Well, I got a kick out of the steady stream of funny motels and restaurants running all along the main drag (which is now the I40, but used to be Route 66). Oh look, express liquor (for when you just can't wait to get drunk). And a big sign that simply says GUNS. I guess that says it all. :-) I also get a kick out of the "no guns" signs you see whenever you enter a national park. What?! No guns?! How will I protect myself? What if I'm attacked by a bear?!
As we're not going to Toroweap, we spent last night deciding what to do instead of the extreme wilderness trek. We didn't want to hit the South Rim on a weekend, so we looked at day trips from Flagstaff instead. Eventually, we decided on Walnut Canyon National Monument, and the Petrified Forest/Painted Desert.
Our GPS considered how to get to Walnut Canyon - take the speedy paved Interstate, or take the road called Old Walnut Canyon Road? Guess which one she took? This time, she successfully tricked us, because Old Walnut Canyon Road sounded legit. However, eventually we realized that by "old", they mean that the Sinagua peoples used it back when they lived in their cliff dwellings in Walnut Canyon.
In any case, it was a bumpy, rocky road - and if we didn't like driving 5 minutes on that, we would have hated driving to Toroweap.
It's 28C today, which may be a tad bit cool for Arizona; I'm not really sure. However, it is super windy. The digital signs over the interstate had warnings of high winds, and I could really feel it buffeting the car as we drove along.
When we arrived at Walnut Canyon, we laughed to see the sign at the park desk about how GPS units can lead people astray. We mentioned that our GPS had done the same thing (the ranger said we were only the 990th person to tell them that this year), but at least it wasn't as bad as when it had tried to kill us near Goblin Valley.
Anyway, Walnut Canyon was a nice stop. If I had to be a cliff dweller, I'd probably pick Walnut Canyon, as the cliffs here are not as extreme as at Mesa Verde. Much more accessible, and the residents probably didn't have nearly as many fatal falls. :-)
In the park, we also saw that the prickly Yucca plant actually grows fruit that you can eat. Who knew? It's not just a nasty Aloe Vera. And when you're walking the trails through the canyon, you see lots of little lizards, very speedy little things.
When we finished the trail and headed back through the visitor center, the guy at the front desk remarked that we finished quickly. Yes, sir! We are strong, sturdy Canadians! You Americans walk slowly.
Actually, there appears to be a million and two German tourists in this area of the country, along with about 40 Brits. The Canadians are harder to pick out of the crowd, but I hear there's at least two of them staying in Flagstaff. :-)
Moving on towards the Petrified Forest, we were back on the I40. We laughed at the sign for Two Guns, 1 Mile. But we laughed from the safety of our speeding car, because that looks like a place where they kill tourists for fun.
Also, there were a plethora of signs for the Meteor Crater, Meteor Crater 1/4 mile, Meteor Crater now, OMG you're going to miss the Meteor Crater if you don't exit now, now, NOW!!! Too late, you missed the Meteor Crater. :-(
Yes, we deliberately skipped the Meteor Crater. It's actually a privately owned landmark, and admission was $15 per person in 2007. You can't hike down, you can just stare at the hole in the ground. Wow. Thanks, but no.
Anyway, no sooner does Meteor Crater stopped nagging you to visit, when we start seeing signs for Meteor City. Meteor City Indian Blankets! Real jewellery made by Indians! And a place called Jack Rabbit's something or other that noted it had "Nice Indians". What a relief! I hate those mean Indians they have everywhere else. ;-)
Oh, let's not forget the roadside signs for Knife City, where a sequence of roadside signs informs you that you can get kitchen knives, guns, high capacity clips, and all kinds of self-defense items. Someone breaks in, you use your throwing knives, shoot him with your high-capacity clips (that'll be 110 bullet holes), and then - just to finish him off - you pepper spray him. Ouch - that stings!
