posted on Aug, 2 2009 @ 11:50 PM
If you don't do anything stupid, there is nothing to fear about visiting the border. The back gate has a bit more infrastructure than the front gate,
though the front gate is a must visit. The road to the back gate is the road just south of Rachel. You can't miss it. It has a stop sign where it
intersects the ET Highway. The dudes can watch you with this fancy camera on a tower. They don't hide as much as they used to, so you can see their
faces. They are clearly armed, either holstered or strapped to a leg.
At the front gate, if you set up the photo correctly, you can pose in front of the sign AND get the cammo dude-mobile in the shot in the upper corner.
The photographer has to kneel since the dudes have a bit of altitude. I've done this shot a few times, though nobody wants their photo on the web. It
makes a great shot.
BTW, renting a 4WD does not always get you off-road tires. Most of the time, what you need are the off-road tires and not 4WD. So you spend a hundred
on the rental instead of forty, and really don't get much more safety. Now if you find a 4wd with off-road tires, that is probably something worth
renting.
There is a slang expression around the range of "Vegas 4WD", which refers to some sedan rented in Vegas that is beat to ()()*()#$ driving the roads
around the range. You need clearance, so sports cars are out. You could rent a HHR and car camp.