From New Year’s eve in the desert near Havasuu City to the greater Phoenix area, national forests and parks, state parks, and truck stops… I’ve seen a lot of what Arizona has to offer during my month of January in Arizona. I have even followed along much of old Route...
Today I finally got to visit a National Park that I have skipped over many times in the past 3 years. While I have been in Arizona numerous times, I just hadn’t traveled along I-40 east of Flagstaff, so this time around I made sure of it. I entered to...
This past Sunday marked my 100th day on the road (again). Although I have been technically Full-Timing since December of 2011, I have not lived exclusively out of the van that entire time. I’ve stayed with family in California a few weeks here and there and even lived with my...
Meteor Crater is the result of a collision between a piece of an asteroid traveling at 26,000 miles per hour and planet Earth approximately 50,000 years ago. A force greater than 20 million tons of TNT throwing more than 175 million tons of earth and rock out. Today, Meteor Crater...
Walnut Canyon National Monument is located about 10 miles southeast of downtown Flagstaff, Arizona, near Interstate 40. The canyon rim elevation is 6,690 ft; the canyon’s floor is 350 ft lower. A 0.9 mi long loop trail descends 185 ft into the canyon passing 25 cliff dwelling rooms constructed by the Sinagua, a pre-Columbian cultural...
Lowell Observatory is an astronomical observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. Lowell Observatory was established in 1894, placing it among the oldest observatories in the United States, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1965. In 2011, the Observatory was named one of “The World’s 100 Most Important Places” by TIME....
Red Rock State Park is a state park in Arizona featuring a red sandstone canyon outside the city of Sedona. The main mission of this day-use park is the preservation of the riparian habitat along Oak Creek, but there are 5 miles of hiking trails to explore. On a personal...
Located along a steep hillside full of hairpin turns and shocking drop-offs, this old ghost town has life in it yet. Once called the “Wickedest Town in the West,” Jerome was a budding city of brothels and saloons back at the turn of the century, when copper mining was king....
Southern Sinagua farmers began building this five-story, 20-room dwelling early in the 1100’s. It stands in a cliff recess 100 feet above the valley floor. They use to allow visitors to climb the ladders and roam about the castle, but that ended in the 60’s after years of people stealing...
Last night I pulled off the Interstate just before reaching Camp Verde, AZ. I really just did not want to spend a night in civilization, so took an exit (exit 278) in the middle of the National Forest to park off a dirt road somewhere. After about 1 mile, and...
