Observations and Recommendations:
Selections from Aaron's Southwest Journal
(Go back to read Aaron's Southwest Museum Review!)
About 4,000 feet in diameter and 570 feet deep, Meteor Crater remains one of Aaron's most highly recommended Southwest attractions
(Read his full verdict on this site by visiting his Southwest Museum Review--link above)
March 24, 2010
Our first day started normally; we left in a cab for the airport at 1:15, arrived at 1:30, verified that our tubes of toothpastes were not filled with explosives by 2 and then had 45 minutes to roam free around the airport.
However, the flight was delayed until 3:30.
After roaming around for a while, we were offered a buyout by Delta airlines because of the current status of overbooking, and their offer was very enticing: A free stay overnight at a nearby hotel, food vouchers and 400 dollars off our next flight! The offer was too good to pass up and we accepted. After receiving free pie from a generous Burger King employee and enduring a stream of depressing blather from a news anchor, we left the airport for the hotel.
The Ramada MOA proved to be a nice hotel with a Native American motif and we spent the evening watching Mythbusters and swimming in the elaborate comma-shaped pool.
However, the flight was delayed until 3:30.
After roaming around for a while, we were offered a buyout by Delta airlines because of the current status of overbooking, and their offer was very enticing: A free stay overnight at a nearby hotel, food vouchers and 400 dollars off our next flight! The offer was too good to pass up and we accepted. After receiving free pie from a generous Burger King employee and enduring a stream of depressing blather from a news anchor, we left the airport for the hotel.
The Ramada MOA proved to be a nice hotel with a Native American motif and we spent the evening watching Mythbusters and swimming in the elaborate comma-shaped pool.
March 25, 2010
At 9:35 we were aboard the flight to Vegas, ready for the vacation. After a three hour flight, we arrived in Vegas at 10:30 (gotta love them time zones) and found a bite to eat at Ruby's Diner, an aeronautically themed restaurant where a burger, fries and shake cost 15 dollars. We drove for about half an hour to the Hoover Dam, a must-see in my opinion.
We drove for a few hours and visited a small city called Chloride, an old mining town that is currently filled with ramshackle homes, angry dogs, stacked rocks and welded sculptures. It's sort of an interesting place to see, maybe stop and look around for five minutes, not much longer.
We drove for a few hours and visited a small city called Chloride, an old mining town that is currently filled with ramshackle homes, angry dogs, stacked rocks and welded sculptures. It's sort of an interesting place to see, maybe stop and look around for five minutes, not much longer.
March 26, 2010
The Grand Canyon's provides spectacular panoramic views
Woke up today in our hotel and I marveled at the comfort of the beds and then wandered about the hotel to gain my bearings, also eating a breakfast (provided by the hotel) that was most delicious.
After breakfast, I departed for the Planes of Fame Museum, a pleasant half-hour drive to a hangar near Williams, Arizona. After we returned, it was time for a quick lunch and then departure to Grand Canyon National Park, where we were amazed by the astoundingly magnificent and very vast Grand Canyon. We took one of the park's well-run shuttles to a hiking trail, where we stumbled down switchbacks and hiked a narrow path to the edge of a cliff (called "Ooh Aah Point).
After basking in the warm sun and avoiding being blown off the trail by tremendous winds, we turned back to climb the 2,000 feet of cliff back to base camp.
After breakfast, I departed for the Planes of Fame Museum, a pleasant half-hour drive to a hangar near Williams, Arizona. After we returned, it was time for a quick lunch and then departure to Grand Canyon National Park, where we were amazed by the astoundingly magnificent and very vast Grand Canyon. We took one of the park's well-run shuttles to a hiking trail, where we stumbled down switchbacks and hiked a narrow path to the edge of a cliff (called "Ooh Aah Point).
After basking in the warm sun and avoiding being blown off the trail by tremendous winds, we turned back to climb the 2,000 feet of cliff back to base camp.
March 29, 2010
Aaron's sunglasses in all their glory
After a tasty breakfast of biscuits, english muffins, bacon, and yogurt, I returned to the room, recorded the day's progress and prepared to purchase some sunglasses for hiking (sunglasses are highly recommended by Aaron for hiking about in the Grand Canyon.)
After my anti-solar lenses were acquired, we left for the Grand Canyon. From there, we walked along the Rim Trail, a long but flat trail along the edge of the canyon. After the trail, we boarded a bus to the Yuvapai Observation Station, a nice stone building perched on the edge of the canyon, where visitors can learn about the canyon's beginnings, as well as use telescopes to see the canyon up close.
