SAnParis2

A trip report of sorts, for the 'outdoorsy' types mostly.

SAnParis2

Preface - I used my buy 1, get 2 for $99 USAir coupon for the Air portion of the trip, got the car rental through Budget & split time between 2 houses North of Prescott & in Patagonia. (The last night we stayed @ the Best Western in Tempe & I used points). Flights were on time & uneventful. The car we ended up with was a Kia Soul, which ended up working well due to its small size & me constantly having to turn around in the desert due to being, ahem, misplaced. They, of course, wanted to 'upgrade me' to an Impala. More when I've had some sleep...

SAnParis2

So we arrive in AZ & set off for the North in our little 1- cylinder KIA (@ least the kids thought it was cool + it worked out in the end). We arrived w/no problem until we entered the 'neighborhood' of our residence for the next 3 days. (Neighborhood meaning 20 acre lots w/plenty of Mts., dirt roads & little signage). After wandering about for some time, we stumbled onto a gentleman on an ATV (does that provide any clue as to our whereabouts) who was kind enough to let us use his cell phone (ours didn't work all week, thank you AT&T)& found our abode. http://www.vrbo.com/251613 Rafa & Shukyo were most excellent hosts, so we unpacked (hastily) after feeding the monsters in the Koi pond & headed off to Prescott proper for Dinner & some groceries. ***Just a note, we expected colder temps than what we ended up with, but still only took 2 small drag-alongs & a back pack for camera, kid stuff & snacks.

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So into Prescott we go (hindered a bit by the road construction that, as I recall, continues until some time next year) meander a bit & end up @ The Gurley Street Grill. More of a bar it seems than a restaurant, but they had pizza for the kids & sandwich for me & all is well w/the world. Then to Safeway for some food & back to enjoy our first night in our new 'home'. The pics, BTW, do not do it justice. Big day tomorrow - http://www.verdecanyonrr.com/

SAnParis2

So, we do the train thing. I have to admit, I can see no earthly reason to do the 1st class car, we were outside the entire trip (except when we were serving cake for my Sons' B-day) & the trip isn't cheap as it is. It could also be shorter. When we reached the turn around point @ 2 hours, I think everyone would have been happy to disembark. That being said, it is quite scenic, the people on board quite informative & it was nice being accompanied by bald & golden eagles nearly the entire trip. But I digress. Since the train ride began @ 1pm (Easter Bunny & all) we lit out early from our abode to do some letterboxing en route as well as take a look around Jerome. That combination landed us @ Mr. B's Toy & Magic shop, & I have to say, the owner is a wonderful fellow & a complete hoot. He has, indeed, found the perfect job. Then on to Clarkdale, a quick picnic & the train. On the way back 'home' we stopped back in Jerome & ate @ Quince which had some pretty good Mexican food. Sadly our options were limited, it being Easter Sunday & all, so the kids thought we should return the next day...

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Monday was a 'rest day' so we visited Tuzigoot (big hit w/the kids) & Dead Horse Ranch, The Jerome site had already been closed. The good news is the state of AZ is re-evaluating the closure of its state parks, perhaps a resolution can be found. We also explored Jerome a bit more as well as did some hiking in our 'neighborhood' where we sited some javelina, antelope & a myriad of birds. By popular demand we dined @ the Haunted Hamburger in Jerome (although we failed to see Claire) the resident ghost. It was pretty good & the toppings/condiments bar was a nice touch. The next day would be a travel day so back over the Mt. to home from Jerome. (Jerome may have been the favorite of the kids) I also began my somewhat skeptical tasting of AZ wines in this locale, but more about that later.

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Tuesday morning we set off for Patagonia. We also found this place on vrbo - http://www.vrbo.com/266824 It is also in 'Gods Country', but a beautiful home & perfect for our trip. We met Monica in Sonoita, grabbed some food @ the local grocery & Red Mt. Foods (a little produce/organic place) & headed to our new abode. Just an aside, once we passed Tucson, there were Border Patrol check points everywhere.

ellen_griswold

Really nice report! Prescott is such a great town and your accommodations look amazing! We enjoyed the haunted hamburger too; they had the best nachos anywhere. And we've had them everywhere

Looking forward to more of your report!

seetheworld

Welcome back, SAnParis! My turn now! It sounds like a great trip for your kids. I agree about the Verde Canyon train being a tad too long, but it is something you have to do at least once (and the eagles just make you feel good all over).

Looking forward to reading more!

