Arizona and New Mexico
March 2011




LAUNCHED: 3 April 2011.       LAST UPDATED: 5 April 2011


Accessed at least many times since 1 November 2010.



Monday 14 March 2011. Like Ishmael, "whenever I find myself growing grim about the mouth, whenever it's a damp, drizzly November [March] in my soul" I think perhaps winter in Jaffrey has become seemingly endless, and the idea of a week or so in Arizona and New Mexico holds appeal; and so I head off to Boston.

Leave my car at the new bus terminal west of Nashua and take the Boston Express bus to Logan. What a great discovery this is: $8 fare to the airport and free parking for as long as I'm away. Plenty of time at the airport; I have some fish and chips at Legal Sea Foods. I'm travelling with just a backpack so no checking of luggage. Have a window seat and enjoy the view. Kid next to me is sick the entire way out. (Unaccountably, the same thing happens on the way back—see below.) Enjoy my personal supply of gin and Trader Joe's peanuts.


Counting the Harbor Islands as we depart from Boston.

Arrive at Sky Harbor in Phoenix, pick up a rental car (the interior smells like a Chinese restaurant for the whole 10 days—keep looking but can find no chop suey under the seat—and head east to Gold Canyon. Get to Joy and Art's house in Mountain Brook Village around 9 pm and have a bite to eat.

Tuesday 15 March 2011. Sunny and warm. We drop off Joy at a medical office for some physical therapy, and Art and I continue on to Chandler, the home of the Arizona Railway Museum where Art does volunteer work (currently building stairs to access the train carriages). We pick up Joy—refreshed—and head to the Arizona Biltmore which is in a lovely setting. Enjoy lunch outdoors. Later walk around the grounds and then drive around the immediate area which is a panoply of overly large and in most cases overly tacky houses. Lots of dead vegetation as a result of very cold winter weather.




Joy and Art's house in Mountain Brook Village, Gold Canyon, with views of the Superstition Mountains.


The Arizona Biltmore. Art and Joy on the terrace.


After lunch we drive to the nearby McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park. I'm not particularly interested in the merry-go-round or the miniature railroad rides. I have come to see the Road Amundsen, a Pullman car named after the Norwegian who first got to the South Pole. No Antarctic connections other than the name, but lots of other interesting things about it. It was used by three presidents, most famously by FDR. In fact, it was the Number Three carriage in his funeral train, his stateroom—is that what you call rooms on trains?—being used by Margaret Truman.


The Roald Amundsen, a Pullman car used by three presidents.

Back to Joy and Art's where at 5 pm we go over to their community center for the weekly cocktail party. Slightly bizarre but nonetheless relaxing: no standing around which seems sensible to me. Everyone sits at tables, in our case men at one and women at the another. One brings one's favorite beverage and hors d'oeuvres of some sort. Afterwards, with Art going to a chorus rehearsal, Joy and I go to the neighborhood Mexican restaurant for dinner.

Wednesday 16 March 2011. Up early and off before 9 am, heading to Albuquerque, a long day of driving. Travel east through the old mining town of Superior, into the mountains to Globe, through the Salt River Canyon to Show Low where I stop for coffee, and on to Concho and a lunch stop in St. Johns. Landscape continually changing. Into New Mexico through Zuni. Stop at El Morro, a National Monument. There's a half-mile walk which was just right for me.


El Morro where travellers have carved names and messages for centuries.



Some examples of the "graffiti."

From there I continue east and by the end of the day I'm in Albuquerque. I find nephew Peter and Dania's house with only a momentary amount of difficulty. Peter is off dealing with fires, so Dania, Diego, Pedro—and Darby the dog— (the latter three who I am meeting for the first time) relax; I have a drink or two and then a nice dinner by Dania.

Thursday 17 March 2011 (St Patrick's Day). Peter is off again fighting fires, so I, Dania and the kids tour around Albuquerque and see some of the sights. We drive down Central Avenue which separates the city north and south. This is the old Route 66; some funky commercial architecture—old and new—lining the way.