After that, we took a short walk to the Hopi House, a recreated Adobe-style dwelling housing a miniature Native American art gallery. Finally, it was time to retire, so we boarded yet another bus, this time very crowded, and went to our car.
After my anti-solar lenses were acquired, we left for the Grand Canyon. From there, we walked along the Rim Trail, a long but flat trail along the edge of the canyon. After the trail, we boarded a bus to the Yuvapai Observation Station, a nice stone building perched on the edge of the canyon, where visitors can learn about the canyon's beginnings, as well as use telescopes to see the canyon up close.
After that, we took a short walk to the Hopi House, a recreated Adobe-style dwelling housing a miniature Native American art gallery. Finally, it was time to retire, so we boarded yet another bus, this time very crowded, and went to our car.
March 28, 2010:
We climbed into our car and drove for 30 minutes to Desert View, a tower perched on a cliff edge. Admission to the tower is free and you'll be amazed at the cool Navajo-style artwork and designs, in addition to the views. A café, restroom and the inevitable gift store are located nearby. Then it was off to Tuba City, Arizona ... a town named for a Navajo chief, not the low brass instrument.
The primary attraction, aside from the name, is a small, Native-run and VERY cool place where fossilized dinosaur prints can be found in the stone. The prints are around 200 million years old and are indeed real. However, the guides are not the apex of prehistoric knowledge, and will tell you certain things that are not true, such as that concretized sandstone formations are "velociraptor eggs" or "dinosaur poo." Mistakes aside, the real prints are fascinating and not to be missed. Admission is tip-based, ranging from $2 to $10 per person.
Finally, it was off to Flagstaff, with two stops at ruins of ancient pueblos, or native dwellings. These are very well-preserved for their age (approximately 800 years old) and are both about 10 to 30 minutes stops.
When first built, ancient pueblos such as this probably did not
have steel garbage receptacles such as the one pictured at right.
The primary attraction, aside from the name, is a small, Native-run and VERY cool place where fossilized dinosaur prints can be found in the stone. The prints are around 200 million years old and are indeed real. However, the guides are not the apex of prehistoric knowledge, and will tell you certain things that are not true, such as that concretized sandstone formations are "velociraptor eggs" or "dinosaur poo." Mistakes aside, the real prints are fascinating and not to be missed. Admission is tip-based, ranging from $2 to $10 per person.
Finally, it was off to Flagstaff, with two stops at ruins of ancient pueblos, or native dwellings. These are very well-preserved for their age (approximately 800 years old) and are both about 10 to 30 minutes stops.
When first built, ancient pueblos such as this probably did not
have steel garbage receptacles such as the one pictured at right.
March 29, 2010
Walnut Canyon's strikingly beautiful hiking trails
Day 6 of our Southwest tour! Breakfast in our martian-friendly hotel was nice, I managed to drop half a bagel in the trash before finally securing a breakfast. We had our family picture taken by a polaroid-wielding manager to add to the wall of visitors, and then we left for Meteor Crater. The crater is a half-hour drive from Flagstaff, and a recommended visit.
After the crater, we drove to Walnut Canyon National Monument. The place is primarily known for it's 800-year-old cliffside dwellings that are in astounding condition! You can take about an hour's hike down into the canyon, where you'll be led along a trail that passes along and brings you up close to the homes, some of which you can enter! The hike down isn't very tough, but the way up involves a great amount of steps and inclines, so this trail is not for some people. (Getting in requires a National Park Pass, which you can purchase at any National Park.)
Finally, we went to Lowell Observatory, perched on the cliffs overlooking Flagstaff. This is where the (former) planet Pluto was discovered, and visitors can see a museum, a really peculiar video about the origins of the galaxy, a cool rotunda with the device that found Pluto inside, a creepy mausoleum shaped like an observatory dome and more! Also, on clear nights like the one on which we visited, visitors can wait in line to enter the old observatory and take a peek at the skies through the telescope, sometimes seeing planets (we saw Mars)! However, the lines are quite long, in excess of an hour, so make sure you have a chatty British tourist at your side, like we did.
After the crater, we drove to Walnut Canyon National Monument. The place is primarily known for it's 800-year-old cliffside dwellings that are in astounding condition! You can take about an hour's hike down into the canyon, where you'll be led along a trail that passes along and brings you up close to the homes, some of which you can enter! The hike down isn't very tough, but the way up involves a great amount of steps and inclines, so this trail is not for some people. (Getting in requires a National Park Pass, which you can purchase at any National Park.)
