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Paxson Woelber
Pahrump, Nevada
Camping in Death Valley
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A. Dombrowski
Pahrump, Nevada
Death Valley National Park
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Larry and Teddy Page
Pahrump, Nevada
Nevada Treasure RV Resort
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Travel Nevada
Pahrump, Nevada
Spring Mountain Raceway
Story courtesy Travel Nevada
Going south with your RV needn’t be as expensive as you think. There’s a place near Las Vegas that’s home to a good number of Canadian snowbirds each year that offers the fun of the desert - at a reasonable cost. You may not have heard of Pahrump, Nevada, but others have, and they probably want to keep the secret to themselves.
1) It’s located an hour west of Vegas, which means easy access without paying premium rates or resort fees.
2) Hook up! Pahrump is an affordable RVers paradise. Pahrump’s excellent RV facilities are rated highly by Good Sam Club, the world's largest organization of recreational vehicle owners. And depending on the length of your stay, rates can start around $20 per night. Good Sam has awarded perfect “10/10/10” ratings to Pahrump's Lakeside Casino and RV Park and Nevada Treasure RV Resort, and Wine Ridge RV Resort & Cottages received a near-perfect rating of 9.5/10/10. Other highly rated Pahrump RV resorts include Preferred RV Resort, Pahrump Station RV Resort, RV Ranch Resort, and Saddle West Hotel Casino & RV Park.
3) It’s easy to take a “Death Valley” day (or days). Fill up the tank and grab breakfast, lunch or snacks in Pahrump before taking the hour-long westward drive to Death Valley. Although it’s technically across the border in California, Death Valley is most easily accessed from the Nevada side, through Pahrump.
4) Learn to drive a performance car, or bring your own for a test run - Pahrump has its own racetrack. If you’ve always wanted to sit behind the wheel of a high performance sports car, the Spring Mountain Motor Resort and Country Club is home to the exclusive Ron Fellows Corvette Driving School, Cadillac V-Series Academy, Radical Racing School, and the SCCA License Recommendation School. Banked corners, blind drops, and technical off-camber corners will challenge even the most skilled drivers.
5) Watersports ... in the desert. Also at Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch, Jetpack America lets you soar 13 m (40 ft) above a new freshwater lake and aquatic center. Start with classroom instruction to learn the fundamentals, and then it’s out to the water for up to an hour of jetpack flight time. Paddle boarding is available too.
6) Learn the safe way to fire a gun. Really. There’s lots of space in the desert, and if you’ve wondered just what it’s like to fire a gun, try it safely out here. Front Sight Firearms Training Institute has world-class facilities and instructors.
7) Pahrump Valley Roasters is the largest specialty coffee roaster in Southern Nevada serving up the finest Arabica beans. Nevada’s dry climate and low humidity make it the perfect spot for roasting gourmet coffees. Later, stop for a picnic, and sip award-winning wines in the tasting room at the Pahrump Valley Winery and Sanders Family Winery. Culinary perfection is found at Symphony's inside the Pahrump Valley Vineyards.
8) Whether you're a novice or veteran, you'll love the panoramic mountain views and affordable green fees in Pahrump. Mountain Falls Golf Course ranges up to 7,000 yards, attractive to both beginners and experienced golfers. Golf architect William F. Bell designed the challenging Lakeview Executive Golf Course. A walkable “lake view” course, it’s perfect for golf enthusiasts with an appreciation for nature.
9) History, an opera house, and a monument to the 1920’s. The Pahrump Valley Museum and Historical Society was founded in 1992 and features artifacts from some of Pahrump’s first Anglo settlers and Native Americans alike. The museum also features "The President Abraham Lincoln Collection", with artwork, documents, figures, letters and many other items.
And what’s an opera house doing in the middle of the desert? Owner Marta Becket left New York in 1967, and moved to Death Valley Junction, just west of Pahrump, to rebuild an old social hall into the Amargosa Opera House. For more than 40 years, Marta Becket has lived here and shared her art. There are still performances in the small, but ornately decorated, hall.
10) Day drives to the Mojave. See places the locals know and love, like the China Ranch Date Farm. The lush greenery of this small family-owned farm stands out in the Mojave Desert near Southern Death Valley. It offers several varieties of California dates, and the farm is walking distance from the Old Spanish Trail and the historic Tonopah & Tidewater railroad bed. You can also hike to nearby abandoned mines.
Also in the Mojave, the Dumont Sand Dunes has elevations as high as 400 m (1200 ft), a favourite spot for off-roading vehicle sports, hiking, camping and rock climbing.