Day 22 - Saturday, June 21, 2008

Day 22

Prescott to Wickenburg to Campe Verde to Sedona, Arizona

On the hottest day of the year (our car temperature guage read 117 degrees F for the outside!), we visited the Sonoro Desert and saw the beautiful forest of saguero cacti. Yes, we're crazy. But crazy in love with the southwest.

We drove down scenic, historic 89A south through the dust balls of Wilhoit, Peeples Valley, and Yarnell.

Just on the other side of Yarnell, coming out of the Weaver Mountains we saw our first saguero cactus. We stopped for a photo and it was 105 degrees F outside.

We went south to Wickenburg and then turned east on Rt. 74 to catch I-17 back up north, looking at the glorious cacti all the way and watching the temperature rise to 118F! Seriously, though, we hardly noticed the heat -- it's a dry heat, you know -- and you get used to it! When the temperature dropped 20 degrees to 98F, it felt like a cold front had blown in and we all got our jackets.

Once on I-17, we went north and stopped at Montezuma's Castle, an amazing cliff dwelling. More on that later.

Then we went north to see Montezuma's Well, but it was closed, so we will return tomorrow. We headed into Sedona for a hotel for the night and got to see another blazing sunset on Bell Rock and Cathedral Rock.

Fabu.

Day 21 - Friday, June 20, 2008

Day 21

Prescott, Arizona

Today was basically a day of taking it easy in beautiful Prescott. Except for the exceptional heat, all the humans agreed they wanted to move here. It may even be edging out Sedona as the place to retire to.

We all slept late, then had half a car of laundry to wash. We visited the local public library (there are two downtown), and then because everyone was so tired we looked for a hotel to stay in Prescott again. It was tough to find one because of all the activities going on this weekend: baseball tournaments, Frontier Days, Native American Pow Wow at Watson Lake, and general summer tourists.

We got the last non-smoking room in town at the Prescottonian and then had a busy schedule of napping, swimming, and a drive to scenic Watson Lake.

That evening we went to the Whisky Row tourist shops to get some presents for the little human because we are celelbrating her birthday early. We had a watermelon cake in the room and then retired from a fine day by falling asleep to the Discovery Channel.

Prescott is perfect for this bear.

Day 20 - Thursday, June 19, 2007

Day 20


Sedona, Arizona to Prescott, Arizona


The archeologist went out on a private vortex tour to get her ribs some healing energy and to get her chakras bolted with white light, rainbow light, golden light, and Light Brights. She came back all enlightened and blubbering about how much she loved everyone. Personally, for my bear tastes, I liked her better when she was in pain....

Afterwards she wanted to share some of the vortex spots with the other humans, so we went to the Airport Vortex and the Airport Mesa, with a grand sweeping view of the Sedona area. It was literally 101 degrees F, so we didn't stay in either place long.

Finally, we bid happy trails to Sedona and took off down 89A south. We took a quick trip through Red Rock State Park just out of town and then hit all the little towns along the way: Cottonwood, Clarkdale, the Turizgoot Peublo Ruins, Jerome, and then ended the day in Prescott.

Between Jerome and Prescott we drove the curvy curves of Mingus Mountain and the little human got a touch of her altitude sickness again.

When we got to Prescott we relaxed in the beautiful square with the county building in the downtown historic area. Then we checked into the historic St. Michael's hotel, the corner stone of "Whiskey Row" where all the "wild west" saloons were during the territorial days of Arizona.

We at ate the equally historic The Palace saloon, where the little human had great fun busting through the swining saloon doors. (Don't worry -- it was a family restaurant just playing up its rough past for tourists.)

The archeologist took photos of the honky tonks on Whiskey Row and we all got to bed late.