We're probably headed to Vegas the end of this month around Memorial Day. We usually rent a car for the time we're there and a bike for one day. Last year we rented an Ultra and rode south across the Hoover Dam and on Route 66 to Laughlin and back up to Vegas (about 330 miles that day).

I'm looking for another day trip or two for this time. We've taken the rental car to Mt. Charleston, Valley of Fire, and Red Rock Canyon. Does anyone have a suggestion for a new scenic route? I'm guessing Death Valley may be too hot already?

 

Ride to Oatman a interesting town to visit.

 

We rode there last year. That was a fun ride. Nice road, a guardrail would have been nice in some areas.

 

Valley of Fire state park.

 

Yea, that's a nice place, we've been there also. Go earlier in the day, it does get hot.

 

Here's downtown Oatman. Watch out for the traffic, I mean burros.

 

Anywhere you go in NV may be hot (100). Check DV forecast when you get there. May not be much hotter than anywhere else in late May
https://weather.com/weather/monthly/l/USCA0286

 

Death Valley is a little warm that late for me. Another ride might be Lakeshore Dr around Lake Mead (via Overton) to I-15 (n) to Beaver Dam-Gunlock, back into St George (I have to stop at Chick-fil-a) then bobmb back down I-15 to Vegas. Of coarse you could go either direction! All said about 300 miles.
Starts to get warm by then, lots of water although there is a few "watering holes" along the way a lot of it is Utah where alcohol is not plentiful

 

Two easy day trips from Vegas ...

(1) Nelson, NV and the El Dorado Mines. Take 95S to 165E. There's a "general store" with some odd & cool stuff, mine tours, and a host of out buildings and dirt lots with all sorts of old things that are cool to browse. My first time there, I spent an hour taking photos of old cars, mining equipment, and other assorted rusty junk. East of Nelson, about another 6 miles, 165E dead ends into the Colorado River. It's a great ride out there, but a more amazing place to experience. For as far as you can see in every direction, many miles and a full 360 degrees, is beautiful scenery with no sign of human beings at all except for the road you came on. No sign at all - No roads. No power lines. No fire towers. No buildings, docks, people, airplanes, or boats. It's pretty surreal.

(2) Chloride, AZ and the Chloride Murals. Take 93S to 125E. It's an interesting little "ghost town" (population 352) with a nice, friendly saloon/restaurant (Yesterdays) and large murals painted on the mountain rocks outside of town. There's not much else other than a quite interesting antiques/junk store. We stopped to take some photos and a man in a pick-up stopped and got out. He introduced himself as the Mayor and we had a nice chat. Notes: Digger Dave's is closed. Given the road condition from Chloride to the murals, the murals are not easily accessible on a large, touring motorcycle. I'm a pretty skilled rider, but decided 1/2 way that it was a little too rocky, rutted and sandy for my comfort. An adventure bike or car would have been OK, but it didn't seem like a good idea for 2-up on a 1000 lb touring bike.

And, it's not exactly a day trip, but here's some stuff to consider ...

66E from Kingsman to Seligman, AZ ... this is a beautiful ride. You'll pass Rt 66 landmarks like the Hackberry General Store and the Grand Canyon Caverns (We didn't stop there). Seligman is a semi-forgotten Rt 66 town that claims to be the model for Radiator Springs in the Pixar "Cars" movies. Plenty of Rt 66 stuff. Note: All restaurants close by 9pm. We stayed at the Stagecoach 66 motel in the Marilyn Monroe room. Kitschy and awesome.

Williams, AZ ... East of Seligman. Very cool little town. More modern than Seligman.

Jerome, AZ ... A popularized AZ ghost town south of Williams. We wanted to get there, but didn't make it. Note: Google Maps shows a twisty route from Williams to Jerome on S Perkinsville Rd. It's a beautiful ride on sweepy roads for 25 miles, then the pavement just stops! The balance of the road to Jerome is (IMHO) too dicey for a big bike. From the point where the pavement stopped, Forrest Service Rd 492 goes west for 10 mi to Drake/I-89. It wasn't too terrible on a big bike and would be easy in a car. Goes thru the middle of nowhere.

Prescott, AZ ... nice little city. Cool downtown area. Note: Many of the saloons downtown only accept cash. 89A going south from Prescott is a very windy road with beautiful views.

 

Mt. Charleston! Could be 100in Vegas, 70 up on the mountain. Valley of fire is cool, ride through lake mead. Also don't forget about Rachel Nv.