We finally left Lake Mead and headed South to Don Laughlin’s Riverside Resort RV Park in Laughlin NV. which is located on the Colorado river directly across from Bullhead City. The town was originally called South Pointe due to its proximity in Nevada until Don Laughlin, a Vegas casino owner saw the land and not only bought the land but renamed it Laughlin

We arrived on a rainy and windy day and were perched on the upper level of the 800 site park. Average rainfall in December is under 2 inches and we saw half of it. Large sites and only half full we settled in for a three night stay.

The town is quite small and consists of 8 casino/hotels, this is the Riverside Casino directly opposite where we walked in and feasted on their large buffet.

While in the area we decided to take a jaunt to Oatman, which we’d heard mentioned on our travels. As we got nearer we saw the locals had decorated the brush leading up to the town

The village of Oatman has a population of approx. 130 people and lies in the Black Mountains of Mojave County. It’s named after Olive Oatman who was a young girl kidnapped by Indians from her pioneering family and forced into slavery. She was released 5 years later at Fort Yuma AZ, and Oatman was named in her honor.

In 1863, prospectors discovered $10M in gold and Oatman became a boom-town

After a fire in 1921 the only remaining structure was the Oatman Hotel, a 2 story adobe building where Clark Gable and Carole Lombard spent their honeymoon.

The town now enjoys a thriving tourism industry and the burros roaming around town add to its attraction

Of course it wouldn’t be a Western Town without a gunfight

On our way back from Oatman there was a little settlement called Cool Springs, which consisted of a gift shop, gas station and a out house.

Leaving Laughlin we drove south and landed in Quartzsite for an overnight at the Roadrunner BLM campground

Now at the end of November it’s time to head for our winter retreat In Yuma.