Annie's Simple Life: nomad life

Showing posts with label nomad life. Show all posts

Monday, February 25, 2019

Route 66 Twin Arrows

Since I was unable to camp at Walnut Canyon, I drove until I was out of what seemed to be the smoke zone. I thought I'd camp at the old Twin Arrows, and was happy so find a brand new casino across the street, where I was able to spend the night.

I can still see the smoke in the distance. It's headed this way in the photo, and when I woke up next morning, I could smell smoke. When I drove back through a couple of days later, it was smoky here.

This is a friendly place to boondock. I called and asked and was told it was fine to camp in the parking lot if I was going to play. I spent maybe $60 playing the slots and having dinner. I had a good time, so it was worth it. Be sure and sign up at the Customer Service area, because you get to spin a wheel and get $$$ free play. I won $50 free play and spent several hours playing the penny slots on that free play. FUN!

I had the buffet for dinner, and frankly, it wasn't worth the price. I've had MUCH better buffet meals at other casinos. If I were to do it again, I'd stay here, but would either eat in the van or find food before arriving.

The REAL Twin Arrows

The above photo is all I could see of the REAL Twin Arrows in the dark.

Next morning I can see the smoke approaching

The Casino parking lot

I headed out early and stopped at a rest stop a few miles out of town to make coffee and wait for the sunrise.

Next stop, Winslow.

Love,
Annie

Route 66 - Little Colorado River Gorge

One of the places I stopped was at this Little Colorado River Gorge Interpretive Center. There is a donation fee - and lots of Native American art and jewelry sold here as well. It was certainly worth the stop, and the canyon was nearly as breathtaking as the Grand Canyon itself.

Those green specks at the bottom are large trees.

See the people at the top to get perspective of how deep this canyon is.

The Four Sacred Mountains:

Here is a map of other Interpretive Sites and Monuments worth seeing.

From here, continued on toward Flagstaff where I planned to stop for a week or so and camp with some van friends. I was shocked to see tons of smoke billowing over the valley as I drove in and my heart sank. I got online and learned that the Forest Service was doing controlled burns to help stop a wildfire in the area. This changed my plans, as I cannot tolerate smoke with my MCS.

I found a mail lady and asked her if she knew anything about the fires and if she thought Walnut Canyon would be affected, as that was my next stop. She thought I'd be ok there.

I headed further on to Walnut Canyon. When I arrived, I spoke with the Interpretive Center employees, who told me they expected the smoke would reach them by afternoon.

Bummer.

Super Bummer.

I went ahead and scoped out camping for next trip.

As you drive toward the Interpretive Center, just before you arrive, you will cross a state road that goes in both directions. You can turn left OR right and camp anywhere off that road. I found many camp spots but they were full! Probably people escaping the smoke! The few that were left were impossible for my Toyota Sienna to access because of very deep ruts in the road. I would have bottomed out had I attempted access. However, if you have higher clearance, you'd probably be ok. The camp spots ranged from forested to meadows and were quite pretty. Here is a photo I took of one that I managed to get into. Unfortunately, there was a HUGE pile of trash left by previous campers; sofa parts, boxes, metal, bricks, just all sorts of things. But the meadow itself was very pretty due to the recent rains.

I will definitely be back to camp here!

The lady was right, by the way. When I drove back through 2 days later, this area was inundated with heavy smoke!

GPS: 35.177753, -111.50106

Route 66 Tusayun Ruins and Museum September 2018

On my way out of the Grand Canyon,
I stopped to visit the Tusayan Ruins and the Museum.

Cohonina and ancestral Pueblo (Kayenta Anasazi) people lived in this area in prehistoric times. The ancestral Puebloans built Tusayan about AD 1185. Excavation of the Tusayan ruins was conducted in 1930 under the direction of Harold S. Gladwin and the staff of the Gila Pueblo of Globe, Arizona. They named it Tusayan following the Spanish nomenclature for the district. The exact meaning of the word has been lost. The ruin is unique in that no attempt was made at reconstruction, and portions of the ruin were deliberately left unexcavated. It is one of the most heavily visited archeological sites in the National Park system (from the museum notes).

Living Quarters

Large Kiva

Display of Corn, Beans, and Squash growing.

