Don Goes to Congress (and Yarnell, and Rock Springs Cafe)

Before I can continue my travels south of the Valley, I do need to clear up some unfinished business with the sites north of it.

Yesterday (Sunday) Dorothy and I took the opportunity to travel north with some good friends, Rick and Pat Glenn. These two are world travelers, and in their jobs as consultants for a text book company, they get to see a great many out of the way places. Going to Yarnell and Congress was going to be good, because Pat likes to go antiquing, Rick likes to drive. For once, I was able to just sit back and enjoy the view.

Going up the 60 past Wickenberg is a great trip. Some advice, though, do not take the loop around Wickenberg, or you will miss a great little town that needs you to stop and look and get into the stores. The loop that the residents wanted so badly, has taken its toll on this small village, and there are many empty store fronts. The downtown area is somewhat historic, and good place to just relax and walk the streets.

Once out of town, though, head to Congress on the north. There are some great vistas on the way, and the surrounding landscape is almost transformed from desert to plains via what appears to be a large rock garden. Boulders are stacked on boulders in precarious positions (One set has been painted to look like a toad.).

There is not much in Congress, but we stopped at an antique shop that had a great deal of what most people would call "junk." The store had some treasures in it, such as a 1891 over/under Derringer complete with a box of ammo and various pictures and items, which although having no value, were of interest. Outside next to the building was an assortment of items that were definitely turn of the 20th Century as well as some nice lawn ornaments.

Yarnell was a nice, little town, also. A bit bigger than Congress, it boasts a couple restaurants, a pizza place, an American Legion and a goodly number antique stores. The first one that caught our eye was a place that billed itself as having "New Dead Things." Here we stayed for quite a while as chatted up the shopkeeper about her life, Yarnell and her two dogs, Sparky and Troia. She had items that were priceless and was not even trying to sell them, she just wanted to have them, "...For people to touch and feel, so they could get a sense of history." These included ancient bones, pieces of tusks, and arrowheads. I was tempted to buy a Native American grinding stone which she said was hundreds of years old, but I figured I would not be grinding peote beans any time soon.

We made other stops in the town and found all the shopkeepers rather cordial. They were easy to approach, very knowledgeable about their wares and the area, and shared their love of the community and the life it afforded them easily. I could tell that they loved living in these small towns and that the unhurried lifestyle and tranquil surroundings were just what they wanted in life.

We continued our trip up Route 89, around the square in Prescott, and then back down I-17. As we were getting on the interstate, I happened to mention that I had never been to the world renowned Rock Springs Cafe. That became our next destination.

The Rock Springs Cafe is renowned for its pies. But I have to say that the folks there make a mean Mexican Pizza. I ordered that as an appetizer, but it turned out being my meal. This monster was a 14 inch pizza with all the toppings that go on a Mexican Pizza. I am a big pizza eater, but I could not finish this, and have room for a piece of pie, so I brought the final 2/3rds home with me.

Sundays at the Rock Springs is "cream pie day". Rick got his favorite, Banana Cream (he was forced to share with Pat); Dorothy relented and had Chocolate Cream; I went against the grain and had a Jack Daniels Pecan pie. I am not going to go into the amount of moaning that was coming from our table, but leave it said that these were probably the best pie these diners have had in a long time. Rock Springs Cafe....thanks for the sugar high! ( and the slight buzz)

I didn't get to south on I-17 today... so tomorrow there will be a special edition of The Doughnut Hole 503.

Keep your eye upon the doughnut.

Doughnut

The Grand Canyon State Travels

We have had a number of visitors this summer. I like visitors because I get to share the beauty of this great state with them. I have travelled the length of Interstate 10 from Flaggstaff to Tombstone and down south on I-19 towards Nogales. I have found in my travels that one thing constantly changes, and that is the landscape. The people don't, but every twist and turn in the highway on a given day brings new sights.

Let' start in the northern part of the state. The greatest of Arizona's attractions, The Grand Canyon. I have been to the GC twice this summer, and it never ceases to amaze me. It is a "big hole in the ground" but it is a gorgeous big hole. The striations of the rock and the changing colors and contours leaves no doubt of some event or guiding hand in the painting of its grandeur.

As we return to Flaggstaff, the San Francisco Mountains rise up and grace our view. Early June still finds snow on the caps, while later in the summer, we can see "the purple mountains majesty." Although the area to the east and north of Flagg has been devastated by fire this spring, the mountains are still a wondrous sight. And the absence of heat makes the crossroads of Arizona a great escape. Add in the Phoenix Cardinals Training Camp during August, and it becomes the even more appealing.

Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon area are outstanding for sights and mysteries. Sedona is sometimes called "The Harmonic Center of the Universe" so it is filled with little shops that sell New Age items. It also has what are called Vortices in and around Sedona which supposedly help visitors feel peace and tranquility (read lots of hippies and wannabes here). It also has an area outside to the west that is a haven for UFO watchers and has an Area 51 flavor to it as it is protected by government and fenced in.

Past Cottonwood on AZ 89A is Jerome, a mystical place in its own right. This hamlet, built upon the side of a mountain, was once a mining town, but is now filled with shops, taverns and eating places. Jerome is renowned for it ghosts, and a trip to Haunted Hamburger and other places may get you tapped on the shoulder by a ghostly countenance. The drive back down from Jerome to Prescott is filled with switchbacks and hairpin turns which challenge driving skills and your inner ear as vertigo sometimes takes over. The 30 mile trip often takes about an hour, but the time goes unnoticed, as you seemingly fly down the mountain and end up on the plains just outside Prescott, the one time Capital of Arizona.

Prescott is a bustling hamlet that has unique courthouse walk. The walk has a timeline of history carved into it, and visitors can walk the trail of time and get an idea of the history behind the community which wanted so badly to be the leader of state. A stroll down Whiskey Row and a visit to bars along it entertains visitors with spirits of the liquid kind and stories of spirits of ethereal kind. Prescott Rodeo Days offers a look back to "the thrilling days of yesteryear." (Although you won't see the Lone Ranger anywhere.)

From Prescott, travelers can choose to go back to I-17 and visit Campe Verde one of the first outposts of the US Army, or go to Montezuma's Castle, a city built around 1100AD and abandoned in 1400AD by the Sinagua Indians. (Montezuma was never there). For more thrills of Ghost towns, a quick trip south on AZ 60 and stops in Congress and Yarnell can bring more spirits and stories. Wickenburg is the largest town this way, and it is trying to stay true to its Western Heritage while embracing vineyards and wineries. This way takes you in the "back door" to the valley and you find yourself on Grand Avenue on the west side of town.

All along the way there are many shops, restaurants in which to stop. In all of them you will find people who are proud of their state, and more than happy to see you. Politics never enters conversations unless someone (read here, you) bring it up. Then Arizonans are passionate about their freedom, their rights, and making sure people understand their issues.

On my next entry (Monday) we'll explore the lands south of the valley, including a Titan Missile Silo.

Doughnut