When you look at Las Vegas now, it is hard to imagine. It is hard to imagine how Las Vegas got its name. You see the translation for Las Vegas is “the meadows”. When it was first discovered, what they noted were the grassy meadows growing in the rich desert soil. There is an odd thing about our geography. You see, yes, we are a desert, and also, we are surrounded by mountains. Mountains made of hard clay. So basically, we are a clay bowl.
Because of this, for years the city fathers have known we have periodic flash flood problems. I can recall one day where the Strip went from sunshine to 3 of 4 lanes flooded out in just 10 minutes. To prepare for flash floods, city planners and developers created pathways for flash flood waters to channel through. One such channel is Peccole Ranch Trail.
Winding throughout the Peccole Ranch community, the Peccole Ranch Trail offers a variety of plants, trees and flowers. This attracts friendly wildlife such as squirrels, finches and even hummingbirds.
Due to its length, the trail must cross fairly busy streets. However, to accomplish that, they put the trail in a tunnel to go underneath the street so that someone enjoying the nature walk need not be bothered by mankind’s intrusion of cars, trucks and the like.
Recently I took a friend through the path and she had a most enjoyable time discovering the numerous varieties of flowers that were currently in bloom. With scents wafting over 30 feet at times to catch her attention like Mother Nature’s fine perfume.
The combined length of the trails is just under 3 miles. Mainly used by residents of the Peccole Ranch community, the trails are open to the public and are viewed as an undiscovered treasure seeing it for the first time. Here on this photo, you can see a nearby full sized football field to get a comparison of the trails combined size.
While some areas of Las Vegas have flood channels that go to huge grass complexes dug beneath street level to be used as things such as soccer fields, I find this peaceful path through nature to be far more enjoyable any time of the year. If you happen to be just visiting Las Vegas, this area is close to major hotels, shops, dining,
entertainment, golf, and so much more.
When you have a couple hours to enjoy, consider taking a leisurely walk through the Peccole Ranch Trails and take note of the scenery for yourself. You won’t be disappointed.
Comments(24)