Follow up to the Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon, by train, was a tough act to follow. We woke up in Williams, AZ, the day after our visit to the Canyon and considered it a day to take care of chores and rest. It was October 31, 2017, Halloween and my mother’s birthday, though she has passed.
We needed to shop at Camping World, in Flagstaff. And, since it was not much further away, we decided to have lunch in Sedona.
The Drive to Sedona
Our stop in Flagstaff was uneventful, except for the ice maker—more on that, in my next post.
Since US Hwy 89 appeared to be a narrow road, on the map, we took Interstate 17 south to State Highway 179, Exit 306, which is south of Sedona, about 12 miles. The winding drive took us by Red Rock State Park, which is rich with many unique rock formations. The view was too good not to stop for pictures! So much for my quicker route plan. We really enjoyed a short walk around the park to get various angles for photos.
And, once we arrived in Sedona, we could see why everyone talks about going there. It is an “artsy” community (my words). The population is just over 10,000 residents. There is a lot of interesting architecture and the red sandstone formations surrounding the town offer an added glow to sunrises and sunsets.
They get a lot of tourist trade. So, there are a lot of interesting shops—a favorite with women! And, there are several options for eating lunch—a favorite with men! We chose Mexican cuisine for our lunch. And, we made another stop for ice cream as we walked the area of shops.
It was getting late when we decided it best to take the fastest road out of town. It was US Hwy 89 going south. That added miles to our trip back to the RV but it was still faster than the slow, winding road going north. As we got on the eastbound road leading back to the Interstate, we could see the elevated area that surrounded Sedona, with an elevation of about 4,700 feet.
A Delay Led to Another Day
Sedona turned out to be a bigger deal than we expected. We had thought to leave camp the next day but we were too tired and still had laundry to do.
So, we booked another day at The Grand Canyon Railroad Hotel and RV Park.
Looking Forward
That evening, we researched and planned our next two stops.
First, we would head to the Phoenix area, to stay at Cotton Lane RV and Mobile Home Resort, a Good Sam’s park for those over 55. We booked for 5 days. We needed to slow down our pace for sight-seeing to allow for more maintenance time, more rest time, and to deal with our bookkeeping, etc.
Second, we made a reservation at the Catalina Spa and RV Resort, near Hot Springs, CA, for a stay of 10 days! I had to talk Connie into staying that long. My selling point was the many opportunities for sight-seeing nearby.
Bidding Williams Farewell
On our last full day in Williams, November 1, we did our laundry early. And, yes, I helped.
Then, for lunch, I took Connie to the Route 66 Diner for a burger, fries, and a shake!
Later, while Connie worked on dinner, I went for a swim at the Hotel pool. After dinner, we watched Game 7 of the World Series. The Houston Astros won.
The weather had been pleasant during our stay but the morning lows had been in the 40’s, requiring us to start each day warming up the RV with our electric fireplace.
From the Mountains to the Sunbelt
We headed to our next stop which was located in Goodyear, AZ, a southwestern suburb of Phoenix, on Wednesday, November 2nd.
We passed the Arizona Continental Divide, at over 7,000 feet, going downhill from there to our camp, which was at 997 feet above sea level. We found several plastic bottles with caved-in sides due to the change in air pressure.
Out next two stops were among my favorites because I like to swim. They had heated pools and hot tubs, which were great for my aching knees!
I shall share more fun times on my next post. Until then, safe travels!