A walk in the desert, Las Vegas Springs Preserve

Discussion in 'Garden Visits and Flower Shows' started by Jerry Sullivan, May 12, 2013.

  1. Jerry Sullivan

    Jerry Sullivan Garden Experimenter Plants Contributor

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    Last November we paid my sister in Las Vegas a visit and we all went to the Las Vegas Springs Preserve, I took lots of pictures.

    Listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1978, the Springs Preserve is a 180-acre cultural institution designed to commemorate Las Vegas' dynamic history and to provide a vision for a sustainable future. Before it opened to the public in June 2007, the Preserve was home to many other Southern Nevadans over the past centuries.

    The Preserve features museums, galleries, outdoor events, colorful botanical gardens and an interpretive trail system through a scenic wetland habitat.After the last glacial age ended in the Las Vegas Valley some 12,000 years ago, this area slowly became a desert. Small streams and springs provided life-sustaining water to the few people who lived here.

    Spanish maps of the period called this area "The Land of Northern Mysteries." American map makers simply put the word "unexplored" on the territory.

    The area was not completely uninhabited, though. The Pueblo Peoples, Patayan (ancestors of the Yuman groups) and Numa (Paiutes) used the Las Vegas Springs and Las Vegas Creek until Anglo-European settlers began ranching in the valley in the 1860s. They left behind remains of their campfires, stone tools, clay pots, houses and foodstuffs.

    Information provided by the Las Vegas Springs Preserve

    View Photo Album: A Walk in the Desert


    Enjoy the walk,
    Jerry
     
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  3. Cayuga Morning

    Cayuga Morning Strong Ash Plants Contributor

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    Hi Jerry,
    Such different vegitation and landscape from the NE! Very dry but still with its own beauty. Hope you & the Mrs. enjoyed the trip.
     
  4. Donna S

    Donna S Hardy Maple

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    Thanks Jerry. I enjoyed the walk in the desert.
     
  5. eileen

    eileen Resident Taxonomist Staff Member Moderator Plants Contributor

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    Whew I'm glad I took plenty of bottled water with me on our walk 'cause that was some distance to cover. Did I enjoy it though? You bet I did!! :D
     
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  6. waretrop

    waretrop Strong Ash Plants Contributor

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    Very cute eileen.
     
  7. Philip Nulty

    Philip Nulty Strong Ash

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    Great tour Jerry,..plenty to see.
     
  8. Kildale

    Kildale Nature's Window

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    Great shots Gerry. Strange though that I just saw your post after I posted some Las Vegas pictures. I was going to Utah's parks
     

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