Las Vegas to Los Angeles: looking for advice



J

Jean-Pierre Jac

Guest
Hello netters,

Having the good fortune to go for a conference in Las
Vegas, I'm planing to spend a few more days of vacation as
a ride from Vegas to Los Angeles, through Death valley. It
will be in June.

The current plan is :
- direct flights between Paris and LAX
- Greyhound bus to Vegas
- ride back to LAX
- direct flight between LAX to Paris Of course, I
intend to take my own tourer.

I have a few questions :
- Buses: I've read they take bikes, but are there any
condition? (I would prefer to board the bus with a
bike "as is")
- Routes: Any recommandation would be great! From the
AAA road-atlas I can see I will not have much choice
between LV and Death Valley and even to Barstow. I'm
more concerned about "entering" the LA area. There,
the AAA maps are not detailed enough. Are there any
bike route (preferably going toward LAX airport)? What
kind of map should I try to find? Any web pointer?
- Accomodation: I plan to use motels (credit-card touring:-
), but I would prefer not to make reservation (I don't
want to be caught on a stupid schedule). Is this
reasonable? ANy place to visit or avoid?
- General bits of advice : I already know that June is
not the best of month for this travel, but I don't
have the choice:) I've dealt with heat during a
crossing of Sahara (not on a bike though) some years
ago, so I think I can manage this point. But
anything else necessary to know which a foreigner
like me ignores?

Thanks a lot for any answer !

bonne route,

Jean-Pierre
 
> - General bits of advice : I already know that June is
> not the best of month for this travel, but I don't
> have the choice:) I've dealt with heat during a
> crossing of Sahara (not on a bike though) some years
> ago, so I think I can manage this point. But anything
> else necessary to know which a foreigner like me
> ignores?

June 2nd is full moon...if you get a chance to bicycle at
night through Death Valley area, can be wonderful. Otherwise
avoid mid-afternoon heat and go early or late. I cycled from
San Jose to Las Vegas the first week of May 2000, and have
104F temperatures in Furnace Creek. Accomodations were
expensive, but in places like Furnace Creek or Panamint
Springs may be useful to make one a few days in advance
since there aren't too many alternatives. For other places
like Ridgecrest or Barstow, I would just wait since there
are enough alternatives.

George Farnsworth has a site (http://www.bikeaccess.net)
that describes access to major airports including five
reports related to LAX. I cycled through the LA area on a
holiday (January 1st) and found the roads not too much more
difficult. I've also cycled down the Pacific Coast multiple
times and access from the north to LAX is pretty
straightforward.

--mev, Mike Vermeulen
 
Morning, You just going down the I15 to LA or are you
going to loop around to the east or west. LOts of nice
things to see.

Water will be your most important thing. Are you
going to pull a trailer?

Talk to us then we can "give" advice!

Burr

Ridgecrest
 
"Jean-Pierre Jacquot" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

> Having the good fortune to go for a conference in Las
> Vegas, I'm planing to spend a few more days of vacation
> as a ride from Vegas to Los Angeles, through Death
> valley. It will be in June.

> - General bits of advice : I already know that June is
> not the best of month for this travel, but I don't
> have the choice:) I've dealt with heat during a
> crossing of Sahara (not on a bike though) some years
> ago, so I think I can manage this point.

OK, you say you've crossed the Sahara, so you might know
something about deserts. But I'll just pop up my head and
say, it is really something else to be dealing with the
desert when you plan to go. I've done a fair bit of desert
hiking in Southern California, and some in the Las Vegas
area. Just _driving_ between LA and Vegas we would carry a
gallon or two of water in the car, just in case.

I remember a hike I did outside of Las Vegas in June one
year. It was 106 F (41 C) in the shade. That was OK for most
of the hike, which was in a steep, shady canyon. The final
km back to the car was completely in the open, though, and I
would estimate it to be more like 120 F (49 C) -- no joke.
We had taken a gallon of water per person, and thought we
were doing pretty well on water for most of the hike. Still,
when we got back to the car we had been completely drained,
mostly because of that last bit in the open. That's not safe
-- you want to have something in case of emergencies.

Two years ago we did a three hour bike ride at Red Rocks at
the beginning of July. The trip report may be viewed here:
http://tinyurl.com/34nqt. My husband went through 300 oz
(nearly 9 L!) of water in about three hours. We did not ride
during the main heat of the day.

