A Fast Tour of Area 51 by Car & Plane...

Welcome travelers to Freelancer's whistle stop tour of Area 51.

Our first tour guide is Chinodavis, he will be driving us right up to the 'gates' of Area 51. We will be stopping at the famous Black Mailbox, where non-alcoholic refreshments will be served.

May I remind everyone that throwing peanuts out of the window at any Cammo Dudes found hiding along the road is against Federal Law, throwing litter is not tolerated in this state.

One more thing, in the event of being chased and stopped by armed Cammo Dudes in souped up jeeps, please remember to use the sick bags found under your seats!. It took us weeks to clear the mess up from the last lot of tourists we had.

OK, seats belts fastened?


Source

Now wasn't that fun! OK will you all please follow me and meet volleybrian, our pilot for todays aerial reconnaissance of Area 51. There will be a slight detour as the plane is a parked a few miles away... But don't worry folks, we wont be charging you any extra and we will throw in a night assault of Area 51 to make up for any inconveniences this may cause.

Right grab your parachutes and I will meet you if, I mean WHEN you get back.



Source

[edit on 13/12/2007 by Freelancer]

These videos have been posted a few times.

My apologizes.. But for those like myself who hadn't seen these, I thought it might make a useful interlude between posting and reading. For those who have not seen these videos, I hope you enjoy them as much as I did when I found them.

I concur.
Posted before.

In the upper right corner
of your ATS view is a Search
function.

Now, for those adventerous
types (me) we can see :



And :



And, from atop Tikaboo :



Groom in the background.

The internet is wonderful.

Actual experience is priceless.

Regards,
Lex

It's really hard to express the feeling once you make it to the top. Whenever I take someone up there for their first time, I stop leading the way and let them go first just before reaching the peak. I've been on peaks with greater differentials (peak height to immediate terrain), but not a peak that is so small. Everything just falls away at your sides.

The Cammo Dudes are nothing more than glorified Pretend a cops sure they have authorization to shoot but in all honesty they are not going to use lethal force on you, It is their job to deter you from snooping around nothing more!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you actually able to get close to the base you would be dealing with Military M.P.'s and not some Security for hire organization....

The reason Groome Lake Road is patroled by Private Security is simple Military Police rarely engage civilians unless something like Marshall Law is nesessary and usually men with guns are enough of a deterent for the general public!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So In Closing I say go screw with the Cammo Dudes at best you are going to take a ride with the Sheriff and nothing else!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyone know the weather at Tikaboo peak in the winter? Snow? Would like to stop by, but it might be a little too far out of our way..

Also, is Groom Lake Road patrolled on the public side? I don't really want to have to explain myself to anyone, I just want to be left alone just like them.

Never been in the winter.

Might check Here.

The Cammo-Dudes mainly do a show.

If you cross the line, expect some
action.

I took those pics with no problem,
though they did follow us out.

Hope that helps,
Lex

Thanks How far did they follow you? I'm not afraid of being followed to try to scare me or anything, I just don't want my camera taken away. But it seems everyone is able to take pics of the area you're not supposed to according to the sign, so whatever. I'll just hide my SD card in my shoe

reply to post by Trisch


They don't confiscate equipment anymore.

I prefer to use the weather for Tonopah to get an idea of how it will be on Tikaboo.
www.weatherunderground.com...

If you haven't done Tikaboo before, now is not the time. Last I heard, the road is still in very poor condition. I consider it impassable by car. I shot this with my camera phone in November.
www.lazygranch.com...

You are more likely to be face to face with security at a military base that exists rather than Groom Lake. Of course, that assumes you don't cross the line.

Note that the camo dudes do patrol the ET highway. You need to hang out there a few hours to catch them doing this. Parking by the gravel for a few hours will do the trick. They drive by and check plates. Camo dudes can run plates.

One rather strange experience I had was at the gravel. We had a few cars out there. It was a warm summer night, so everyone was in lawn chairs. Well, after sitting there a while, the light went on in my truck. This vehicle had electronic controks for the lighting rather than simple switches. I suspect the base pinged us, perhaps to count the vehicles via radar.

N37.43225 W115.44496 for the gravel location

Wow that's interesting! I'm not sure if I want to park in the gravel at night.. What I plan to do is drive from Vegas, look for that mailbox and see the border, see what happens in the daytime. I would feel really weird waiting around not doing anything out in the desert. Especially if there are any listening devices. I would have to pee at some point, and would not feel comfortable squatting out there while being watched hehe! I would like to have some drinks at the A'Le'Inn bar til it gets dark, and then continue to Tonopah where we will spend the night. Sound like a decent plan? It's my first visit. Next time I want to rent an RV when it's warmer and camp out in the public land as near to the border as possible. Thanks for the info, I have been checking the weather for the area often. I'm relieved to know that they won't mess with us just for driving on public land near the border! I've been having some anxiety issues about this lately.