Some Art Deco along the old Route 66 in Albuquerque
(the original burned down but a pretty good job was done in rebuilding it).


My bookish friends would love this bar.


The Occidental Life Building; who would have expected Venice in Albuquerque?


Had a look at the old town, the centerpiece of which is the San Felipe de Neri church which dates to the late 1790s.


The San Felipe de Neri Church in the Old Town.


From there we head out the long Rio Grande Boulevard through increasingly rural suburbs, stopping for a coffee along the way. Eventually we circle back to Central Avenue and park near the University. I have a walk through the new architecture building and the Zimmerman library.


The Zimmerman Library and the Student Uniion at the University of New Mexico.

Opposite the Central Avenue entrance to the campus is the Frontier Restaurant, a local landmark which Dania thought would be a good place for lunch. When it was all over, I could only agree. Back to Truman Street and later, a nap.


The Frontier Restaurant across from the University…and the lunch I had there.


Friday 18 March 2011. Dania and I drive to the Tamarind Institute near where we had lunch yesterday. Among other things it's a center for lithography and I thought there might be people there who could shed some light on the lithographic title page of the Aurora Australis. (It's a long story.) I did get a little useful information from my visit but no breakthrough. With that behind me, I head off on my own to Sante Fe, about 60 miles away. Park in a garage and walk around the touristy center of town, stopping first at the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, small but impressive. Have a look at St Francis Cathedral and stop for a good lunch at the San Francisco St. Bar & Grill.


The Palace of the Governors in Sante Fe.

The Lensic Theatre in Sante Fe catches my eye.
Now a performing arts center, it opened in 1931 as a movie and vaudeville theater,
operating for 69 years before closing in 2000.
A $9 million renovation restored the theaterŐs period architectural splendor.
It's now a world-class, state-of-the-art, 821-seat performance venue.


Head back to Albuquerque in time to relax before venturing out with Dania, Pete, myself and two kids squished into my compact car to Paul's Monterey Inn, an old-time steak house complete with leather banquettes. Carinivores rule!


Dania and Pablo. Peter, Pablo, Dania and Diego…and Darby the dog.

Saturday 19 March 2011. Up early and all of us are off, myself to Tucson about 450 miles away, mostly on Interstates, although there is a "shortcut" I take through Hillsboro and Silver City, past the gigantic Chino (Santa Rita) copper mine, to Lordsburg where I join up with I-10 which takes me to Tucson. Have lunch in the Old Town of Silver City. The first part of the "shortcut" is a very twisty, climbing section in the Gila National Forest with nice views down to the valley below.


Heading south from Albuquerque on I-25.


High up in the Gila National Forest.


The Chino Copper Mine.


Arrive at Bruce and Sally's at the end of the day and enjoy a welcomed drink on their lovely patio. Much of Tucson is flat as a pancake but up here in the foothills the topography results in some beautiful views up to the mountains and down to the city. We have a nice relaxing dinner at home.


The entry area of the Larsen's Tucson house on Placita Esplendora and a view of the mountains from the swimming pool.


Panoramic view from their back patio.


Sunday 20 March 2011. After breakfast Bruce, Sally, dog Kari and I head down through Tucson, for a day of touring. Our first stop is the Mission San Xavier Del Bac, large and white in its setting and with lots of activity inside and out.


The Mission San Xavier Del Bac, a few miles south of Tucson.


I liked this wall design inside the Mission.


We continue on our way to Tubac where we stop for a relaxing al fresco lunch at the Tubac Golf Resort.


Lunch at Tubac. We lose count of all the balls that end up in the pond.


Our next stop is Tumacácori, a National Historical Park. This mission was started about 1800 and remains unfinished. Very picturesque, though.


Mission Church of San José de Tumacácori.


