Snow Storms in Arizona...WHAT THE HELL!

March 5, 2023 is the day we arrived back in the US from Mexico. We had a wonderful experience in Mexico but now it was time to head back to Calgary, of course with many fun stops along the way. First stop, Voyager RV Resort in Tucson, Arizona. This park was not only a 55+ park but it also has 16 pickleball courts, a golf course, several indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a fitness centre, health clinic, massage and chiropractic services, 2 dog parks and even dog grooming services, and so much more!! What a great stop! We were in the Tucson area for 6 days and went to some pretty cool places, starting with the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. The museum is 98 acres and includes a zoo, botanical gardens, art gallery, natural history museum and aquarium. 85% of the Museum is outdoors with over two miles of walking paths and 242 animal species and also has one of the world’s most comprehensive regional mineral collections. It was a such a wonderful day. Loved the mountain lions just chillin’ and the javelinas!!

Next, Colossal Cave Mountain Park where Barry turned into a cowboy!! So we had the choice to do the Ladder Tour into the colossal cave located in the Rincon mountains, which is one of the largest dry caves in North America, or take a trail ride through the La Posta Quemada Ranch. Barry had never been on a horse, and this seemed pretty low key so thought it was a great opportunity for Barry to cowboy up!! La Posta Quemada, or the burnt station, has a long history that includes bandits, stagecoaches, ranchers, hotel-owners, cowboys and the Civilian Conservation Corps among others. Its name derived from a nearby Butterfield Stagecoach stop that burned to the ground the in 1860s. The station was rebuilt, only to succumb to a fire a second time. Our trail ride was along the old National Mail Stagecoach route through the Sonoran Desert. Barry’s horse was named Tough…mine was Maverick. Look at my cowboy!!

As much fun as the horsebacking riding was, we will definitely be going back to tour the colossal cave system!!

Before leaving Tucson we had to take a day to explore the other side of the Saguaros National Park, home to the nation’s largest cacti, the giant saguaro! Saguaros National park was actually declared a national monument in 1933 and was only officially elevated to a national park in 1994. We hiked a few shorter trails throughout the park which were lined with many different species of plant life. The desert was on a verge of exploding with the incredibly vibrant desert colours but we were a bit too early in the spring, but we did get a glimpse.

Okay, this dude was just funny!!

I was also determined to find a desert tortoise or a javelina even climbing up Javelina Rocks, but it didn’t happen! Next time. We definitely will be returning to Tucson in the future.

Nope, can't see any desert tortoise anywhere!!

No javelinas up here, Husband!!!

Next we stopped at Verde Valley RV Report in Cottonwood, AZ. We were not disappointed with our RV site!! There are pros and cons to a big rig. The con is we’re limited as to where we can fit, especially in national parks; however, when we can fit we very often get some of the best and biggest sites. This site was one of the biggest and best for sure!!

We were excited to stay in Cottonwood because of its location. Easy drive distance to the ghost town of Jerome, and our favorite place in Arizona, Sedona! Unfortunately it was in Cottonwood where the weather started getting pretty bad and actually followed us all the way back to Calgary!! We made the best of it though.

Jerome is located in the Black Hills of Yavapai county in Arizona, over 5,000 feet above sea level and was born a copper mining camp in 1876. It was the fourth largest city in Arizona with a population peaking at around 15,000 in the 1920s and was also known as the wickedest town in the west. The Great Depression slowed the mining operation, and the claim eventually went to Phelps Dodge, who still holds the claim to this day. WWII greatly increased the demand for copper but after the war demand decreased dramatically. With Jerome’s economy completely dependant upon the demand for cooper, Phelps Dodge Mine closed in 1953. The remaining population of 50-100 people started promoting the town as a historic ghost town, and in 1967 Jerome was designated a National Historic District. Once a thriving mining camp full of miners, bootleggers, gamblers and prostitutes, today Jerome is a thriving tourist destination full of artists, musicians, saloons, gift shops and incredible views.

You can’t truly appreciate the history of Jerome unless you walk around the town. It’s palpable!! Highly recommend a visit!!

I had also planned a couple of hikes in Sedona and possibly a pink jeep tour through Sedona’s backcountry canyons. We were quite excited; however, with all the rain, access to a lot of trailheads were washed out and no hiking this time. Having said that, walking downtown Sedona never disappoints! The views of the red mountains, the shops, just great vibes everywhere!!

From Cottonwood, we went to Homolovi State Park in Winslow, AZ. Homolovi State Park was established in response to public concern about the devastation of the Homolovi sties by illegal collectors of pre-historic artifacts. The damage to the sites peaked in the 1960s when a backhoe was being used to dig through burials and kivas. Can you believe that! Winslow residents and leaders of the Hopi people began to work to protect these sites. The US legislature established the State Park in 1986. Sad to say when we were staying in the park there was not much left of Homolovi I. However, Homolovi II and III were very interesting!

Okay, let me tell you about Winslow, Arizona!! We all know the song! I knew “standing on the corner in Winslow Arizona” would be cheesy and funny, but OMG we had more fun than I could imagine!!! Another one of those towns where you’re so submersed in the history is palpable!! We got there early in the morning to beat the crowd, which was a great idea. We owned the town for the first 2 hours!! Imagine walking around Winslow AZ, and the Eagles are playing everywhere! Okay, the people working in the shops may be losing their minds but to visit Winslow and experience that type of energy was awesome! We also toured the Posada Hotel which was the last of the Santa Fe Railway Hotels. It opened in 1930, at the start of the Great Depression. Despite that, so many famous people stayed there, like Albert Einstein, Amelia Earhart, Clark Gable, Groucho Marx, and the list goes on!! We had so much fun roaming around the old hotel!! Check out the “Purgatory Painting” and the write-up. Amazing!!

