Tag Archives: Boulder City

Daily Neon: Mel’s Diner in Boulder City, Nevada

June 26, 2013
Mel's Diner

Mel's Diner in Boulder City Nevada

The neon sign out side of Mel’s Diner in Boulder City, Nevada was the original sign for the “The Coffee Cup” which is now located a few doors down from Mel’s. Part of the neon sign was hauled to “The Cup” and the coffee cup shape neon sign was graced with Mel’s name.  The sign location is on the corner of Boulder Highway and Ash Street.

Photo By: LasVegas360.com

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Hike to Hoover Dam, 5 Tunnels Hike

December 2, 2011
5 Tunnels Hike to Hoover Dam

5 Tunnels Hike to Hoover Dam

GPS 36.011096º N   –   114.794076º W

The 5 Tunnels or the Historic Railroad hike to Hoover Dam is on the old historic railroad that was used to build Hoover Damn in the ’30. The trail has been removed of all the rail and ties it once had. The trail starts just off the US 93 (Great Basin Highway) on Lakeshore Road heading to Lake Mead from Boulder City. There is parking lot on the east side of the road. This trail to the dam take you through 5 larger size tunnels on the way to the dam. No flashlight are needed for this hike. The trail is a smooth gravel road and is very popular with runners, hikers and mountain bikers. It is about 3.8- 4 miles to the dam and you come out on the top level of the parking lot at the Hoover Dam visitor center. You can easily add a few more miles walking to the Arizona side of the dam and up to the largest concrete arched bridge in North America. On this hike we did both and the total distance was just over 10 miles round trip.

This is a good hike to do in cooler weather, summertime would be too hat as this part of Lake Mead tends to be about 10 degrees hotter that Las Vegas.

Trail map

Trail map to Hoover Dam

A note about the tunnels, although they vary in length, generally they measure 300 feet in length and are at least 25 feet wide and at least 30 high. The trail is very easy to hike and loses elevation as you make your way to the dam (about 300 feet). Along the trail you will see great views of Lake Mead. as you approach the dam follow the trail markers though some large gates as the trail changes from the main road to a clearly marked side trail. You will also travel through the Hoover Dam’s large electrical yard. At the end of the yard is a designated spot to pick-up hikers and it is free to get in here opposed to tying to pick them up at the parking garage which cost $7.

Panoramic View of Lake Mead

Panoramic view of Lake Mead from the trail

If  you want to get up to the new Mike O’Callaghan – Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge, also commonly known as the Bypass Bridge, you will need to make a right in the middle of the electrical yard south to the main road. From there, you cross the old highway and make your way up the 7 flights of stairs, or use the long sweeping ramps to access the top of the bridge.

The Historic Railroad Tunnel is a great hike near Las Vegas with a fabulous ending at Hoover Dam. Bring a camera, and plenty of water, for this historic hike.

Photos by: LasVegas360.com

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Coffee Cup: Boulder City, Nevada

November 8, 2011

Coffee Cup Cafe in Downtown Boulder City

In the small quaint town of Boulder City, Nevada located 30 miles south east of Las Vegas the is a cafe worth pulling over for called, The Coffee Cup.  The “Cup”, as the locals refer to it, has been around since Hoover Dam was being built and the town of Boulder was created. The original “The Coffee Cup” was located a few doors down from the current location on the corner of Boulder Highway and Ash Street. This was the original historical location but is now a cafe called Mel’s Diner. Down the street at the current location of the Coffee Cup, there was a place called the “Green Hut” it then changed to “Harry’s Cafe” and now is the Cup. The original neon sign was modified with the an old part of the original “Cup” sign. If you take a good look at the logo at the top sign matches the current neon at Mel’s Diner. In the Spring of 1994, “Coffee Cup” opened for business at 558 Nevada Way in the Old Town area of Boulder City, Nevada.

Diners Drive-ins Dives

Diners Drive-ins Dives

Now, in May of 2007, the Food Network’s, Guy Fieri did a feature of this eatery and showcased it on “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” or Triple “D”.  Featuring the pork Chili Verde omelet, owner Al Stevens’ signature dish.  Well its been over 4 years since Guy mad his famous visit.  I needed to go out and see if it was still holding up to the hype.

Let me tell you. I order the Huevos Rancheros with the Pork Chili Verde sauce and it was delicious. Big chunks of port over crispy corn tortilla that gave it a great crunch. The hash browns were grilled to golden brown perfection.  Followed up with a never ending cup of hot coffee.  The meal was perfect and I recommend this place to everyone. The place is always busy, it’s a good sign for a restaurant, it’s a reflection of how good the food is. With a short run from Las Vegas, the Coffee Cup makes a great place to have a really good meal in a the beautiful town of Boulder City.

Huevos Rancheros with a Tasty Pork Chili Verde

Huevos Rancheros with a Tasty Pork Chili Verde

Photos by: LasVegas360.com
Except for the Triple ‘D’ one 

The Coffee Cup
512 Nevada Highway
Boulder City, NV 89005
702-294-0517

www.worldfamouscoffeecup.com

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Las Vegas History

July 4, 2011

Las Vegas History

The Glass Pool Inn -Demolished in 2006. It was called Mirage Motel until 1988 and changed names due to The Mirage opening down the Strip in 1989.

