Message posted by Hank on August 21, 2007 at 20:32:56 PST:
REPOST;
As far as good spots to catch some good shots everyone has their favorites. Here are a few of mine and maybe others will volunteer theirs. Maps with directions and GPS numbers can be found on the link to your left that says Maps & GPS. Coyote Summit is a favorite of all as lots of the good guy fighters use that area to ingress from Texas Lake to engage the bad guys. Very low flyers. Its 10 miles east of the Inn on 375. The turn off is marked by two orange trash barrels. I would say the majority of Red Flag photos posted on the site were taken from there. Many dogfights take place in the area. Another favorite of mine is The Cedar Pipeline Ranch. This is on the road to Cedar Gate and is in the Railroad Valley. Lots of midair refueling goes on over this area. Ive seen para drops, and large transports landing and taking off from the Keno airstrip. Their is also lots of chopper activity in the area. The Cedar Gate area is also home to Russian radars and the always exciting Smokey Sam site.
All of these spots are accessible by passenger car if you take it easy.
As far as the loop is concerned its not one of my favorites because of the distance. Highway 95 between Vegas and Tonopah is a long stretch with little reward. (my personal opinion)The first place of interest is Creech AFB (Indian Springs) home of the Predator. Lots of Predators in the air everyday. The next place of interest would be Mercury home of the Nevada Test Site. Hardly visible from the road. Then a ride to Tonopah with no attractions. If you have an interest in the Predators you can drive from Vegas in about 30 minutes. When you get to Tonopah you will have driven about 200 miles and its another 100 to the Inn. I guess it depends on how much time you have and what your interests are if you chose to take that route. From Tonopah you will be near the TTR and base Camp.
Not sure what you mean by good hotels but heres my review of the ones I have stayed in. The route 95 to Tonopah offers very little. In Beatty their is a motel and an old hotel. On a scale of 1 to 10 for cleanliness etc. I would give both of them no more than a 3. In Tonopah their is the usual Ramada and Holiday Inn motels both acceptable. Their are some independent motels there that I cant help you with,except one whose name I forget but it has a big clown outside. Stay away. Their is nothing between Tonopah and Rachel. In Rachel the only place to stay is the Inn. No TV or phone. But its the only game in town. If you stay there ask for room 2-1. Its one of two that have a private bath. The rest are shared bathrooms. The rates are $43.00. If you come up 93 from Vegas its 1/2 the distance as the loop road. From downtown Vegas its about 150 miles and easy two and a half hour drive. Cruise control all the way, and no traffic. As far as hotels, the choices are limited. The first town you hit is Alamo. Their are 3 motels. Only two should be considered. The Meadow Lane is a single story old motel but clean. Has good hot water pressure, satellite tv and phones.Rates last time there were $45.00. Their is a new one called the Windmill. These are log cabins with sat tv, jacuzzi tubs and internet access, also a great restaurant on the premises. Rates around $80.00. Alamo is about 50 miles from the Inn. Thats about it for the choices on both the east side and the west side. Please be aware no matter which route you take pay big attention to your gas gauge. Their is no longer any gas in Rachel. Be sure to gas in either Tonopah or Alamo depending which way you come up.
Enjoy your trip and if you have any further questions please feel free to post them
Hank
Moderator
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In Reply to: Spotting @ Red Flag posted by Vector1771 on August 21, 2007 at 18:03:23 PST:
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