Seeing The South West in Style

We go with them vicariously...   

Southwest US Here We Come!  April 2016 (Page One)

It's time for an adventure in the great southwest. We departed April 8th and returned to civilization on the 25th after seeing Palm Springs,   Arizona, and Nevada.  We visited several Elks lodges and saw all the sights. We visited some friends along the way!


They are at it again! This time... Arizona and Nevada

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

April 8th We Are Underway... Palm Springs Here We Come!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Ready, willing, and probably able!
All gassed up... So is the motor home!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Oh dear... Wish the motor home was electric

Did You Know? - As of January 2008, the farm consists of 3,218 units delivering 615 MW. A single Southern California Edison Path 46 500 kilo-volt power line crosses the pass on the northern edge of San Jacinto Peak. This line links the Los Angeles metro area with the Palo Verde Nuclear Power Plant.

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
They are moving quite nicely this afternoon!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Our first stop portended of things to come!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
A beautiful afternoon to rest...  Emerald Desert?

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
We checked in ... Under assumed names of course!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Right off the freeway!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The area was fantastic... and quiet!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
We pulled right in and was ready for happy hour!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Sandy got happy first

April 9th... Preparing To See The Sites Around Palm Springs

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Wild in the 1950's

Did You Know? - Palm Springs is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 55 mi (89 km) east of San Bernardino, 107 mi (172 km) east of Los Angeles, 123 mi (198 km) northeast of San Diego, and 268 mi (431 km) west of Phoenix, Arizona. The population was 44,552 as of the 2010 census. Palm Springs covers approximately 94 square miles (240 km2), making it the largest city in the county by land area.

 

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
No beer? Well, after all it is 5PM someplace?

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Great spot... She can wave at all the people going by!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"Welcome to our home!"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"Behind this door is Bob!"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"Oh dear... It's a nudist colony"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The park was quite pleasant!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"I can se clearly now"... Great name for a song!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The plaque says it all!

Did You Know? - On August 11, 1930, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors officially named the highway "from San Jacinto Mountains to the Desert" as the Pines to Palms Highway.   State Route 74 (SR 74), part of which forms the Pines to Palms Scenic Byway and the Ortega Highway, is a mostly scenic highway in the U.S. state of California. It runs from Palm Desert in Riverside County westward to San Juan Capistrano in Orange County.

 

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
A quick stop in Palm Springs using our trusty steed!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
On the main drag of Palm Springs

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Hooking up and getting ready for tomorrow mornings escape to Arizona!  

April 10th On The Move  Again

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Perhaps a little moisture to make the ride exciting!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
It will clear up quickly once we reach the border!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
We made it! The weather turned perfect!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Lots of land...

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The freeway was clear all the way in!

April 11-14th

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
We pulled up and made ourselves at home! Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Connected to power... We are ready to visit

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Oh dear... We are not camping out tonight?

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Ruba-Dub-Dub Six for the grub!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Just visiting on the morning of the 12th

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The grass almost looks like rock!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The pool cover really works!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Midnight! Time for a skinny-dip.... No, perhaps a chunky-dunk!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Friends... essential ingredient in life

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Sandy learns how to drink the life preserver... Alcohol floats, correct?

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"Slurp, gurgle, belch!".... Oops, that was Bob in the background!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"Ah... Can't you stay a while?

April 15th

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"I think I can... I think I can"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"Bob! How wide is the motor home?"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Duck!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
No more off-roading in the RV... Back to the highway!

Did You Know? - SR 89A runs from its southern terminus in Prescott northward through the towns of Jerome, Cottonwood and Sedona to its northern terminus in Flagstaff. The highway is known for its scenic views as it passes through the Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon.

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Miles and miles of miles and miles ... Cottonwood, here we are!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016 Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016 Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
We will keep om looking!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Great Biker Bar with excellent ratings!  Time to shop

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"Hello, Operator? Please send a Boy Scout to help us cross the street!"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Shopping... Duh!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Goodbye Cottonwood... Jerome here we come!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Did You Know? - Jerome is a town in the Black Hills of Yavapai County in the State of Arizona. Founded in the late 19th century on Cleopatra Hill overlooking the Verde Valley, it is more than 5,000 feet (1,500 m) above sea level. It is about 100 miles (160 km) north of Phoenix along State Route 89A between Sedona and Prescott. Supported in its heyday by rich copper mines, it was home to more than 10,000 people in the 1920s. As of the 2010 census, its population was 444.
The town owes its existence mainly to two ore bodies that formed about 1.75 billion years ago along a ring fault in the caldera of an undersea volcano. Tectonic plate movements, plate collisions, uplift, deposition, erosion, and other geologic processes eventually exposed the tip of one of the ore bodies and pushed the other close to the surface, both near Jerome. In the late 19th century, the United Verde Mine, developed by William A. Clark, extracted ore bearing copper, gold, silver, and other metals from the larger of the two. The United Verde Extension (UVX) Mine, owned by James Douglas, Jr., depended on the other huge deposit. In total, the copper deposits discovered in the vicinity of Jerome were among the richest ever found in any time or place.