Eventually, we did have to exit the Interstate and drive through Holbrook, which has the Wigwam Hotel. OMG, if I didn't already have a room, we would SO be staying there. They're cute little wooden wigwams! Also, as Holbrook is right next to the entrance to Petrified Forest, there are a million rock and petrified wood vendors. Little mom & pop shops with dinosaur statues outside. It's like being back in Drumheller. ;-)
Petrified Forest/Painted Desert is essentially a drive along a closed highway, with Petrified Forest at one end and Painted Desert at the other (and visitor centres at both ends). So it's a drive-through park with lots of pullouts and hiking ttrails on the way.
Petrified Forest is, as you'd expect, a great expanse of desert with petrified wood littered everywhere. When you enter the park, you are warned that it is illegal to take any of the petrified wood, and that they may inspect your vehicle when you leave the park.
Our first hike was probably the longest, through a field of fallen logs that have turned into stone (likely from a long-ago volcanic eruption at the nearby Sunset crater), and to Agate House, which is a pueblo constructed from petrified wood. Probably the sturdiest pueblo ever, but the poor builders likely ended up with hernias.
The Blue Mesa hike was probably the hardest, just because you hike down from the hills, and then back up again. Very soft hills, you can tell the rain cuts into them whenever it falls. White, blue, pink stripes. Again, very reminiscent of Drumheller's badlands, with maybe slightly more exotic colouring.
In the Painted Desert, there was a Route 66 stop on the road; we found out that portions of the park road used to be Route 66. The Painted Desert is very beautiful, but photos don't really seem to catch the depth of the colours, or the panoramic sweep of it.
Still in the park, there was the Painted Desert Inn, which is now a little museum/gift shop. So beautiful! I'd pay a good bit of money to stay there. I guess maybe a lot of people did. :-)
Then it was back to Flagstaff. The I40 heading into east into Flagstaff is a freaking busy trucking corridor. It's like a forest of semi-trucks, all playing leapfrog with each other and hopefully noticing the tiny little cars sneaking in around them. Hello, I'm small! Don't crush me! At this point, you're really aware of the wind, and those big rigs weaving around on the road.
After we made it safely back to Flagstaff, we wandered through their "historic downtown" for a while. It's really very nice. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), most of the shops were closed. There are so many outdoor sports gear places. They're selling Patagonia, Columbia, North Face, and I'm standing with my face pressed up against the glass, drooling.
Eventually, we tracked down a place to get ice cream - no, not an everyday DQ (we have those at home), but a Cold Stone Creamery. They'reinfamous for being heavy on the calories. I had an "Oh Fudge" milkshake. When we get back to the hotel, Stephen looks up the calorie count and tells me that it has 1600 calories. Oh Fudge~! I'd better go climb another Blue Mesa now...
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| You're in Flagstaff - where do you want to be? |
Our GPS considered how to get to Walnut Canyon - take the speedy paved Interstate, or take the road called Old Walnut Canyon Road? Guess which one she took? This time, she successfully tricked us, because Old Walnut Canyon Road sounded legit. However, eventually we realized that by "old", they mean that the Sinagua peoples used it back when they lived in their cliff dwellings in Walnut Canyon.
In any case, it was a bumpy, rocky road - and if we didn't like driving 5 minutes on that, we would have hated driving to Toroweap.
It's 28C today, which may be a tad bit cool for Arizona; I'm not really sure. However, it is super windy. The digital signs over the interstate had warnings of high winds, and I could really feel it buffeting the car as we drove along.
When we arrived at Walnut Canyon, we laughed to see the sign at the park desk about how GPS units can lead people astray. We mentioned that our GPS had done the same thing (the ranger said we were only the 990th person to tell them that this year), but at least it wasn't as bad as when it had tried to kill us near Goblin Valley.
Anyway, Walnut Canyon was a nice stop. If I had to be a cliff dweller, I'd probably pick Walnut Canyon, as the cliffs here are not as extreme as at Mesa Verde. Much more accessible, and the residents probably didn't have nearly as many fatal falls. :-)
In the park, we also saw that the prickly Yucca plant actually grows fruit that you can eat. Who knew? It's not just a nasty Aloe Vera. And when you're walking the trails through the canyon, you see lots of little lizards, very speedy little things.
