Page 8 - B Fall 2012 magazine

What good things come to people who are generous enough to devote hours and hours of their time to volunteer at
Red Rock Canyon? On a September morning at the Red Rock Visitor Center, I asked longtime Friends members,

Dan and Vera Wray, that question.

The chance to work in the beauty of Red Rock Canyon keeps these United Kingdom natives returning to Las Vegas
twice yearly from their home in England. The morning we met, Dan and Vera were working in the Tortoise Habitat,
talking to visitors from Japan.

The Wrays were among the first Tortoise Monitors when the original Tortoise Habitat was
built. Back then, part of their job was to put alfalfa hay in the corners of the habitat to feed
the tortoises. When the burros chowed down on that, the tortoise food was switched to pel-
lets. The ground squirrels loved the pullets; at least ground squirrels are smaller and don’t
eat as much. When the original Mojave Max died, Dan and Vera were honored to deliver a
eulogy at his memorial. In caring for the tortoises, they get the chance to share in the excite-
ment and enthusiasm of the children who visit with school groups.

Dan and Vera describe themselves as “addicted to training.” Their first day of work at the
Information Desk was March 25, l995. The classroom training for this job was followed by
Dan and the original
Mojave Max ~ 2004 a written test. Then there was a practical test, during which Warner Skomar, Friends presi-

Friends Photo Archives dent at the time, and the BLM rangers pretended to be visitors while the Wrays answered
their questions. They were also encouraged to hike many of the trails so they could tell visitors what to expect. Since
Dan and Vera love to hike, this was easy. Their training was put to the ultimate test the day they gave hike directions

to an English family whose son had died climbing in one of the more remote areas. In order to feel closure, the fam-
ily wanted to see where their son had perished and they were lucky enough to have Dan and Vera there for them.

Helping preserve the beauty of Red Rock Canyon is another reward for their ser-
vice. Their work on the Cultural Resources Committee with Chris Miller, the
BLM Visitor Center Manager at that time, took them into very remote areas with

a portable drill, adhesive gun and brass tubing to establish permanent photo loca-
tions. This was how surveys were done before GPS was used. Working on graffiti
removal at Red Springs got Dan onto two TV stations and in the Review-Journal
Sunday edition when news crews found out about the work. The next week found
them hauling compressors and sand down the Calico One
trailhead to sandblast graffiti off the rocks there. Luckily,
Dan helping at 1996 Public Land’s Day
at the end of an exhausting day, a Bureau of Land Manage Friends Photo Archives
ment fire crew turned up and helped them carry the compressors back up the steep trailhead
and escorted them back to their car. The fire crew also led the exhausted couple to the shortest
route out of the Canyon, going the wrong way on the Scenic Drive.

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