The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • 108

Cos Angeles Slimes Cool Break From Las Vegas Glitter 12 Part VlSunday. February 12. 1984 41k By ART LEAVITT MT. CHARLESTON, Nev. For a gambler, a day or two in Las Vegas can be a bad trip if you're cold at the craps tables, cool at the slots or busting at blackjack.

If you simply have to get away from the casinos for a while, sanctuary is nearby. Mt. Charleston is in the Spring Mountains 40 miles from the Strip. It takes 50 minutes to get here from the Hilton parking lot, observing the speed limits as well as the scenery. You head northwest on Rancho Drive, which becomes U.S.

95. After passing the North Las Vegas Air Terminal you take a left at the junction of Nevada 157. At that point a magical landscape tapestry unfolds in an incredibly short time. During the next 20 minutes you will gain a mile in altitude as the sagebrush and Joshuas give way to aspen and squatty pinon junipers. Then just as quickly the towering Ponderosa pines come into view.

Climate Changes The climate changes as fast as the scenery. When we left the Strip at noon it was 101 degrees. Now it's in the high 70s. Nevada 157 extends to the upper reaches of Kyle Canyon in Toiyabe National Forest. The elevation is 7,717 feet.

Charleston Peak reaches up to 1 1,918. What's at the end of the road? For one thing, no gas stations, so make sure your tank isn't near empty when you start out. And there are no commercial overnight accommodations. There is one restaurant, and it's quite good. Collie and Barbara Orcutt own the Mt.

Charleston Restaurant and Lounge, called "the lodge" by locals (even though that's a misnomer). Open 24 hours all year, the lodge seats 150 in a comfortable dining room, another 100 in the lounge. A gift shop doubles as supply depot for campers and picnickers. The Orcutts have operated the business for nine years. The restaurant was built in 1966 at a time when the U.S.

Forest Service was selling off a few pieces of land. "We never get over 85 degrees up here in summer," Collie observed. "It's always 30 degrees cooler than Vegas." He said the area usually has heavy snow from Thanksgiving to Easter, but there's no skiing. "For that you go 12 miles around the mountain to Lee Canyon." At Lee. two chairlifts and a beginner's slope are open during winter.

Our soft-spoken, Lincolnesque host said the summer evenings are always cool and the lounge fireplace burns all year. With a custom-made 30-foot steel chimney, the fireplace consumes a hundred cords of imported Utah pine each year. "It has a mesmerizing flame," Collie said with a smile. "That may be why we get so many weddings." The lodge averages three weddings a week brief, stand-up ceremonies held in the outdoor balcony area next to the lounge. About 300 families are permanent residents of Kyle Canyon.

Most commute to jobs in Las Vegas or nearby Nellis AFB. But as many as 45 people are employed by the lodge during the busiest months, including six full-time bartenders to work three shifts. They whip up a fine assortment of drinks, but only Collie makes the special, called "Mt. Charleston Coffee." A Popular Drink The lounge's most popular drink comes in a 17-ouncc glass and has a shot of Drambuie, a shot, of Christian Brothers brandy, eight ounces of coffee and four ounces of ice cream. It's topped with whipped cream, nutmeg, cinnamon and a cherry.

Dinner entrees start at $6.95 and range from ground sirloin to lobster tail and filet mignon, with a wide selection of poultry and seafood. Chef's special is a king-size prime rib at $12.95. The wine list is limited but impressive. We had a tasty hot Reuben sandwich for lunch And try the water. It isn't often you get to taste pure spring water in a restaurant it's from their own deep well).

A Mammoth or Squaw Valley it's not. But it is a nice, scenic place to escape from the glittery casinos. As Collie Orcutt reminds gamblers, "In case you feel like giving Lady Luck another chance, we do have 15 little ol' slot machines here." AHT 1.KAVIT1 100-year-old pine rises near entrance to Mt. Charleston restaurant and lounge outside Las Vegas. COLOR -FILM ADVENTURE chartaWbes Feb.

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