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Population 440 as of 2010

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Historical signs abound!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The miners settled on the surrounding hills

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Indeed will over $1,000,000,000 in copper

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Beautiful countryside

Did You Know? - Production at the mines, always subject to fluctuations for various reasons, boomed during World War I, fell thereafter, rose again, then fell again during and after the Great Depression. As the ore deposits became exhausted, the mines closed, and the population dwindled to fewer than 100 by the mid-1950s. Efforts to save the town from oblivion succeeded when residents turned to tourism and retail sales. Jerome became a National Historic Landmark in 1967. In the early 21st century, Jerome has art galleries, coffee houses, restaurants, wineries, and a state park and local museum devoted to mining history.

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Box Car Bob rides the rails!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
I can see clearly now!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"J" marks the spot

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Tourists love the colors

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The old mine stills stands!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Saloon... The operative word

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Must have beer!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
All smiles at Paul & Jerry's Saloon

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"Knock knock! Let us it after all it is 6:00 am"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
One can see forever

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Glad the runabout was there... The streets are a tad narrow! Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Our hotel room was "rustic"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Home Sweet Home

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

April 16th We Depart Jerome

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Here Kitty Kitty Kitty

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Enjoying nature

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Located at the Sedona Airport

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Watch the airport activities while you dine

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Oops, we said "dine"

Did You Know? - Welcome to Mesa Grill, on top of Airport Mesa in beautiful Sedona, Arizona. Mesa Grill is a breakfast, lunch and dinner restaurant in a contemporary western setting designed by one of Arizona's most noted architectural firms, the Design Group. It is open and airy, with expansive windows of special environmental glass overlooking gardens, the airport and the red rocks of Sedona. It has a full bar with seating for twelve, indoor dining for 60, covered outdoor dining for 40 and additional outdoor patio dining under the shade of 200 year old Pine trees. Our beautifully landscaped exterior creates a stunning setting for weddings, parties, receptions, and more.

Mesa Grill Sedona is an American Grill offering many traditional favorites such as all-American breakfasts and lunches with delectable omelets, egg dishes, burgers, sandwiches, steaks and seafood and more.

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
A glass of wine will brighten up the day!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
What a view...

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Yummy! Just like their picture

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Website photos seem unreal....  But on a sunny day!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The jet is about to take off

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Listen to the local airport weather

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
P-51's went everywhere

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Bob traded runabouts!   Mr. Zimmer does not know it yet!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The rocks are indeed red!

Did You Know? - Sedona /sᵻˈdoʊnə/ is a city that straddles the county line between Coconino and Yavapai counties in the northern Verde Valley region of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2010 census, its population was 10,031.
Sedona's main attraction is its array of red sandstone formations. The formations appear to glow in brilliant orange and red when illuminated by the rising or setting sun. The red rocks form a popular backdrop for many activities, ranging from spiritual pursuits to the hundreds of hiking and mountain biking trails.
Sedona was named after Sedona Arabella Miller Schnebly (1877–1950), the wife of Theodore Carlton Schnebly, the city's first postmaster, who was celebrated for her hospitality and industriousness. Her mother, Amanda Miller, claimed to have made the name up because "it sounded pretty."

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Cathedral Rock is breathtaking

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
On a perfectly lit sunset...

Did You Know? - Cathedral Rock is a famous landmark on the Sedona, Arizona skyline, and is one of the most-photographed sights in Arizona, USA.[1] Cathedral Rock is located in the Coconino National Forest in Yavapai County, about a mile (1.6 km) west of Arizona Route 179, and about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) south of the "Y" intersection of Routes 179 and 89A in uptown Sedona. The summit elevation of Cathedral Rock is 4,921 feet (1,500 m).

The Cathedral Rock trail (USFS Trail #170) is a popular short, steep ascent from the Back O' Beyond trailhead to the saddle points or "gaps" in Cathedral Rock.

Geologically, Cathedral Rock is carved from the Permian Schnebly Hill formation, a redbed sandstone formed from coastal sand dunes near the shoreline of the ancient Pedregosa Sea. Ripple marks are prominent along the lower Cathedral Rock trail, and a black basalt dike may be seen in the first saddle.

Cathedral Rock was called "Court House Rock" on some early maps, and Courthouse Butte was called "Church House Rock", which has caused endless confusion ever since.

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"Hi there"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Looks like he is ready to go!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"I am a handsome baby!"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The country is magnificent

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The weather is perfect!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The dark red layers were magical!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Just a few millions of years of rock formations here!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Civilization    Read about the Sedona Elks

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The rig is ready to rest!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Nice taken care of and with RV hookups!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The view was quite amazing

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Like watching TV!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Count the rings and see how old it is!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Time for a nap!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The pictures on the inside reveal another scenario possibility (in winter)

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
So relaxing... I think I will....... Z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Finally out from behind the wheel!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
We found a place to lite! The Elks have a lot of property.

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Open air!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
A drive through the city reveals nicely maintained roads

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Every time you turn your head a magnificent view appears!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Mother Nature went wild!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Hang on for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Shops... Sandy... Both start with an "S"
Coincidence, we think not!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
The artists of Sedona are all over

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Race you to the top?

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
"We reconsidered the challenge"

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016
Just amazing!

Sandy and Bob do the great southwest April 2016