On another note, I got knocked unconscious at work Friday and ruptured my eardrum. Think I will be ok flying? I forgot to ask the doc!

Gariac,

They do indeed ping.

Not neccessarily for a count,
but to find electronic equipment.

I've been told the eye-in-the-sky
can count the vehicles.

But, yeah...it's pretty safe.

The Cammo's only followed us
to the black-top.

Regards,
Lex

reply to post by Trisch


I don't think they have listening devices, but who knows. I know for sure they have a remote control telescope on Bald Mountain. Now regarding the camo dudes snooping on the ladies, check out
www.lazygranch.com...
I swear the story is true.

You can read about Bald Mountain here
www.lazygranch.com/bm.htm

It is suspected but never really proved that there are stationary cameras on Bald Mountain pointing at the places where people tend to park. Probably the mail box, the Little Alein, maybe the gravel.

Regarding Bald Mountain, there are a few places where they can't snoop. The parking area of Coyote Summit for instance. Also, most places east of the ET highway are not snooped on, with the exception of the Power Line Overlook.

Heheh funny story. I don't know what to do about when I have to pee. I don't want to drink too much anyway because I tend to get in trouble, big trouble when I am drunk. Not a good idea out there! What is this gravel people talk about? Why should I park and sit by the mailbox, anything to see? Anything to see past Rachel on the way to Tonopah? Am I wasting my time driving around the whole area 51? It just seemed like a good trip, just looping around the whole thing with a night stay in Tonopah. Anyone know if those roads get plowed when it snows? I'd really hate to get stuck in the snow out there. Don't eat yellow snow, and don't make yellow snow near Area 51

Haven't been there in a few years,
but the Little Ale'Inn was a fun
place to stay.

A bit on the "low-rent" side, but
good people and GREAT food !!

From the mailbox, you have a view
down Tikaboo Valley (IIRC, Gariac,
please correct me if I've gotten too
old to remember) and at night I've
seen some pretty groovy light shows.

I was never harassed there, either.

I'd agree with Gariac on the weather.
Wait until Spring. The place is beautiful,
then.

Regards,
Lex

I wanted to stay at A'Le'Inn but not after the reviews I read about it. I don't mind the crappy rooms in trailers, but my husband would hate it and complain and since this trip was ALL my idea, I don't want to make it worse than it has to be. plus, since we are driving completely around it, I want to stay halfway between, which is Tonopah. I would love to go in spring, but we are going next week and tickets have been paid for, including vegas hotels.. I want to go in spring also!! I need to find some exact directs also, I don't want to get lost out there! I also need to find out how late the bar is open at the Little A'Le'Inn.. need to stop there and continue driving at night!! Hopefully we can see something at night between Rachel and Tonopah.. Anyone that can help would be greatly appreciated!

reply to post by Trisch


There is no place to stay between Rachel and Tonopah. In my opinion, there is no place to stay in Rachel unless you are camping. If I'm not camping, I stay in Alamo or Tonopah. Note that Alamo can "sell out" [No vacancy at any of their 3 motels.] Then you need to head to Caliente. There is a motel there with whirlpool baths using water piped in directly from their hot springs. It was the scene of the crime regarding the Mormon polygamist rape by proxy incident. [Forced child marriage.]

By far, the nicest place to stay is
windmillridge.biz...
The price is high ($90 to $100), but you get your own cabin with whirlpool bath. The other motels are half the price and we're not talking about the kind of room you get in Vegas for $50.

There are plenty of places to stay in Tonopah. Most are dumps, but priced accordingly. Room run from just under $30 to $40 at most places. Probably the most expensive would be the Station House. It's a cool place, though not as wild since Ramada took it over. The station house has a bar and casino. There is live entertainment, though usually a two person band using drum machines and such to fill out the sound. Tonopah is a pretty safe town. Lots of cops. The highway patrol has a substation in the Station House.

You really need to be careful driving at night where there is open range. That would be from the 93/318 intersection all the way to Tonopah. You need to drive about 45mph at night. This is damn boring, but better than hitting a cow. I suggest satellite radio or CDs to ease the boredom.

visitarea51.com...
has a map of the gravel and other spots.

Since you have paid for your tickets, I suggest thinking about winter driving. It gets cold in central Nevada due to the altitude. Dirt roads can't be traveled safely if muddy. Remember, the front gate and back gate roads are dirt. I suggest having a full size spare. Since you are flying, I assume you are getting a rental car. You can rent suvs, though they are not insured for off-road use. However, they do usually have full size spares. Second best is to rent a PT Cruiser or HHR. Worse comes to worse, you can sleep in them. O course, it would be cold without sleeping bags. The rental car people probably don't think ahead enough to provide you with an ice scraper, so get one in Vegas.