When we finished the trail and headed back through the visitor center, the guy at the front desk remarked that we finished quickly. Yes, sir! We are strong, sturdy Canadians! You Americans walk slowly.
Actually, there appears to be a million and two German tourists in this area of the country, along with about 40 Brits. The Canadians are harder to pick out of the crowd, but I hear there's at least two of them staying in Flagstaff. :-)
Moving on towards the Petrified Forest, we were back on the I40. We laughed at the sign for Two Guns, 1 Mile. But we laughed from the safety of our speeding car, because that looks like a place where they kill tourists for fun.
Also, there were a plethora of signs for the Meteor Crater, Meteor Crater 1/4 mile, Meteor Crater now, OMG you're going to miss the Meteor Crater if you don't exit now, now, NOW!!! Too late, you missed the Meteor Crater. :-(
Yes, we deliberately skipped the Meteor Crater. It's actually a privately owned landmark, and admission was $15 per person in 2007. You can't hike down, you can just stare at the hole in the ground. Wow. Thanks, but no.
Anyway, no sooner does Meteor Crater stopped nagging you to visit, when we start seeing signs for Meteor City. Meteor City Indian Blankets! Real jewellery made by Indians! And a place called Jack Rabbit's something or other that noted it had "Nice Indians". What a relief! I hate those mean Indians they have everywhere else. ;-)
Oh, let's not forget the roadside signs for Knife City, where a sequence of roadside signs informs you that you can get kitchen knives, guns, high capacity clips, and all kinds of self-defense items. Someone breaks in, you use your throwing knives, shoot him with your high-capacity clips (that'll be 110 bullet holes), and then - just to finish him off - you pepper spray him. Ouch - that stings!
Petrified Forest/Painted Desert is essentially a drive along a closed highway, with Petrified Forest at one end and Painted Desert at the other (and visitor centres at both ends). So it's a drive-through park with lots of pullouts and hiking ttrails on the way.
Petrified Forest is, as you'd expect, a great expanse of desert with petrified wood littered everywhere. When you enter the park, you are warned that it is illegal to take any of the petrified wood, and that they may inspect your vehicle when you leave the park.
Our first hike was probably the longest, through a field of fallen logs that have turned into stone (likely from a long-ago volcanic eruption at the nearby Sunset crater), and to Agate House, which is a pueblo constructed from petrified wood. Probably the sturdiest pueblo ever, but the poor builders likely ended up with hernias.
The Blue Mesa hike was probably the hardest, just because you hike down from the hills, and then back up again. Very soft hills, you can tell the rain cuts into them whenever it falls. White, blue, pink stripes. Again, very reminiscent of Drumheller's badlands, with maybe slightly more exotic colouring.
In the Painted Desert, there was a Route 66 stop on the road; we found out that portions of the park road used to be Route 66. The Painted Desert is very beautiful, but photos don't really seem to catch the depth of the colours, or the panoramic sweep of it.
Still in the park, there was the Painted Desert Inn, which is now a little museum/gift shop. So beautiful! I'd pay a good bit of money to stay there. I guess maybe a lot of people did. :-)
Then it was back to Flagstaff. The I40 heading into east into Flagstaff is a freaking busy trucking corridor. It's like a forest of semi-trucks, all playing leapfrog with each other and hopefully noticing the tiny little cars sneaking in around them. Hello, I'm small! Don't crush me! At this point, you're really aware of the wind, and those big rigs weaving around on the road.
After we made it safely back to Flagstaff, we wandered through their "historic downtown" for a while. It's really very nice. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), most of the shops were closed. There are so many outdoor sports gear places. They're selling Patagonia, Columbia, North Face, and I'm standing with my face pressed up against the glass, drooling.
Eventually, we tracked down a place to get ice cream - no, not an everyday DQ (we have those at home), but a Cold Stone Creamery. They're
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