One of my Las Vegas sources told me about a canyon with unusual petroglyphs, located in Keyhole Canyon about 25 miles south of Las Vegas. With perfect directions, I had no trouble finding this place, although the road to get there was pretty rocky. The petroglyphs were unusual, consisting mainly of geometric figures and symbols, not as much human or animal drawings as in most sites. It was apparent that many symbols, pecked in the "desert varnish" of low boulders, had been eroded over time by the flash floods that occasionally pour through the canyon.
The canyon itself was beautiful, though very short. I'd guess it was less than a quarter mile to where it ended, at least for me, with a twenty foot "pour off", a dry waterfall. There may have been more canyon past there, but climbing the smooth wall was beyond my grade level without a ladder.
The Las Vegas electric company advertises "the lowest electric rates in the country". Well, no wonder, when you consider that much of that power comes from taxpayer-funded Hoover Dam. and more recent additions to their power supply are produced in huge solar farms located in the El Dorado Valley. I'm all in favor of clean energy, but Federal taxes subsidize these projects to a great extent. So, when you see the brilliant lights of the Las Vegas Strip, you can take pride in your contribution.
It's difficult to photograph the solar farms, they are so low to the ground, but I tried. The farms have dimensions in the miles.
When I was leaving Keyhole Canyon, I met a man just arriving. We compared notes on places to go in the region. I told him about the Paintpots, he told me about Nelson. I had seen a road sign earlier for the road to Nelson, so on the way back I took the turn to check it out. Nelson is simply a small community, less than fifty people living in mostly mobile homes, at the head of El Dorado Canyon. It's the history of the canyon that gets interesting.
The Spanish discovered gold here in 1775 and named the area El Dorado, after the fabled city of gold. (Much of the Spanish exploration of the "New World" was in search of El Dorado.) The Spanish abandoned their claim, probably due to growing hostility between the U.S. and Mexico. Anyway, Americans found gold and silver here in 1859 and a boom followed soon after. Five or more mines began operation over the next few years. As were most mining camps, El Dorado was wild and lawless. Deserters from both sides of the Civil War came here to hide. Claim disputes, and other altercations, led to numerous murders.
The name of the town was changed to Nelson in honor of an early leader. Ore was transported by steamship on the Colorado River, so a landing was built at the bottom of El Dorado Canyon. It remained in service even after the railroad came through and took over the transportation of ore. In 1974, however, the landing was washed away by a flood. Five major washes down the mountains converged in the canyon, producing a wall of water some forty feet high. The settlement, on higher ground, was spared from the flood.
Today, the original mining camp is basically a ghost town, attracting tourists and locals alike. Six or eight buildings, dozens of vintage cars and trucks, old mining equipment and even stored WWII airplane bodies can be seen on the grounds.
I could have spent hours there, but they have no food service. Since I had not planned to be away so long, I had missed lunch and didn't want to stay until dinner. Some enterprising individual should consider opening a grill here.
The road continues on down canyon for five miles, ending at the Colorado. An overlook provides good views of Black Canyon, but not Hoover Dam. Anyone so inclined can also drive most of the way in the wash, assuming no threat of flooding.
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