Travel Nevada: Ziplines and Roller Coasters

Add a Comment by John Biehler Tuesday, June 10th, 2014 — 8:44am PDT

Disclosure: Review — John's experiences were courtesy of Travel Nevada. He was not paid to write this recap and it is formed of his own opinions. Please review the Policy & Disclosure section for further information.

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One of the things I love about Las Vegas is the wide variety of things to do there, aside from the casino floor (which can also definitely be fun). This series will share my recent trip with Travel Nevada, covering some of the fun activities that you can do in Nevada, all within a few hours (or less) from the Las Vegas Strip.

Thrillseekers head to Las Vegas for lots of reasons. Just 30 minutes from the strip in Las Vegas is Bootleg Canyon, home of the Flightlinez zip line course, high above the desert floor. This was the next destination on our trip with Travel Nevada.

Photo credit: John Biehler

Once we arrived at Flightlinez, the first thing we did was get a safety briefing from our guides. Unlike previous ziplines I’ve ridden before, the Bootleg Canyon run uses bigger harnesses you wear that allow riders to go as fast as 60 miles an hour over their 8,000 feet of ziplines. You also have a hand brake that you have to use depending on the winds and the run you’re on.

Photo credit: John Biehler

After getting geared up and a short bus ride to the top, we hiked the final bit to get to the first platform.

Photo credit: John Biehler

The first time you’re hooked in is always a little daunting but once you go, you want to keep going. We had four runs to ride and each one was a little different in how we rode them depending on their length and the crosswinds in the canyon.

Photo credit: John Biehler

After a fun morning on the ziplines, we headed to the Las Vegas Strip and into Circus Circus to check out their new indoor roller coaster, the El Loco. This is one of a handful of roller coasters on the strip (Stratosphere, New York New York) but El Loco is the latest addition to the world’s largest indoor theme park, Adventuredome.

Photo credit: John Biehler

With special permission, I was able to capture the 72 second run with a GoPro attached directly to the ride:

It’s a different kind of thrill, indoors and away from the heat of the desert sun, but it will definitely keep you smiling. We actually rode it a few times. I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time.

More photos of the Bootleg Canyon zipline can be found on my Flickr. Stay tuned for the next instalment in the series to learn about more of my adventures in Nevada.