Phoenix and Scottsdale, AZ

I wanted to visit the area since I have an old friend living in Mesa, AZ but also so that I could visit Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright’s laboratory in the desert west. I guess those Wisconsin winters got to be a bit much in his later years. I have been fascinated by his experiment here and while the house and buildings are very much in his style, everything was actually built by FLW and his interns at the school. There is only one remaining fellow still residing at the school from this time. During the tour we were told that they intend to launch a new school of architecture after a long hiatus.

A special treat for this visit was a limited showing of an installation of Dale Chihuly art glass in the form of several large installations throughout the property. I’ve been interested in Chihuly since taking stained glass classes and it was great to see such grand works in this setting.

The tour guide said that while photos are allowed you need permission to use for blogs and other public uses, so I’ll only post a few here, contact me if you would like to see more photos from my visit.

After spending most of the day on the tour I was starving and happened to find a total “hole in the wall” spot for some of the best chicken and waffles I have ever had. If you find yourself in the Phoenix/Sun City area you need to check out Rags real chicken & waffles!

After spending a few days in the big city I was ready to hit the road and continue west. My next stop was at Alamo Lake State Park and what a change from the city it was! The nearest town of Wenden has a population of 375 and not much to offer, no gas or grocery store. The nearest spot to stock up is in Parker about an hour away. The park is nice and it would be a great place to spend time if you had a Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) as there are miles of trails all around the park. Almost all the campers I saw there either had a side by side OHV or a boat so they could fish on the lake.

With no cell phone signal at all in camp I spent my time riding my bike, reading and taking day trips to explore the area. I took a ride to explore the Quartzsite area, famous as being a great spot to boondock and home to lots of snowbirds enjoying the warm Arizona winters. I was not impressed, too much time in the desert isn’t agreeing with me, I’m willing to give it another shot, but at this point of my trip I have to say I was not thrilled with the scenery.

After nearly a week in the “big city” it was time to move on and continue west. My next stop was a quick overnight in Congress, AZ at a Harvest Host location. I had picked this spot as it was on the way and also close to the Granite Mountain hot shots memorial park the site is dedicated to the 19 hot shots who had perished in 2013 fighting the Yarnell Hill fire. I wanted to visit and do the hike there. Perched on an impossible hillside overlooking the valley below it such challenging terrain. The hike was super steep and difficult even with the steps that have been carved into the hillside and I was not carrying anything, I can’t imagine carrying all the firefighting gear and covering the same ground.

Since I still had plenty of daylight after the hike I decided to make the short drive into Prescott which is just an hour away. I wanted to check it out as I had missed it when I went by on the East side of the state. It is a neat spot for sure, at a bit higher elevation than the surrounding area and there were even TREES!! The road I took (Hwy 89) to get there is also a great windy mountain road that would be fun to drive with the top down on a sunny day. I’m glad I took the time to check it out, Prescott is a cool little town. (Sorry I didn’t take any pictures).

At this point in the trip, I’ve been on the road for almost 9 months and it is starting to wear on me. I also think the proximity to the west coast where I have spent most of my life is starting to make me want to get “home” even though I don’t have a place to go of my own yet. I guess I can say that I now know my limit for time on the road… its 9 months 😝