World's Largest Orgy

Mark June 2 on your calendar as a group called Menage Life is hosting a world record attempt for the world’s largest orgy in Las Vegas. As many as 1,000 people are expected to take part in the orgy world record. The current documented record for the largest orgy with a mere 500 participants was set in Japan in 2006. According to the event’s official web site, “All participants in the world record attempt will receive complimentary condoms, lube, hand towels, hand sanitizer and sexy swag”. I almost signed-up just for the "sexy swag".

Organizers have said the event will have a masquerade theme, masks included, so participants can be assured of anonymity.

Two of my favorite quotes regarding the orgy:

• Can you imagine the cramps from writing all those thank-you notes?
• We are old-fashioned and believe humiliation should happen between two people, a man and whoever we are disappointing.

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Also on June 2, Las Vegas sex worker advocacy groups plan to march in honor of International Whores Day. The day is in commemoration of the occupation of Saint-Nizier Church in Lyon, France by more than 100 sex workers in 1975 to protest police brutality and exploited working conditions.

I am not making this stuff up. They don’t call it Sin City for nothing.

Mammoth Caves & Cedar Breaks

My idea of putting together a trip itinerary is to head in the general direction I want to go and then hope to bump into something that is interesting. I call it the "pinball method". Sunny's planning, on the other hand, is so meticulous she makes German train schedules look sloppy and unorganized. Here are some of the highlights of where she took us today.

Mammoth Caves is actually a lava tube. If you have a flashlight and do not mind a little crawling, you can go from one opening to another underground...

Cedar Breaks is a National Monument similar to Bryce Canyon but without the huge crowds. Unfortunately, you cannot hike down among the "hoodoos" like Bryce. Well, you probably could hike down there but would need a helicopter to get out...

Willis Creek Slot Canyon Part Deux

Today, Sunny, Stormy and I hiked Willis Creek Slot Canyon south of Cannoville, Utah...

Then, it was on to Bull Valley Gorge where some years ago a vehicle ran off the road into a very deep section of the gorge...

Vehicle is in the circle
(click on photos to enlarge)

Ouch!

Paiute Trail Reunion

I drove up to Marysvale, UT to spend the weekend with Sunny & Stormy Weathers, my full-time RVing friends from NC. After a quick "getting caught up" moment, we took a short ride on the Paiute Trail System. The first thing we notice is the "prescribed burn" by the National Forest Service (they used to call them "controlled burns" until they found they could not control them)...

Next, we discover an area where the beaver were working overtime...

And of course, no trip with Sunny would be complete without her photographing an outhouse...

Seven Magic Mountains

If you hike, you probably have come across cairns, man-made piles of stones. Today, I discovered the ultimate in cairns near Jean, Nevada. Seven Magic Mountains is the work of Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone and consists of seven towers of colorful, stacked boulders standing more than thirty feet high...

Click on photos to enlarge

One article I read indicated the project took Rondinone five years and $3.5 million to build which seems like a long time and a lot of money to paint and stack some rocks. I guess that is what makes it "art".

Las Vegas Fees

Las Vegas used to be a relatively inexpensive city to visit as casinos made their money via gambling and used cheap rooms/meals as a way to attract tourists. Unfortunately, that is no longer the case, particularly, on the strip. Everything is substantially more expensive. Even free parking has pretty much gone the way of the mechanical slot machine.

As expensive as Vegas may be, you generally know how much something will cost beforehand. However, businesses are now including hidden fees in your bill:

• Most hotels add a "Resort Fee" of ~$25-40/night when you checkout (in hotels off the strip where things are cheaper, the resort fee can be more than the room rate). The insidious part of this is you are usually not told about the resort fee when you make your reservation.
• The latest trend is the "Concession & Franchise Fee" of 4.7% at some restaurants. What do you get for this fee? Nothing, it's just a way to pad the bill. Adding to the outrage is the fact it’s added to your bill before the sales tax is calculated so you’re paying tax on a tax.

In the long run, the free market will sort this out. In the interim, "caveat emptor".

Railroad Canyon

Steve and I took the Jeeps over Railroad Canyon southwest of Las Vegas. On the 1-10 scale it is rated a 5. However, there are some spots where it is a "hard 5"...

Steve using advanced mathematics & psychic intuition to calculate the right line

Is this anyway to treat a practically new Jeep

It's a good thing I attended the Stormy Weather's School of Extreme Rock Crawling

Additional photos...

Tight squeeze

Joshua tree

More wide open spaces