We celebrated New Year’s in Las Vegas, but I wouldn’t want to give you any false impressions: We were nowhere near The Strip when 2019 began. Earlier in the day, however, we spent several (quite chilly) hours in the heart of downtown Las Vegas at what is known as the Fremont Street Experience.

Fremont Street, known in its heyday as “Glitter Gulch” for its abundance of neon signs and bright lights, was home to some of the original and iconic casinos and hotels like the Golden Nugget and the Eldorado Club. It was the first paved street in Las Vegas and boasted the city’s first traffic light, but it closed to vehicles in 1994 to begin its transition to the pedestrian-only Fremont Street Experience. A 90-foot-high barrel-vaulted canopy stretches over four blocks, and at night a light show is projected on it.   Three stages often offer free concerts,    and a grand assortment of casinos, restaurants, bars and other attractions line both sides of the avenue.

On this New Year’s Eve Day, with the temperatures barely climbing to 40 degrees and with a wind chill closer to 30, the crowds were fairly light. Certainly most were conserving their energy for the evening’s festivities as well, and we could see sound checks and other preparations underway for the big show that evening. There were a few street performers braving the chill, including a few Elvises. 

We strolled the length of the canopy, enjoying the classic signs 

, including iconic Vegas Vic. 

Gradually, we approached the focus of our visit: SlotZilla. The 11-story edifice, made to look like an old-time slot machine, is the launching point for “zip” and “zoom” lines.  The night before, we began our Vegas venture with a few rum cocktails at another Vegas legend, Frankie’s Tiki Room, a dark but friendly joint serving some pretty potent potables.

           There we made plans for the next day’s activities. Now, in the clear, cold light of day, a few of the ladies in our party who aren’t terribly fond of heights could not imagine what could have induced them to think that launching themselves from the upper “Zoom” platform to glide over the crowd 70 feet below them at up to 35 miles per hour would be “fun.”

Well, the tickets had already been purchased online, and our partners were waiting to snap pictures of us at the landing zone, so up we climbed to where a very efficient (and hearty — the wind up there was bone-chilling!) crew suited us up in our gear, gave us a slew of safety instructions and then clipped us onto the cable.   I think by the time it was our turn, those who didn’t appreciate heights were so cold they were more than happy to cast themselves off if only for the promise of warmth when we landed.

Being an avid tree climber in my youth, I enjoyed the ride and the views as we skimmed just below the apex of the canopy, waving at those peering up at us. Not a bad way to end 2018!

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor