Nate Shivar

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Travel

Right now, I don't travel that frequently but when I do, I try to write about it here.

The Las Vegas Strip: 10+ Observations

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The past few years, I’ve been able to visit Las Vegas for a business conference. On each trip, I’ve left the city to see something else, like the Hoover Dam, Death Valley, or Mojave National Preserve since most of Las Vegas’ attractions just aren’t my thing.

However, being able to see Las Vegas up close has been fascinating. Like most heavily marketed destinations, it’s not quite what I expected in person. Here are 10+ observations from visiting.

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Trips in 2017

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Here’s all the trips that I took this year. Find more lists over at my Travel category.

Business, Family & Leisure

FD Roosevelt SP – October 2017

St George Island – August 2017

Nicaragua – August 2017

Hard Labor Creek SP – July 2017

Savannah – May 2017

Vogel SP – February 2017

Las Vegas / Hoover Dam – January 2017

Camping & Hiking

Springer Mountain / Benton MacKaye – November 2017 – Overnight

Hard Labor Creek SP – November 2017 – Day Hike

Cheaha Wilderness – October 2017 – Day Hike

Panola Mountain – May 2017 – Overnight

On Visiting Hard Labor Creek State Park

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After visiting Vogel State Park, my family and I took another mini-vacation to Hard Labor Creek State Park in July 2017.

Hard Labor Creek State Park is one of Georgia’s most historic and most well-known State Parks.

It’s well-known mainly for its golf course. The golf course is great – I’ve played several rounds there – but the park is so much more.

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Visiting Nicaragua: 10+ Observations

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In August 2017, I got to visit & travel around Nicaragua for a week. Like all of Central America, it’s a lovely country with incredible landscapes, good food, and fascinating history – all within a short flight to the US.

It was the 2nd time that I’d traveled to the country (previously in 2006), so it was good to see some familiar sites along with some new ones. For this trip, I generally stayed south of Managua towards Granada rather than venturing up north like I did in 2006. Here’s a few observations from the trip.

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On Visiting Vogel State Park

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After an incredible long weekend at Fort Mountain State Park in October, my family decided to make staying at every Georgia State Park a goal. We opted to try Vogel State Park…in February.

Vogel State Park is one of Georgia’s oldest and most heavily used State Parks. It’s set in a beautiful valley with a creek feeding a lake. It was one of the State Parks that received upgrades from the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s.

It also has more cabins than almost any of the other State Parks in Georgia, especially given its size. Most of the cabins have been renovated post-2012 as part of Georgia State Park’s big renovation program.

Even though the weather wasn’t ideal, we decided to give Vogel a try in February.

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On Visiting Las Vegas, Nevada

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In January 2017, I visited Las Vegas for the first time. I went there on business to attend a conference. I was only there for 3 nights, but tried to see as much of the city & region as I could outside of meetings & sessions.

I flew into McCarran Airport and stayed at the Paris Las Vegas right on the Strip. During my stay, I also had the chance to visit Hoover Dam, Lake Mead National Recreation Area, a few towns in the Las Vegas area and several other casinos including the Aria and Planet Hollywood. I went to a private party in the Cosmopolitan, had a business dinner at a hyped restaurant, and walked 6 to 8 miles around the Strip.

I also did not gamble once. And I was not able to visit Downtown Las Vegas. I also did not attend a show or play cards.

Either way – here’s what I observed visiting Las Vegas.

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