The first 10 miles were spent climbing from about 1,500′ to 3,000′, and then we had 10 miles to reap the benefits of our hard work before the slope lessened to the point where we needed to pedal again to hold a decent pace.

  
At the bottom, we were expecting to get on SR 40 which runs parallel to I-15.  It turned out to be a dirt road, so we opted for more highway riding for the next 20 miles.  

  
At that point, we pulled off at a rest stop, had a few snacks, and resumed riding afterward on Las Vegas Boulevard (no frills out here, though…).  Another 10 miles down the road, we crested the hill and had our first view of the city.

We descended past Nellis Air Force Base and continued into the heart of the city.  

  
For most of the ride towards the strip there was a dedicated bus lane without any busses, so we used it as a bike lane.  

  
Around 9AM, we arrived at the hotel.  One of the goals for the day was to try to get my wallet back, which had been forwarded from Escalante to Vegas.  This was easier said than done though, because there are so many post offices here.  After wasting far too much time, we finally determined which office should have it, although they refused to tell us whether or not it had arrived over the phone.  That post office closed before we could get there, so we will check in the morning tomorrow. 

The next task was to pick up a rental car, to drive to Flagstaff tomorrow to see our good friend, Jon G. 

We discovered that our other friend, Scott, had also arrived in Vegas today for a trip to Zion. We met up with he and his friend, Stephanie, for drinks and some pizza, then stopped at The Bellagio afterwards to see the water show.

  
  
We also found a cupcake ATM! 

  
Trip stats, to date (Day 76)

Overton, NV to Las Vegas, NV

Daily mileage: 69.1 mi ;  Trip total to date: 4,537.8mi
Daily riding time: 5hr 46min;  Trip total time: 391hr 41min
Daily ascent: 3,344 ft;  Trip total ascent: 224,072 ft
Flat tires: Rachel – 3; Chris – 4