Las Vegas is a relatively young town but its history can be traced all the way back to 1829, when Antonio Armijo lead a party of 60 on the Old Spanish Trail to Los Angeles. While the caravan camped about 100 miles northeast of the present site of Las Vegas, a scouting party set out to look for water. Rafael Rivera, a young Mexican scout who left the main party and headed due west over the unexplored desert, discovered an oasis. The abundance of artesian spring water he found here shortened the Spanish Trail to Los Angeles by allowing travelers to cut directly through rather than around, the vast desert. Spanish traders who used this route were thankful for the shortened trip and they named this convenient desert oasis Las Vegas Spanish for “the Meadows”.

John C. Fremont was the next visitor to the Las Vegas Springs. In 1844 he led one of his many explorations to the Far West. He is still remembered today and his name graces one of the most spectacular streets in Las Vegas, Fremont Street, located downtown.

Ten years later Mormon settlers were sent by BrighamYoung from Salt Lake City to colonize the valley. They built a 150 square foot adobe brick fort, part of which still stands today as the oldest structure in Las Vegas and is appropriately named the Mormon Fort. The Mormons spent two years here before the harsh desert defeated their ambitions. By 1857 the fort was abandoned.

Things really didn’t start happening for Las Vegas until 1904, when the San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad laid its tracks through the Las Vegas Valley. The Railroad purchased prime land, bought the water rights and surveyed a town site for its railroad servicing and repair facilities. In 1905, the railroad held an auction and sold 700 lots. Las Vegas became a small watering stop with a few hotels, stores, a saloon and a few thousand residents.

When the government appropriated $165 million for the Boulder Canyon Project in 1928, Las Vegas received its first wave of residents. Thousands of Depression weary job seekers came to help build the world’s largest gravity dam, 40 miles from Las Vegas, now named Hoover Dam.

In 1931, construction of the dam began and the Governor of Nevada, Fred Balzar, approved the “wide open” gambling bill that had been introduced by a Winnemucca rancher, Assemblyman Phil Tobin. Up until that time gambling was outlawed in Nevada.

Hoover Dam

As people flocked to the area to work on the Boulder Dam Project the federal government didn’t want the workers to be distracted by the temptations of Las Vegas so they created a separate government town to house them, Boulder City. Gambling was illegal in Boulder City and it still remains the only community in Nevada where gambling is against the law.

The country’s attention was focused on the dam as it was completed in 1935. The dam served as a magnet for federal appropriations, thousands of tourists and new residents and an endless supply of power and electricity. Also, as the country prepared for World War II. Tens of thousands of pilots and gunners trained at the Las Vegas Aerial Gunnery School, opened by the government on 3 million acres north of town. Today this property is home to Nellis Air Force Base and the Nevada Test Site.

By the early 1940s, downtown Las Vegas had several luxury hotels and a dozen small but successful gambling clubs. In 1941 a businessman by the name of Thomas Hull, who owned a string of motor inns in California, decided to open the El Rancho Las Vegas, just outside the city limits right off the highway from Los Angeles. The El Rancho had 100 motel rooms, a western styled casino, it was located right off the highway and had a large parking lot with an inviting swimming pool in the middle. The El Rancho’s quick success led to the building of another property down the road called the Last Frontier Hotel. Thus the Las Vegas Strip was born.

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Boulder City / Hoover Dam

Boulder City

Boulder City was built by the federal government to house the thousands of workers who were building the Hoover Dam project in the 1930s. In order to keep these workers away from the temptations of Las Vegas, Boulder City was founded and gambling was made illegal. This quaint town remains the only community in Nevada were gaming is still illegal.

Management and maintenance crews of Hoover Dam are now the predominant residents of Boulder City. This unique town is a vibrant community, with a movie theater, numerous gift shops, parks and a historic hotel. Call the Boulder City Chamber of Commerce for more information 702.293.2034

Hoover Dam
Hoover Dam- is one of the seven man-made wonders of the world. The dam is 727 feet high (70 stories) and 660 feet thick. Construction of the dam required 4.4 million cubic yards of concrete (which is enough to build a two lane highway from San Francisco to New York). In 1928 Congress appropriated $165 million in funds to build the Boulder Dam project for two purposes: flood control and the generation of electricity. Originally called Boulder Dam, it was renamed for Herbert Hoover, Secretary of Commerce, during the critical planning stages of the project. Completed in 1935, this gravity dam holds back the mighty Colorado River and forms the largest man-made lake, Lake Mead. Hoover Dam is located 40 miles from Las Vegas on Highway 93. Tours are available and they leave every few minutes from the exhibit building at the top of the dam. Regular Tours daily from 8-5:15pm Call (702) 293-8367

Lake Mead National Recreation Area
Lake Mead is the largest man-made lake in the country. It is created by Hoover Dam holding back the waters of the Colorado River. Its surface covers 229 square miles and its irregular shoreline extends 550 miles. Lake Mead is located off of Highway 93. The National Park Service can give you details on the lake’s recreational activities and facilities. (702) 293-8990

 

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