Finally, we went to Lowell Observatory, perched on the cliffs overlooking Flagstaff. This is where the (former) planet Pluto was discovered, and visitors can see a museum, a really peculiar video about the origins of the galaxy, a cool rotunda with the device that found Pluto inside, a creepy mausoleum shaped like an observatory dome and more! Also, on clear nights like the one on which we visited, visitors can wait in line to enter the old observatory and take a peek at the skies through the telescope, sometimes seeing planets (we saw Mars)! However, the lines are quite long, in excess of an hour, so make sure you have a chatty British tourist at your side, like we did.
March 30, 2010
At around 10:30, we left for downtown Sedona, with no real intention in mind. Today was a sort of pokey day where we just wandered around and entertained ourselves. First up was a trip to Tlaquepaque, a large and tastefully-designed complex of art galleries, shops and restaurants. The place is designed with Southwestern designs and you can easily spend 2 hours wandering around the archways and alleys of this place. If you are at all interested in purchasing artsy things, this is probably the best place in Sedona to do so. Otherwise, window shopping is a great activity, and the occasional street musician can be found in the area. Around lunchtime, we went onto the main drag of Sedona, a noisy sprawl of t-shirt shops and various trinket/souveneir shops.
Located about 40 minutes from Flatstaff, AZ, Sedona boasts a slew of shops and galleries built in traditional Southwestern style (Above)
Aaron, (right) joins his family for a shopping break
On the sounding of a generic rooster call, we got into the car again and left for Devil's Bridge, a naturally-formed arch near the hotel, but we were driven away by the impassible rocky roads (not just gravel, but giant chunks of rocks in the road). So we went instead to Boyton canyon, a much easier drive. The hike up is fairly easy, and we took the Vista trail, which branches off onto an upwards slope towards a very nice overlook, and a rocky tower that can be climbed fairly easily by hale and hardy people, spiders and ninjas.
After the heroic ascent (and descent) of the tower-ish thing, we discovered an area full of "cairns," essentially little stacks of rock that have been made (in this case) by all the hikers who reached this point. The cairns were all over; on tree branches, cacti, signs, or the ground. We happily engaged in the construction of about half a dozen cairns, and hiked back down the trail to our car.
Finally it was time for a dinner-ish meal/snack thing, so we stopped by The Red Planet Diner, an alien-themed restaurant where, thankfully, "Earthlings are Welcome." upon seeing the interior and ordering only a beverage, I can conclude that both the decór and the shakes are very tasteful, and I recommend a visit to this establishment
Take a mini video tour of one of Sedona's delightful city squares!
March 31, 2010
We began our trip at the bright and early hour of 10:30 a.m, and our first stop was a little sinkhole (cenote in spanish) near Sedona called Montezuma's Well. The well is natural and formed by water building underground, dissolving the rock around it and forming a cavern big enough to collapse the floor above, creating an open well. Early Natives depended on the well and built their houses in the overhangs surrounding the well. These houses, along with native-built irrigation channels for farming, are still visible today.
After that, we went to the accompanying Montezuma's Castle, an 11-mile drive to a giant 40-room pueblo apartment-ish complex built into a limestone cliffside. The trail to these is flat and easy and is near Beaver Creek, a water source for the ancient inhabitants. Also, at the Castle is a visitors' center (admission is free with a National Parks pass), and a little diorama along the trail where an audio recording tells you about life in the castle.
Note: Neither of these two spots are related to the Aztec emperor Montezuma; a group of men in the 1840s believed the well to be a water source for him and believed the castle to be a refuge built for him in case of war. None of this is true, these are totally different civilizations and are not related.
Anyhoo, our next stop was Jerome, Arizona. The town is all balanced on a series of switchbacks, with each street higher than the next, all connected by alleys and stairways. Most of the buildings are brick and/or wood and have a nice cowboy feel to them. Given the nice atmosphere, easily-avoided traffic, and pedestrian-friendly layout, anyone can wander around this city for at least 2 or 3 hours, wandering between shops and stopping for snacks at the local cafés and restaurants. Among the stops, I recommend the Jerome History Museum (or something involving Jerome and History) an old saloon-turned museum on a street corner.
***
Tuzigoot, an awesome attraction and an even awesomer name:
After being greeted to the pistol-toting park ranger, we were told that the park closed in 10n minutes, so we jogged up the trail and took a power-lighting-speed tour of the place.
