On the road to Tortilla Flat

To get to Tortilla Flat involves a lot of winding and curving along a road that at times you wonder if you would fit with a car passing by. Then there are the one lane bridges that you have to take turns using, let's just say not everyone knows how to play fair. It is a popular road and heavily traveled especially on holiday weekends. The road leads to Canyon Lake and if you stay on past Tortilla Flat goes to Roosevelt Lake. Motorcyclists love to travel in this area and Tortilla Flat is a popular resting place along the road. We have gone out here one other time and never past Tortilla Flat. Basically this is a two building town. They have a shop that sells souvenirs and ice cream and then there is the cafe/saloon. The bar stools are actual saddles. It is all very old and rustic, a fun place to visit but not too many people live here. I believe the population is 6. The journey to Tortilla Flat is a very scenic one, traveling through National Forest Property and past Canyon Lake. It was a beautiful day and nice to be out in the fresh air and sunshine.

Tucson or Bust!

Some interesting things to see on our trip to Tucson. There was the skeleton of what I don't know, but I am thinking I am glad whatever it was, wasn't alive when I ventured on that dirt road. There are the weeping palms, which I mistakenly refer to as the weeping willows - I loved my willow tree and well guess it was on my mind. (note to self: make a willow tree post) There is the abandoned not to be built any time soon subdivision that the weeping palms are welcoming you to. There is the now requisite religious sign. There are the fancy underpasses in Tucson all colorful and welcoming, and the not so uncommon totally dry river. Then there is Frizzle driving home. Apparently after my driving "incident" on the move here, it has been decided Frizzle would be a better driver than me.

On the Road To, In and Around Sedona

We got a late start on our trip to Sedona/Oak Creek. I had a dentist appointment at 7 AM and expected to be done by 7:30, I mean all they had to do was superglue a couple crowns in my mouth, how hard could that be. At 8:30 after having my mouth open for 1.5 hours and almost swallowing one of those crowns I was done, finally! So it was closer to 9:30 by the time we left for our third adventure in geocaching. Check out the huge truck full of hay that for some reason had to cut in front of us on the highway going 75!!! OMG did I mention I get carsick? That didn't help at all.

One of the spots we went to for a cache was a Catholic church in Sedona, in a most gorgeous area with breathtaking views. We didn't actually go into the church, but the outside areas were really nice. They had multiple different sitting areas with these great stone benches and statues with candles, nice places for meditation, sitting and enjoying the purple mountains majesty and feeling the swirl of energy as the vortex surrounds you. (If you're into that) They also had the Stations of the Cross outside, going around the perimeter of the church and buildings. Very relaxing, very beautiful, a nice trip.

Prescott, AZ

Downtown Prescott was having a Whiskey Road Shootout, I am guessing a reenactment of some shootout from the Wild Wild West. William says they do a lot of that cowboy shooting, old town stuff out here and they sure do. I am not much into the wild wild west and shooting but people watching was in full swing. Doing a reenactment means dressing the part and these participants were having a great time in their costumes, shooting off guns and acting all western.

Prescott is Arizona's best preserved town with more than 600 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places. There was an abandoned Motor Inn. It was really sad to see the building is such disrepair but you can just imagine all the people that have stayed there in the past when they were in the area for a vacation or just passing through. We saw some interesting "bumper stickers" throughout the town, I believe the pictures speak for themselves.

When was the last time you have seen a public phone booth on a street corner? Not sure if they don't have the network behind them up there or what but that was certainly something I haven't seen in a long, long time. The last couple pictures were taken from the window of the van going 75 on the Interstate . Enough said, lots of scenery to be seen.

Cemetery and Altar

Roadside altar

We found this altar right on the roadside before entering Miami, AZ. It was pretty cool, someone has made the ultimate in roadside memorials and not a distracting roadside memorial. There was plenty of room to pull off the road, park and look around. People tacked pictures of their loved ones up inside and lit candles and left poems and other memorials. In Miami we found this cemetery that was really unique. The plots were sectioned off by cement slabs. Some had picket fences around them, some wrought iron, some had stone laid on the top and some were left plain. Grass doesn't grow that well so they were more dried grass and dirt. It was very interesting to walk around and see all the different gravesites. Sound a little creepy? Well it wasn't, it was fascinating. Oh, the things you will see!!!

Globe Hotshots

Smoke signals to lead us back??

No it was a forest fire!

Geocaching isn't just about the destination it is about the journey. When we were up on the mountainside at the ranch, we could see the smoke coming over the distant hills. I naturally thought it was the geocaching helpers sending us a smoke signal to get us back to the main road, nevermind that there was only one way in and one way out or the fact that we got in there with a GPS and apparently it would find our way out if we needed it to. No I was sure it was a "sign". When we got out on the road we saw the fires and the Globe Hotshots who were on the scene and keeping things under control. We are not sure if it was a random forest fire or a controlled burn, but either way it was my first forest fire and pretty amazing looking.