Bullhead City, Arizona

We arrived here in Bullhead City last Thursday after a short but boring drive down from Pahrump. The weather has been very nice, warm and sunny but with a more or less constant breeze to keep things from being unpleasant. Our initial assumption was that Bullhead City was named for the bottom-feeder of the same name, given the city’s location on the banks of the Colorado River. Not so, we’ve since learned. The town was named for a large rock (or a small island) just north of Davis Dam, now submerged in what became Lake Mohave. Right across the river is the town of Laughlin, Nevada, home to a number of casinos and the famous Don Laughlin collection of classic cars.

It seems that Bullhead City, at least, caters to an older crowd with plenty of 55+ gated communities, senior citizen discounts, and doctors practicing geriatric medicine. And just about every franchise known to mankind.

From our campground, we have a lovely view of the bright lights of Laughlin. And, like Pahrump, the sunsets here can be nothing short of spectacular. And here’s the proof.

One of the “things to do” from this location is to pay a visit to Oatman, a gold mining town turned tourist trap. We toured it on our first visit and won’t be returning this time. It sits on a portion of old Route 66 which has all but disappeared. The town is home to a herd of burros who wander about, stopping traffic and mooching treats from shop owners and tourists alike. Before you even get out of your car, they know who’s packing carrots and who isn’t!

Another of the “must do” side trips from Bullhead City is a visit to Hoover Dam and the recently opened Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge across the Colorado River. I’m not fond of bridges or dams so I opted to stay at home with the new vacuum cleaner and practice housework. With trusty camera in hand, Howie drove off to explore both structural wonders at his leisure. The bridge is open to foot traffic so naturally he had to hoof it across; but he did admit to feeling a bit queazy when peering down into the current of the river far below.

One of the more interesting facts about the bridge is that construction was commenced on both shorelines simultaneously and the workers met in the middle where the two halves were within 3/8ths of an inch of each other, considerably better than the tolerance built into the plan.

As for Hoover Dam (formerly Boulder Dam), the statistics are mind-boggling, especially when you realize a government project was actually completed two years ahead of schedule and significantly under budget. And the sale of electricity has paid for the dam, with interest, and continues to pay for its maintenance. Lake Mead, the reservoir which forms behind Hoover Dam, is America’s largest man-made lake with 550 miles of shoreline and containing (shudder) 9. 2 trillion gallons of water.

If you are sufficiently interested in learning more about the bridge, you can check the Article that appeared in the October 17th issue of Parade Magazine. A link in that article leads to a Slideshow that tracks the bridge’s construction. (11/14/10 - just found another slideshow with some eye-popping photos)

Stay turned for next week’s report from another location here in Arizona. And let’s keep our fingers crossed that Flagstaff isn’t enjoying winter weather just yet.