Made by the natives over 750 years ago, Tuzigoot is a large complex of homes made of mud and stone. Most of the walls are eroded, but the largest part is still intact, and you can enter it! After climbing a small staircase, you enter a very well-preserved room, up another staircase, and onto the roof, where you can get a view of about 20 miles, and look down on the eroded foundations of the surrounding rooms. After hastily descending so as to not irk the 9mm-wielding ranger, we piled into the car and left before he began shooting.
Our final stop was the Red Rock trail, a scenic route near Sedona where drivers can see some amazing rock structures, and stop and hike a few trails. We didn't hike any trails, but we did stop and build some rock Cairns (see day 6), which we were informed by some friendly Canadians also had the name (a more fun one, in my opinion) of Inukshuks in Canada.
Finally, the sun was setting, so we left for the hotel, arrived there, and ate cake (happy 56th birthday, Mom!)
After that, we went to the accompanying Montezuma's Castle, an 11-mile drive to a giant 40-room pueblo apartment-ish complex built into a limestone cliffside. The trail to these is flat and easy and is near Beaver Creek, a water source for the ancient inhabitants. Also, at the Castle is a visitors' center (admission is free with a National Parks pass), and a little diorama along the trail where an audio recording tells you about life in the castle.
Note: Neither of these two spots are related to the Aztec emperor Montezuma; a group of men in the 1840s believed the well to be a water source for him and believed the castle to be a refuge built for him in case of war. None of this is true, these are totally different civilizations and are not related.
Anyhoo, our next stop was Jerome, Arizona. The town is all balanced on a series of switchbacks, with each street higher than the next, all connected by alleys and stairways. Most of the buildings are brick and/or wood and have a nice cowboy feel to them. Given the nice atmosphere, easily-avoided traffic, and pedestrian-friendly layout, anyone can wander around this city for at least 2 or 3 hours, wandering between shops and stopping for snacks at the local cafés and restaurants. Among the stops, I recommend the Jerome History Museum (or something involving Jerome and History) an old saloon-turned museum on a street corner.
***
Tuzigoot, an awesome attraction and an even awesomer name:
After being greeted to the pistol-toting park ranger, we were told that the park closed in 10n minutes, so we jogged up the trail and took a power-lighting-speed tour of the place.
Made by the natives over 750 years ago, Tuzigoot is a large complex of homes made of mud and stone. Most of the walls are eroded, but the largest part is still intact, and you can enter it! After climbing a small staircase, you enter a very well-preserved room, up another staircase, and onto the roof, where you can get a view of about 20 miles, and look down on the eroded foundations of the surrounding rooms. After hastily descending so as to not irk the 9mm-wielding ranger, we piled into the car and left before he began shooting.
Our final stop was the Red Rock trail, a scenic route near Sedona where drivers can see some amazing rock structures, and stop and hike a few trails. We didn't hike any trails, but we did stop and build some rock Cairns (see day 6), which we were informed by some friendly Canadians also had the name (a more fun one, in my opinion) of Inukshuks in Canada.
Finally, the sun was setting, so we left for the hotel, arrived there, and ate cake (happy 56th birthday, Mom!)
April 1, 2010
We began with the usual hotel breakfast and left early for Las Vegas, only making a few stops. Our first and only planned stop was at The Museum of Northern Arizona. Our other stops, which were unplanned, were perhaps longer than the visit to the museum, and they occurred on the road.
These were stops caused by the massive traffic jams on highway 93 into Las Vegas. Highway 93 is the one that crosses over the Hoover Dam and into Vegas. Although, in mileage, it is the shortest route into the city, constant traffic jams and a small, pedestrian-plagued road across the dam make it a long, long wait. Perhaps going 3 miles took us 45 minutes. Traffic was so slow at times you could get out of your car and wander about, returning to your car when you could drive 5 yards.
So, if driving into Vegas from Arizona, find an alternate route in at all costs.
These were stops caused by the massive traffic jams on highway 93 into Las Vegas. Highway 93 is the one that crosses over the Hoover Dam and into Vegas. Although, in mileage, it is the shortest route into the city, constant traffic jams and a small, pedestrian-plagued road across the dam make it a long, long wait. Perhaps going 3 miles took us 45 minutes. Traffic was so slow at times you could get out of your car and wander about, returning to your car when you could drive 5 yards.
So, if driving into Vegas from Arizona, find an alternate route in at all costs.