If you are doing the loop around the range, you can also stay in Beatty. The nicest place (don't laugh) is the Motel 6. It has ethernet in the rooms. Bring a cable if you bring a notebook PC. There is another motel near the Motel 6. I forget the name, but I think it is called the Stage Coach. It is owned by the same outfit that owns the motel 6. Also OK is the Exchange Club

From Beatty, you can do a quick Death Valley visit. At the very least, check out the Ubehebe Crater. In the winter time, it is easy to hike down to the bottom.

I have a few side trips documented here
www.lazygranch.com/side.htm

Regarding night time light shows. I prefer the gravel over the mailbox. Both can see the Tikaboo Valley. The nice thing about the gravel is it is closer to Alamo, so you can get a room in town, hang out at the gravel, then head back to Alamo. Again, you need to drive slow (45 mph), but that is only an hour drive, and the chances of seeing cattle is very unlikely once you are east of Groom Lake Road.

Well, I'm in Tonopah right now, at the ramada. things didn't go according to plan, thanks to a fight with my husband and I broke his glasses. Anyway, we left after 4, which means it was dark most of the drive. couldnt find the mailbox or groom lake road, next thing i know we are in rachel. just kept going. a'le'inn was closed Change of plans, not doing the loop, just staying in tonopah tonight and driving back tomorrow. It kind of worked out better, since we got to drive the whole ET Hwy at night. the stars are the most amazing i have ever seen. Even more amazing than the top of the alps.

So we pulled over after rachel a few miles, maybe 15 or so, parked towards area 51, shut off all the lights and had a beer. my husband got in the backseat to sleep, because he is boring, and wanted to make my trip hell. it's not a pleasant drive while someone is mad at you. i was scared sitting up there by myself. I know it sounds stupid, there is nothing there but weeds and ground. my eyes played tricks on me while sand was blowing around but i couldnt see it. I see what looks like a flashlight coming towards us, getting brighter and bouncing as if someone was walking and shining it around. it wasn't so close that you could see the light shining on the ground. I freaked out, begged my husband to come sit up with me and drive us out of there. but once he got in the driver's seat, i felt a little safer, and didn't want to leave. but he did, turns out he didn't want to do this trip in the first place. he claims that light was there when we got there and it has not moved or gotten brighter, but i saw it!! by the time we left, it was so dim it was nearly gone. Now I wish i had stayed longer and told him to piss off and go sleep. i knew we had more to drive and i was really scared out there. so, the night trip is over, saw nothing on the highway except the light. going to rachel tomorrow after checkout. is the mailbox right at the road? it was dark and i couldnt see around. I read somewhere the mailbox is 28 miles down 375 and just read somewhere else it is 15. So I didn't even start slowing down and looking til 25 miles onto 375.

I really wanted to go to the border once in the night and once in the day too Had I been with someone adventurous and not mad at me, I probably would have. I was getting nervous also, because I want a picture, but I was afraid if they saw my flash on the signs i would get a ticket. it says no photographing that area right? I am a big scaredy cat and need someone with experience and balls to take me there and show me a good time. Can you get divorced in vegas as fast as getting married? Will be there til saturday. And drinking alone.

So I just stay on groom lake road and it will just stop at the sign, right? The person (i forgot who) that got chased at night took a wrong turn or something and got chased right? It looks like the only wrong turn would be turning left after the mailbox but that just leads you back to the hwy? I'm inexperienced with area 51 and the desert roads. Wish me luck tomorrow, and sorry i don't have anything interesting to tell about my night in the desert. It was just that light that spooked me and pissed off my husband..

Well, I made it back to Vegas in one piece. We got to the border, cammo dudes were already on that hill because other cars were leaving I guess... I accidentally left the flash on on my camera for the first pic, but I imagine they can see if I am taking pictures anyway! I got a ton of pics, and when I zoomed in on their truck, I swear there are guys crouching under the truck!! I can totally see them! I got out, scooped up some sand for a souvenir, took a ton more pics and we took off. As we sped down that road, there is that other road that veers off to the left if you are headed up there, well just after we passed that a mile or so, I looked back and saw a dust trail on that road, and it stopped where it met Groom Lake Road. I think they might have tried to cut us off or scare us? I am glad we left when we did!! It was a blast, and I am so glad I did it!! I was scared to death at the time, and those kinds of rushes don't thrill me but I had to do it!

Anyone else ever see them lying under the truck? Cut off at that road? I need to reread this thread but it's late and I'm tired. I'm so glad We didn't try to go at night. Imagine trying to speed down that road at night! wait, one of you has done it! OK gonna reread