 |
| Massive homes overlooking Las Vegas, located in Henderson, may easily be valued in the $10,000,000 or more range. |
By the time I took my sister’s dog Owen for a walk in the 108F (42C) heat, plastic baggie in hand, I was sweating up a storm. However, the ultra-dry heat evaporated the sweat on my clothes in a matter of seconds.
 |
| Many homes are nestled into the man-made terraces to offer good views of the Las Vegas Strip from afar. |
A few days ago, I laid out a nightdress I’d laundered to dry on a chaise lounge by the pool, and within 15 minutes, it was scorched. Other than the time we spent in the Middle East in Egypt, Dubai, Jordan, Morocco, and the United Arabic Emirates, we haven’t experienced much dry heat in our travels.
| Climate data for Henderson, Nevada | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 75 (24) |
86 (30) |
91 (33) |
97 (36) |
111 (44) |
114 (46) |
117 (47) |
112 (44) |
110 (43) |
100 (38) |
90 (32) |
78 (26) |
117 (47) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 54 (12) |
59 (15) |
67 (19) |
75 (24) |
85 (29) |
95 (35) |
101 (38) |
99 (37) |
91 (33) |
78 (26) |
64 (18) |
54 (12) |
76.8 (24.8) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 41 (5) |
44 (7) |
49 (9) |
56 (13) |
65 (18) |
74 (23) |
79 (26) |
78 (26) |
71 (22) |
60 (16) |
48 (9) |
40 (4) |
58.8 (14.8) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 11 (−12) |
12 (−11) |
25 (−4) |
31 (−1) |
37 (3) |
41 (5) |
56 (13) |
59 (15) |
43 (6) |
30 (−1) |
4 (−16) |
9 (−13) |
4 (−16) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.70 (17.8) |
0.96 (24.4) |
0.57 (14.5) |
0.23 (5.8) |
0.11 (2.8) |
0.11 (2.8) |
0.46 (11.7) |
0.72 (18.3) |
0.42 (10.7) |
0.36 (9.1) |
0.49 (12.4) |
0.60 (15.2) |
5.73 (145.5) |
As we’ve often mentioned, humidity is the toughest to endure of all non-storm-related weather conditions. It wears out everything we own from the zippers on our luggage, leather products and wreaks havoc with our digital equipment, especially cameras and smartphones. It’s no wonder we often need to replace these items.
Sure, we chose to seek out warmer climates, and in doing so, one can hardly avoid humidity which often goes hand and hand. Without a doubt, humidity is the most difficult to physically endure, especially in locations where we’ve had either no AC or limited AC, for example, only in the bedrooms.
 |
| We were surprised to see some grassy areas, which required a lot of watering. |
In many hot and humid locations, we’ve had only a fan over the bed, in which most cases seem to move too slowly to be of many benefits. Also, when there’s mosquito netting encasing the bed, the fan benefits are limited, seeming unable to penetrate the fabric of the net actually to provide any relief.
Here in Henderson, Nevada, the heat is constant and relentless during the long summer months. At 7:00 am this morning, the temperature was already well in the 90F’s (32C). Now, as I write, at 8:50 am, it’s already 97F (36C) with an expected high today of 111F (44C).
 |
| The entrance to many high-end developments incorporates the utmost of landscaping to attract new buyers and maintain a level of appeal for the existing homeowners. |
Yesterday, when I returned from visiting Susan and after a stop at Smith’s market for a few grocery items, I almost burned my finger pressing the keys on the metal keypad when entering the code to access the gated neighborhood.
 |
| Terracing under construction in Henderson. |
On the short drive from Smith’s to Richard’s home, I thought about my groceries in the trunk. I remember grocery shopping in Minnesota in the cold of winter, wondering if my food would make it home in the -20F (or lower) without freezing.
 |
| Many new homes back up to the hills and mountains. |
In our days of eating bread, I easily recall a loaf of bread being nearly frozen when I reached home. Yesterday, I wondered if anything would spoil in the 15 minutes it took me to get back to Richard’s house.
Foolish me; nothing would spoil in that short a trip. However, a shopper should be mindful of not making any extra stops on the way home after grocery shopping in these hot climates. Bacteria could easily manifest on a package of chicken or ground beef if one stopped at Walgreens pharmacy and got distracted for a few minutes.
 |
| Most homes are built with stucco exteriors and tile roofs that appear to withstand extreme heat. |
As we drive around the area exploring our surroundings, we’re amazed how so many manage to live in such a climate in the summer. In the winters, it’s often cool enough here to wear a warm jacket. Obviously, as we’ve shown here over this past almost five years, we decided against it in 2012.
As we continue on our many year’s long world journey in only 16 days, heading to the tropical climate of Costa Rica, where the average high is 85F (29C) with humidity around 70%, it will feel normal to us and most likely, even with the moist air, certainly feel cooler than here in the middle of summer in the Nevada desert.
 |
| Las Vegas/Handerson doesn’t have a historic building since it didn’t begin to attract a population of any significance until the 1950s. |
Today, we plan to try out Richard’s pool for the first time, now that we’re a little acclimated to being outdoors. Perhaps, we’ll even get a little dose of Vitamin D!
Wherever you may be this season, enjoy your days and nights to the fullest.
Photo from one year ago today, July 15, 2016:
 |
| When we visited an orphanage in Cambodia, this young girl’s smile took our breath away. For more photos, please click here. |