Weird Day Trips
Baker and the World’s Tallest Thermometer
Baker is about 1.5 hours and about 90 miles from Las Vegas on paved I-15. That is a planning number for a dry day, not live traffic. What you actually see is the World’s Tallest Thermometer, a 134-foot sign beside the highway. It is a quick stop.
Baker is a small California town on I-15, about 90 miles and about 1.5 hours southwest of central Las Vegas. This is a different drive from Goodsprings. The reason to pull off is the World’s Tallest Thermometer, a roadside landmark you can see from the highway. It is a quick stop for photos and gas, not a long visit.
- From Las Vegas
- About 1.5 hours
- Distance
- About 90 miles
- Road
- Paved I-15
- Time to allow
- A quick stop on the way to Calico
Short history
The thermometer is a 134-foot electric sign. It commemorates the 134°F record in Death Valley. The day can extend toward Death Valley, which is its own drive.
Practical visitor info
Hours and fees change. Check the site, the park, or the business before you go. This page does not quote a current price or a current opening time.
The numbers match the drive times and distances page. Read desert day-trip tips before a hot day, and see sample itineraries if you want to combine stops. The town list is Ghost Towns Near Las Vegas. Tonopah and the Extraterrestrial Highway are indexed under Weird Day Trips.
How long is the drive to Baker?
Plan on about 1.5 hours and about 90 miles from central Las Vegas, down I-15. That is a rounded planning number for a dry day, not live traffic.
The Calico Early Man Site is farther west on the same highway, past Baker, near Barstow. Pair the thermometer with that stop if you are making a full day of the drive.
Is the drive to Baker paved?
I-15 is paved the whole way, and a normal rental car is the usual vehicle. This page does not report construction or which pumps in Baker are open.
What you can see
You are looking at the thermometer and a highway town. Give it a few photos and a fuel check, then either turn back or continue toward Calico.
Heat and safety
This is still the Mojave. Summer afternoons commonly sit above 100°F (38°C). A quick stop is the idea in that heat. Read the desert tips before a hot day.
On the ground
What you can see
You can see the 134-foot thermometer from the highway and from the pull-off.
Private or off limits
This is a quick stop for photos and gas. It is not a long visit, and it is not the Goodsprings half day.
Summer and the season
Summer afternoons commonly sit above 100°F (38°C). Keep the stop short in that heat.
The thermometer with the highway in the frame, so the picture shows a roadside sign.
Get directions
Get directions from Las Vegas. The link opens a map. It is not a live traffic report.
Combine this
Times below are planning figures. Conditions change. A north stop and a south stop do not belong in the same day. The return drive eats it.
I-15 toward Baker, not the short start at Seven Magic Mountains and Primm, and not the drive south to Laughlin. Baker is about 1.5 hours and about 90 miles. The Calico Early Man Site is about 2.5 to 3 hours, farther west near Barstow. The day can extend toward Death Valley.