If you're on your bike, you'll be out in the open -- no
shade. Mike Vermeulen in his post suggests riding at night,
and it's not a bad idea. At the very least, you should
consider being on the bike at the crack of dawn, and then
having a siesta between noon and four.

Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato
and .net for .com Home of the meditative cyclist:
http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm See the
books I've set free at:
http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky
 
> - General bits of advice : I already know that June is
> not the best of month for this travel, but I don't
> have the choice:) I've dealt with heat during a
> crossing of Sahara (not on a bike though) some years
> ago, so I think I can manage this point. But
> anything else necessary to know which a foreigner
> like me ignores?

Crossing Death Valley in June, on a bike, could be deadly.
Services are spaced for cars, not bikes. And check out
this link-

http://www.w3.weather.com/weather/climatology/monthly/USCA0-
286

The *average* high temperature in June is 109 degrees (42
degrees C). It ramps up during the month; on June 1st, the
average high is 104, while on June 30th it's up to 113.
Record highs run from 115 to 128 degrees (46 to 53 C!).

The amount of water that a cyclist would go through under
such conditions is nearly unfathomable. Do *not* attempt
such a ride during the day. Use lights and travel at night,
when the temperature will be in the 80F/27C range. Another
poster mentioned that June 2nd will be a full moon, and
nighttime rides under such conditions are often praised as
being wonderful.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com
 
>- Buses: I've read they take bikes, but are there any
> condition? (I would prefer to board the bus with a bike
> "as is")

I don't believe that Greyhound will take bikes "as is".
It has been many years since I last took my bike on a
Greyhound bus, but when I did, I believe I had to put it
in a box. I did take a bike "as is" on a Peter Pan bus
in New England 10 years ago, though the circumstances
were unusual. George Farnsworth's site may have up-to-
date information about Greyhound. I echo the concerns of
others about biking across the Mojave Desert & Death
Valley. I wouldn't recommend it, esp. in June. There is
a nice bike ride you can do starting in St. George,
Utah, (in southwest Utah not too far from Las Vegas).
The loop includes Snow Canyon State Park, Cedar Breaks
National Monument, Bryce Canyon National Park, & Zion
National Park. About 7 days of riding. We spent a couple
of additional days in the National Parks. No camping
gear is needed, though one of the small towns
(Enterprise) only had one motel. My friend & I rode it
10 years ago in the 2nd half of May. It was hot (but
bearable) down near St. George, and cold with snow
flurries up at Cedar Breaks (about 3,000m). And just
right in Zion. At that time, the "St. George Shuttle"
would take bikes & passengers from Las Vegas airport to
St. George for a very reasonable price. I think it was
about a 2 hour ride from Vegas, maybe a bit less. You
needed to reserve in advance and notify them of your
intention of bringing a bike. Many years ago biking from
the Tetons to Yellowstone, I met a touring cyclists who
told me that he had biked through Death Valley earlier
that summer, and the heat had melted the plastic
stiffeners in his panniers. I think the heat melted a
few of his brain cells, as well.
 
The train will take bikes and gear as is. That's how I get
to SF to do the LA ride.

Burr

Eric wrote:

>>- Buses: I've read they take bikes, but are there any
>> condition? (I would prefer to board the bus with a bike
>> "as is")
>
>
> I don't believe that Greyhound will take bikes "as
> is". It has been many years since I last took my bike
> on a Greyhound bus, but when I did, I believe I had to
> put it in a box. I did take a bike "as is" on a Peter
> Pan bus in New England 10 years ago, though the
> circumstances were unusual. George Farnsworth's site
> may have up-to-date information about Greyhound. I
> echo the concerns of others about biking across the
> Mojave Desert & Death Valley. I wouldn't recommend it,
> esp. in June. There is a nice bike ride you can do
> starting in St. George, Utah, (in southwest Utah not
> too far from Las Vegas). The loop includes Snow Canyon
> State Park, Cedar Breaks National Monument, Bryce
> Canyon National Park, & Zion National Park. About 7
> days of riding. We spent a couple of additional days
> in the National Parks. No camping gear is needed,
> though one of the small towns (Enterprise) only had
> one motel. My friend & I rode it 10 years ago in the
> 2nd half of May. It was hot (but bearable) down near
> St. George, and cold with snow flurries up at Cedar
> Breaks (about 3,000m). And just right in Zion. At that
> time, the "St. George Shuttle" would take bikes &
> passengers from Las Vegas airport to St. George for a
> very reasonable price. I think it was about a 2 hour
> ride from Vegas, maybe a bit less. You needed to
> reserve in advance and notify them of your intention
> of bringing a bike. Many years ago biking from the
> Tetons to Yellowstone, I met a touring cyclists who
> told me that he had biked through Death Valley earlier
> that summer, and the heat had melted the plastic
> stiffeners in his panniers. I think the heat melted a
> few of his brain cells, as well.
 