SAnParis2

Thanks - Wed. was Kartchner Caverns day - http://azstateparks.com/Parks/KACA/index.html We did the Rotunda Tour as my Son is just 5. Everyone thought this was great & following the tour we had a picnic there as well. Following that we headed to Tombstone. The name IS accurate. You'd want to be dead if you had to live there... Not even the kids liked this kitschy tourist trap which takes the absolute worst elements of Gatlinburg, Cherokee & South of the Border and adds a 'Western' twist. We walked up the street, down the street, got an ice cream & headed back to the car. The graveyard was the most interesting part of this ill-fated excursion. (That should tell your something right there). After that, to the park in Patagonia to play a bit, then back to the house to do a little more local exploring.

SAnParis2

Thurs. off to Tubac, via Nogales - This was kind of a do nothing/wander day. Tubac (while also a bit of a tourist trap) is a little more upscale & in my eyes, tolerable. However, they think very highly of their products here & you can likely get most anything cheaper, elsewhere. We also had one of our best meals on the trip when we had lunch @ Elvira's, which provides some pretty legit & tasty Mexican food. That night we ate at the Velvet Elvis in Patagonia. A pizza joint that came highly recommended, but was nothing special in my eyes (only open hurs. - Sun.). Home to start packing for PHX.

SAnParis2

Almost forgot, en route we stopped by one of the 'ghost towns' - Fairbank. Although there wasn't much left of the town proper, the 1/2 mile or so hike to the cemetery was well worth the effort. Very interesting, on a little hill right outside of town. It looked like what one may expect a 100 yr old unkept cemetery to look like.

JJ5

Sounds like a fun trip, SAnParis2. Those are the kids of road trip experiences that kids remember the most.

SAnParis2

Friday - back to PHX to overnight in the Best Western Tempe so we are close to the Airport for our flight Sat. morning. We intended to go to Saguaro but the kids were asleep so I kept right on driving. Arrived in PHX around lunch time & headed to The Heard Museum. www.heard.org I think this is a great place for kids as they seem to have an interest in American Indian culture + the Museum has tons of 'hands on' stuff for the kids to do. Money well spent & one of my favorite museums. After that we just hung out by the pool, grabbed dinner @ Joes Crab Shack (couldn't talk them into anymore Mexican food) & readied to depart. Be back to talk about the AZ wineries & provide some other thoughts. JJ - I hope you are correct.

JJ5

Oh, my children absolutely feel that way- 30 plus years later. The fly trips and the "biggies" have paled in their minds. The road trips. NOT! Especially the ones that included totally unforeseen criteria. (For instance one time we got a flat near St. Louis.) The USA is a BIG country- with a huge mixture of both cultures and topography.

Haven't seen Jerome in quite some time. SO scared the daylights out of me there- with his driving.

Best green chiles chicken I ever had was in a whole in the wall place between Flagstaff and Phoenix- quite a bit South of Sedona. We could probably never find it again.

SAnParis2

AZ Wines - I tasted wines from several wineries in Jerome (there are two tasting rooms there that offer quite a variety) as well as visiting several around the Soniota/Elgin area. All & all it is very hit or miss (w/more miss). It very much reminds me of the NC &/or Va. wine industry 15 or so years ago. Many of the vines are young & some producers are still importing their grapes from S. AZ or Ca. That being said, there were a few diamonds in the rough. Page Springs (which I tasted in Jerome) had a couple of good wines but my absolute favorite was Kief-Joshua. They were pouring tastes of a 2005 Syrah that was very good & likely to only get better. The other thing that was disturbing was the bottle prices on many wines, w/many bottles listed in the $25-40 range. If you want to turn people onto your product, I'm not sure many of them are @ the proper price point to do so. I wish them all the best of luck & expect in the next few years for more producers to be doing a better job. - http://www.arizonavinesandwines.com/wineries.html, http://www.kiefjoshuavineyards.com/, http://www.pagespringscellars.com/, http://www.caduceus.org/

SAnParis2

The score - Overall it was a very good trip & my kids were excellent @ keeping themselves entertained, not only on the plane but also all the time we spent in the car as well as the places we stayed (the latter not having a TV). The weather was very nice, we needed none of our cold weather gear & our hosts were outstanding. That being said, next time I will stick to the North or South, we probably lost a day just driving about + I probably also over-planned a bit, I typically allow for a little more free/exploration time. Nevertheless, a successful vacation enjoyed by all.

SAnParis2

topping for mia

SAnParis2

ttt for artie