AZ Friday

We woke up bright an early on our last day of exploration had a fine breakfast at the Denny's in Holbrook.

As I'm writing this I'm filled with the feeling of the day. It was a feeling of relaxation and satisfaction, and yet it was dabbled with a hint of sadness knowing that our time would soon be over. It was a beautiful trip and we couldn't have asked for a better time, from hanging out with Mandy & Ryan, sitting around the fire at night having smores, to our adventures on the roads of Northern Arizona. I've been so busy and preoccupied with the challenges of life as of late, that it already seems like ages ago.

We got on the road soon and drove to Walnut Canyon. Walnut Canyon National monument is a gorgeous National park, a stunning canyon speckled with pines and filled with the ancient ruins of the Anasazi, the ancestors of the Hopi. Beautiful trails bring you down into the canyon, and to the threshold of many pueblo dwellings built into the cliff face. It is essentially an abandoned ancient city dating to around 1100.

The weather was fantastic and we had fun walking down the steep stairs of the trail.

We had not come up with a concrete game plan for the day. Out of all of our days in Arizona, this was the closest we came to "winging it", although we did plan effectively as time passed. After spending a couple of hours at Walnut we made the spontaneous decision to go to Jerome. We had originally nixed the idea of going there because the guidebooks said the 15 mph speed limit was a tourist trap, however, Mandy and Ryan spoke highly of it so we decided to go after all. It was totally worth it, and my pictures totally don't do it justice. This town is hands down in the most extreme setting I've ever seen. It is pretty much braced up on the side of mountains, and it makes Berlin, New Hampshire or Deadwood, South Dakota look like flat lands. You'll get there and question if you even want to go 15 mph, that is how precarious the roads seem. Apparently the town was nearly completely abandoned in the 40s and 50s when the copper mines closed up. In the 60s artists moved in and turned the town into the happening gallery and restaurant speckled tourist attraction it is today. Our rental car below, I was particularly uneasy about the spot because of the cliff just beyond the front bumper. The emergency break was on, even though the space was fairly flat.Even today the town has a bit of a ghost-town feel.We really didn't capture the "vertical" nature of the town with the pictures that we took, which is a shame. Here we are goofing around on a pedestrian stairway connecting the different terraces that make up the levels of the town.

After perusing the town and some of the side streets we went into "The Mile High Grill" where we decided to get a light lunch. We made the smart decision to split a wrap and fries, and a bowl of beanless Texas style chili con queso. Description of wrap courtesy of the website:

Melissa’s Bleu Cheese Chicken Wrap ~ Strips of grilled chicken, bleu cheese, fresh spring mix, avocado, tomatoes wrapped in a flour tortilla. Served with mayo on the side.

Kate was interested in seeing "The Phippen Museum" which was located in nearby Prescott. This museum got good mention in the guidebooks and was described as a gallery to help preserve the art of the American West.

We were a bit unsure if we had enough time to go see the museum because we wanted to be back in El Mirage (near Phoenix) to see Mandy for 6:00 pm. We asked our bar tender/ waiter who said it would be doable if we took the scenic road which was another bonus. It was pretty hairy driving but totally worth it.

The museum was very interesting with many beautiful paintings and displays. The Grand Canyon was featured frequently and interpreted in many unique ways. The woman who was volunteering to collect admission was a pleasant retiree originally from Philadelphia and we both enjoyed talking to her.

Following the museum we quickly drove into Prescott which is a great town. It had a very classic feel with a city hall that looked like it was right out of "Hill Valley" in Back to the Future. Prescott appears to be home to several small colleges and the town center reflects that with many restaurants and bars. The buildings have a Victorian style and the gentle sloping hills it is built upon give it a very picturesque effect.

They were actually putting up Christmas decorations while we were there. I couldn't help but snap a photo.

One of Prescott's main drags.

We hurried out of Prescott and drove back towards Phoenix. On the way the sun was setting on the cacti and Kate busied herself trying to snap some photos from the car. When we returned to see Mandy (Ryan was visiting his family/ friends in North Carolina) we ordered some Chinese take out and had a nice relaxing evening.

The next morning we would be on our way after having some coffee with Mandy and saying our good byes. And thus concluded our time in the great Southwest.

I'll probably post some pictures that Kate took in a couple of days... to perhaps supplement some of my descriptions, or even jog my memory on things I forgot to mention.

I hope everyone has a good Monday. Just remember, 2 weeks of work till Holiday break.