The Posada Hotel

Some of the famous guests of the Posada Hotel!

Purgatory Painting...this was amazing! Filled the whole wall in the ballroom of the Posada Hotel

Taking it Easy!!

We decided to leave Winslow to go check out the Meteor Crater & Barringer Space Museum and then go back to Winslow for lunch!

The Crater was only about 20 min from Winslow. It was impressive for sure. Over 50,000 years ago an iron-nickel meteorite approximately 150 feet wide and weighing several hundred thousand tons, impacted this area with a force of 150 times greater than an atomic bomb. The result was the creation of the giant bowl-shaped cavity, being Meteor Crater. It measures 550 feet deep and almost a mile wide. The history about the discovery of the meteorite back in the 19th century was very interesting. We also learned that in the 1960s NASA astronauts preparing for the first moon landing worked and explored the crater’s unique terrain to help them training for what they could expect in space. I have to say, we were a bit disappointed when we paid for a tour along the rim of the crater but were only permitted about 150-200 meters along the rim.

It's hard to see the crash site at the bottom of the meteor crater, but in 1964, John Kidd, 51 year old pilot attempted to overfly the crater but couldn't maintain level flight. The pilot tried to build up speed by circling in the crater to climb over the rim. During the attempt the engine stalled. Both occupants were severely injured but survived. The crash site debris remains in the crater.

Okay, back to Winslow. All I can say is, best Stout ever at Relic Road Brewing Co.!!!

One last day of exploration while in Homolovi State Park…the Petrified Forest National Park!! Darcie and Doug, our Mexico fellow-travellers, were in the same area, so we decided to meet and explore together. It was yet another windy and rainy day, so I feel we should have a rain check (ha, ha!!).

Merlot didn’t like the rain and wind either so he stayed in the truck most of the time.

The Petrified Forest is best known for its Triassic fossils. It contains one of the world’s largest and most colourful concentrations of petrified wood, multi-hued badlands of the Chinle Formation, portions of the Painted Desert, historic structures, archeological sites and displays of 225-million-year-old fossils. There was a lot of jumping in and out of the truck for quick looks; however, we had to walk to the Agate House, which we didn’t want to miss.

The Agate House is a partially reconstructed Puebloan building built almost entirely of petrified wood and has been dated to approximately the year 900 and occupied through 1200, of the Pueblo II and Pueblo III periods.

We all met at a cafeteria to warm up before parting ways. Hard to believe Arizona can be this cold!!!

Next stop, Paige, Arizona!! Antelope Canyon has been on my bucket list since our honeymoon in 2018. We ran out of time then, so we’re checking it now. It did not disappoint!! Firstly, I wanted to check out Lone Rock. It’s a dry camping spot that many people talk about. We considered dry-camping there but were we glad we didn’t. So open, so cold and still raining!!! The spot itself was incredible but also sad. The picture can’t accurately describe how big this rock is, and, just a few years ago (like 5 or less) you couldn’t even get close to the rock because it was surrounded by water. Apparently locals are not that concerned. They feel the water will come back but to see before and after pictures was quite shocking just the same!

Poor Merlot!! It was so windy his ears were blowing everywhere!! He hates wind in his ears.

So, back to Antelope Canyon!! There was a storm approaching so I was a bit nervous of being in the Canyon during a storm but fortunately the storm circled around the area. Antelope Canyon is a slot canyon located on private land within the Navajo Nation. There’s an upper and lower canyon. We took a guided tour of the lower. Antelope canyon was formed by the erosion of Navajo Sandstone due to flash flooding and other subaerial processes. Rainwater, especially during monsoon season, rushes into the narrow passageways, eroding them away over time to form these incredible spiral shapes. To understand the power of these flash floods see the you tube video from 2013 (Flash Flood 2013-Lower Antelope Canyon) Our guide, Ryan, told us that the lower canyon gets notified from the upper canyon when a storm hits the canyons. He was incredible. So knowledgeable and a great photographer. Most of the pictures we have are ones that he took with my phone! We definitely have to tour the upper canyon. Here's just a few pics while were in the canyon. The most amazing tour ever!!

We also want to tour Coyote Buttes North (the Wave). We will be entering an advanced lottery to win a permit to go. Another bucket list item!!

We couldn’t leave Paige without going to Horseshoe Bend. Absolutely incredible. See that white dot in the picture? That’s a huge boat!! That’s how big horseshoe canyon is! We will be back with our kayaks one day!!!

So, as it turned out, the rain and wind wasn’t quite as awful as the snow and wind in Arizona!! That’s right!!! Snow in flipping Arizona!!!

Wintery stay at this park! The last one cancelled us due to too much snow!!

Cozy TV night for Merlot!!

As this point, we’re rushing to get back to Canada safely; however…. Barry has noticed that our tires are wearing incredibly fast and by the time we arrive in Idaho Falls, we cannot drive any further. Turns out we bent both axels due to terrible roads (bridge decks in the US) therefore we needed to replace the axels and suspension, and four new tires. What a day!!! Thank God for Josh at No Limit RV Repair. Any place else would have taken about a week for what needed to be done, but Josh worked all day by himself and finished that evening. He also invited us to stay in his parking lot for the evening so we had a fresh start the next day.

Several thousand dollars later and a good night’s sleep, and we’re on the road for Lethbridge, Alberta and warmer temperatures!!!

Arrived!! To see all the pics, click here!!