Area 51

In the Nevada desert lies a not-so-secret airforce base UFO enthusiasts like to call Area 51. It is an adventure traveling to the only spot left to actually view the base - Tikaboo Peak.

My husband and I based ourselves in Las Vegas for this trip. We rented a Jeep Wrangler from Dream Car Rentals. http://www.dreamcarrentals.com/ They also rent Hummers. This place had some good and bad aspects. There are two locations in Las Vegas. The one we rented from was 3725 Las Vegas Blvd. next to the Harley Davidson Cafe. It is located right on the strip in a souvenir shop. If you were staying at a hotel on or near the strip you could walk or take a short taxi ride there. I believe they will also pick you up at your hotel. The Jeep Wrangler we were given was a piece of junk but for various reasons that wasn't so bad. They didn't really look it over for damage when we returned it and I didn't feel bad going 4x4ing, as I'm sure many others had done before us. It wasn't the safest vehicle to take off road but the dirt road to Tikaboo Peak can probably be done in a high clearance but not 4x4 vehicle. If I had to do it again, I would rent from a different place in hopes of getting a better vehicle. Maybe rent from a car rental agency at the airport for the duration of your trip.

The drive to Area 51 from Las Vegas is highway for 22 miles then on to smaller paved roads in the middle of nowhere to the dirt road that takes you to Tikaboo Peak.

Take I-15 North for 22 miles. At exit 64, take US-93 North for 70-80 miles. Alamo is the last town to get gas and make sure you fill up. The turn off is unmarked and very easy to miss. Look for mile marker LN 32.2. Make a left onto this dirt road. You are entering Pahranagat Wildlife Area. Shortly, you will come to a gate, if it is closed you can open it but close the gate behind you. After about 5 miles you will come to another gate that you may open and drive through. Drive down the dirt road for approximately 22 miles. At the end you may have to get out and walk as the road deteriorates. You should be able to drive within 1/2 mile of where the hike begins. There is a clearing where you can park your vehicle and camp if you wish. Please take your garbage with you! When I went there was quite a bit of garbage on the ground. Take a left up the hill marked by rock cairns until you get to the top of Tikaboo Peak. This is a very strenuous hike up a steep incline on loose shale. You will come to a summit where you can camp or just take a break. This is not the end of the trail. Continue on up the hill to the top.

A couple words of warning. Take PLENTY of water. There is NO cell signal. Make sure you have a full tank of gas. In the summer the heat is brutal! We hiked in over 110 degree weather and I felt like I would die. Try to make the trip early in the morning. We arrived late in the day and actually drove back part way down the dirt road in the dark and it was still excruciatingly HOT! This is a very remote part of the desert. If you break down, nobody may find you for days, if ever. It is a LONG walk back to the main road. Do not go alone. Take precautions.

There is a more detailed map with directions, GPS coordinates, and a wealth of information on Area 51 at http://www.dreamlandresort.com/. I recommend checking it out and taking a copy with you.

Directions for Extraterrestrial Highway:

Follow the above directions but instead of making the turnoff onto the dirt road continue on and turn left on Hwy. 318 for less than a mile. Take a left onto Hwy. 375. At the intersection you will see the sign "Extraterrestrial Highway". Next to the sign is a parking area where Area 51 workers park their cars and take the bus into Area 51. We did see a Janet plane flying overhead and other military planes such as stealth fighters.

Directions to the Black Mailbox:

Continue on Hwy. 375 for 20 miles to the intersection of Hwy. 375 and Mailbox Road. The mailbox is actually white.

Area 51 is located on Groom Lake Road. If you travel down this road DO NOT go past the warning signs. The armed guards will either shoot you or if you are lucky take you to jail. They are not joking.

The town of Rachel is 39 miles down Hwy. 375. There is not much of anything there but a restaurant called the Little A'Le'Inn where you may also spend the night. Most of the land around Extraterrestrial Highway is public land. You can camp anywhere you like. There is NO gas in Rachel. For more information on Rachel, Nevada, go to http://www.rachel-nevada.com/.

From Las Vegas you can make a day trip but there are a lot of neat things to see in that area including Valley of Fire State Park, Indian petroglyphs, ghosts towns, and a lunar crater. You may want to extend your stay. Check out the Other Places section on the Rachel site.

Dirt road to Tikaboo Peak

UFO Festival, Roswell, New Mexico

Every July ufologists and alien fanatics gather in the small town of Roswell, New Mexico, to remember the day in 1947 when a UFO crashed in the remote desert confirming the fact that we are not alone in the universe.

The annual UFO Festival takes place the week of July 4th every year. Humans dressed as aliens and extraterrestrial pets are a few of the unusual things that accompany the kids rides, haunted house, vendors, numerous experts in the UFO field, various seminars, costume contest, and the famous Roswell parade. For more information visit the UFO Festival website at http://www.roswellufofestival.com/. Book your hotel early as they fill up fast.


Be sure to stop by the UFO Museum as that is where all the action is.



My husband, 10 year old son, and I went to the festival in 2008. We stayed at one of the two Best Western hotels in town. Now I'm sure the Sally Port Best Western is a fine hotel but the Best Western El Rancho Palacio, located at 2205 North Main Street, left a lot to be desired. I booked the hotel months in advance and ended up here. Like I said book EARLY! I would only recommend this hotel if you are on a budget as it was one of the cheaper hotels. The free continental breakfast was decent but that's about it. Even though this hotel is located on the main drag, it is too far to walk to where the action is.

For souvenirs go to Wal-Mart on the North side of town. They have a whole section in the front of the store with just about every kind of alien paraphernalia you could want and they are cheaper than other places.

We ate at a mexican restaurant located a block South of the UFO Museum called El Toro Bravo. Talk about good but affordable food. I would recommend this place. The Crashdown Cafe (based on the Crashdown Diner in the television show Roswell) as shown in one of my photos below is sadly no longer there although I heard they may reopen in the future.

The parade is one of the bigger aspects of the festival. It was not as good as I expected it to be. The best part was the little dog dyed green toward the end of the parade. View the video below to see for yourself. Warning: I am NO videographer! View at your own risk. The video is of the entire parade. The parade takes place on Main Street in front of the UFO Museum. Arrive about an hour early to get a good space on the street. We parked on a side street across from the mexican restaurant and sat in the back of the truck.

We also went to the 4th of July Fireworks at the fairgrounds. This was a pretty good production. Don't miss it. Seems like everyone came out of the woodwork for this event. It was pretty crowded.

There are numerous seminars about aliens, UFOs, etc. I thought my son would be bored so we didn't attend these. I believe you might need to pre-register and pay a fee. There is a costume contest, showing of the movie Roswell, various bands playing, and a few things for the kids to do such as a jump house and kiddie rides. This might sound like a grand event but really, it was rather small. If you have any interest in aliens I would suggest going once to check it out.

There are other neat things to do in this neck of the woods. Carlsbad Caverns is a short drive South of Roswell and White Sands National Monument is Southwest of Roswell. Carlsbad was so crowded during the festival we could not get tickets for the cave tour but took a drive down a dirt road in the park marked on the visitor map which was very interesting. Saw a few salamanders, lots of plants and great scenery. White Sands is a very unique place in that the sand dunes are actually white. It feels like you are on a different planet. It is located near a military base. We saw military aircraft flying over while we were there.
















White Sands National Monument