"Burr" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> The train will take bikes and gear as is. That's how I get
> to SF to do the LA ride.

Yeah, but Amtrak runs only buses these days between LA and
Vegas -- so the question remains.

Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato
and .net for .com Home of the meditative cyclist:
http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm See the
books I've set free at:
http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky
 
O

Claire Petersky wrote:
> "Burr" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:9Ngm-
> [email protected]...
>
>>The train will take bikes and gear as is. That's how I get
>>to SF to do the LA ride.
>
>
> Yeah, but Amtrak runs only buses these days between LA and
> Vegas -- so the question remains.
>
>
>
> Warm Regards,
>
> Claire Petersky Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato
> and .net for .com Home of the meditative cyclist:
> http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm See the
> books I've set free at:
> http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky
 
Claire Petersky wrote:

> "Burr" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:9Ngm-
> [email protected]...

>> The train will take bikes and gear as is. That's how I
>> get to SF to do the LA ride.
>
> Yeah, but Amtrak runs only buses these days between LA and
> Vegas -- so the question remains.

FWIW, flights between Vegas and LA, particularly Burbank
airport, are often quite cheap.

Matt O.
 
"Claire Petersky" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:xX8lc.15592$0H1.1423563@attbi_s54...
> "Jean-Pierre Jacquot" <[email protected]> wrote
> in message news:[email protected]
> nancy.fr...
>
> > Having the good fortune to go for a conference in Las
> > Vegas, I'm planing to spend a few more days of vacation
> > as a ride from Vegas to Los Angeles, through Death
> > valley. It will be in June.
>
> > - General bits of advice : I already know that June
> > is not the best of month for this travel, but I
> > don't have the choice:) I've dealt with heat
> > during a crossing of Sahara (not on a bike though)
> > some years ago, so I think I can manage this
> > point.
>
> OK, you say you've crossed the Sahara, so you might know
> something about deserts. But I'll just pop up my head and
> say, it is really something else to be dealing with the
> desert when you plan to go. I've done a fair bit of desert
> hiking in Southern California, and some in the Las Vegas
> area. Just _driving_ between LA and Vegas we would carry a
> gallon or two of water in the car, just in case.
>
> I remember a hike I did outside of Las Vegas in June one
> year. It was 106
F
> (41 C) in the shade. That was OK for most of the hike,
> which was in a
steep,
> shady canyon. The final km back to the car was completely
> in the open, though, and I would estimate it to be more
> like 120 F (49 C) -- no joke.
We
> had taken a gallon of water per person, and thought we
> were doing pretty well on water for most of the hike.
> Still, when we got back to the car we had been completely
> drained, mostly because of that last bit in the open.
> That's not safe -- you want to have something in case of
> emergencies.
>
> Two years ago we did a three hour bike ride at Red Rocks
> at the beginning
of
> July. The trip report may be viewed here:
> http://tinyurl.com/34nqt. My husband went through 300 oz
> (nearly 9 L!) of water in about three hours.
We
> did not ride during the main heat of the day.
>
> If you're on your bike, you'll be out in the open -- no
> shade. Mike Vermeulen in his post suggests riding at
> night, and it's not a bad idea.
At
> the very least, you should consider being on the bike at
> the crack of
dawn,
> and then having a siesta between noon and four.
>
>
>
> Warm Regards,
>
> Claire Petersky Please replace earthlink for mouse-potato
> and .net for .com Home of the meditative cyclist:
> http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm See the
> books I've set free at:
> http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky
>
>

Here is one thing we did in Israel all the time. Fill a
Camelbak with ice cubes and enjoy the cold water for a good
portion of the day while walking around...

Bruce
 
Hi,

Better late than never: I want to thank all the kind people
who hage provided me a lot of useful information. It should
have been done one month ago, just when my computer broke
and lost all my mail/news/boxes...

Preparation is going well. I will try to make a report as I
come back.

Jean-Pierre
 
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