Route 66 Grand Canyon South Rim September 2018

Leaving Williams, I headed up the road to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.

I arrived late afternoon and stopped at the visitor's center to get an idea where to park for the night. I got in free with my Federal Senior Pass.

That thing sure has paid for itself!

The nice lady at the Visitor Center told me I could camp at any of the dispersed camping areas right outside the park. There were many state roads I saw as I drove in, and any of those were fair game for camping.

I headed back out of the park and though it was pretty full, I managed to find a nice spot away from the dusty main road where I spent a very peaceful night under a million-starred sky!

My back yard this night was beautiful!

My iPhone just can't capture the moon and stars. It was breathtaking.

Next morning, I was awake at 2 am and couldn't get back to sleep.

I had read some of the handouts from the visitor's center,

and learned that there are free shuttles with stops all over the park,

but that most people begin by parking AT the visitor center,

and that lot fills up early!

So, I quietly drove out to the main road, keeping my lights low as I passed other camps, and headed to the Visitor's Center. There, I caught another few hours sleep and at first light, headed across the street to STARBUCKS!

I met some nice folks in the Starbucks lot who were also earlybirds and waiting for their morning coffee and for Starbucks to open.

Once I had coffee, I rode that shuttle to a few stops and walked the southern rim trail.

I don't know if all these photos will load, but the Grand Canyon is absolutely a national treasure! The views were stunning!

Don't know if you can see the girls out on the ledge - illegally - Darwin at his best!

After hiking the rim,

I wanted to grab a shower,

so I found showers at

the Camper Services Building at the entrance to Mather Campground.

8 am – 6 pm core hours, last laundry wash 4:45 pm.

The showers were $2 for 8 minutes,

and the water was lovely and hot!

Take quarters!

Once I had my shower, I headed toward Flagstaff.

I didn't want to drive all the way back to Route 66,

so I turned East on Hwy 64 inside the park.

It was a smart move, because on the way out, I passed many, many turnouts,

all with spectacular views of the canyons.

Route 66 - Kingman to Grand Canyon

When the temperature reached 112 degrees in Desert Hot Springs,

I knew I needed to get out for a few days.

I decided to continue my trip on Route 66

which I'd begun in the Springtime.

I got a late start and didn't arrive in Kingman

until after dark.

I found a good boondocking spot for the night.

This was the view next morning:

A wonderful sunrise!

In case anyone is interested,

the GPS coordinates for this spot are:

35.205741, -114.096583

There were maybe 3 other cars and vans here.

I felt safe.

There was a brick toilet building, but I didn't go into it.

I would definitely stay here again.

At first light, I made myself some coffee,

and after my yogurt and strawberry breakfast,

I headed to town.

Even though I'd stopped in Kingman earlier this Spring,

I wanted to stop again and see the Mojave Museum,

which I missed last year.

I'm really happy that I stopped there.

It's a wonderful museum with a lot to see about the local native tribes,

as well as Route 66.

A ticket was $3 and covered all 3 museums in Kingman.

Here are some photos from that museum.

These plates of pottery went on to tell the entire tale of the tribes in the area. I won't ruin the surprise for you, but definitely worth seeing!

Plants used for dye in the Indian blankets

Brands used before 1895

Barbed wire samples. I come from a farming family so I found this fascinating!

A rifle left in a tree years ago, and the tree grew around it. We have one of these at the Forestry Center in Portland, Oregon. I guess it wasn't an uncommon practice to leave your rifle behind?

I remember gas tanks like this one at my grandfather's Texaco station in Hanford!

There was also an entire wall of portraits of every

American president and his wife.

I made a quick stop to pick up a free map at the Visitor Center next door.
They gave me a new passport! I had one from Spring, but had left it at home. I guess you can get stamps in this at each town along the route, then mail it in for a certificate. I probably won't do it, but the passport is a nice souvenir.

After visiting Kingman, I headed up old Route 66 toward Williams. I stopped in all the small towns along the way and took in the sights. I was getting hungry for lunch and began looking for food.

First thing I saw was Giganicus Headicus! I thought about stopping here for lunch, but after seeing their menu, decided to go a bit further.