We continue south nearly to Nogales. We can see the "fence" stretching across the hillside. Here we take a left and through the grasslands to Patagonia, on to Sonoita where we stop at the Wilhelm Family Vineyard and taste 7 wines. The cold weather has totally taken out their vines so they'll have to replant. Time to set our course back to Tucson.

That night we go to the nearby Hacienda del Sol, an old and somewhat grand place, for a relaxing dinner. It started back in 1929 as a girls school (you could bring your horse with you) and then became a guest ranch. Among those who dropped by: John Wayne, Clark Gable and Katherine Hepburn. It's on the National Register.


With Sally at the Hacienda del Sol.


Monday 21 March 2011. First order of the day after breakfast is to go to, of all places, the warehouse of the Friends of the Pima County Library to check out a book I had seen advertized on the Internet. We accomplish this task and I buy the book which ends up being the only non-consumable I buy on the whole trip. A downtown driving/walking tour follows and soon it's time for lunch which brings us to the Arizona Inn, another piece of Tucson history (it just celebrated its 80th anniversary). There are a series of courtyards and pathways and some lovely landscaping. We sit on the terrace and enjoy our lunch.


Lunch at the Arizona Inn.


It hardly seems that lunch is over that we're off again, this time for drinks with friends of the Larsens who have a Lab who is related to the Larsen's pup, Kari. So the dogs play and we visit. From there it's off to the Guadalajara, a lively Mexican place. We actually don't need any food at this point, but we force ourselves. The Margaritas help. Who would guess that a Mexican restaurant would be owned and operated by people named Holzman?


Tuesday 22 March 2011. Up early and soon on our way to Phoenix in two cars. We meet up at IKEA, and after a quick walk-thru and a frozen yoghurt, I follow Bruce to the rental car center and drop off my Chevrolet Aveo. We're now altogether: the three of us and one Lab puppy. We decide on a "shortcut" north, the Apache Trail (Rt 88) to Roosevelt. Before really starting off, we decide it's time for lunch and pull into the Lost Dutchman State Park in Apache Junction. The weather was just perfect for a picnic.


Enjoying our picnic along the Apache Trail.


Well, it wasn't much of a short cut. Very twisty, up then down, unpaved road with a surprising amount of traffic. But we're not in any real rush so enjoy the pace and the countryside. Our initial destination is the Theodore Roosevelt Dam, kind of a small version of Hoover Dam. It dates to 1905-11, later renovated in 1989-96. Stretching behind it is the expansive Theodore Roosevelt Lake.


The 357-foot tall Theodore Roosevelt Dam. Looking down we could see really big fish.


Our destination for the day is Camp Verde which we reach in due time and check into the Comfort Inn there. We contact Shane Murphy who lives in nearby Rimrock, and Bruce and I head there while Sally deals with Kari. Bruce leaves me with Shane—he lives in a straw-bale house which we don't see in New Hampshire—and we enjoy a drink. After some phoning back and forth we arrange to all meet at a Chinese restaurant in Camp Verde for dinner. As we part, Shane invites us to breakfast the next morning.

Wednesday 23 March 2011. Our first stop today is Rimrock and a terrific breakfast by Shane. He learned his skills well as a Colorado River guide.


A hearty breakfast with Shane.


Bruce, Sally and Shane. We're about to head for the Grand Canyon.


Our first stop is Jerome, an old mining town. When I first drove through it sometime in the 1960s it was truly a ghost town—no one there at all. Now it's active and a tourist favorite, though not particularly spoiled by it. We find a parking space and walk around a bit. The Mine Museum had some interesting old photos and artifacts.


One gets a little uneasy walking over the glass and looking down 1,900 feet!


Jerome is perched on the side of a mountain. We're told that long-time residents have one leg shorter than the other.


The Connor Hotel has been there since 1898.




Heading towards Sedona.

From Jerome we drive along Rt 89a to Sedona, which although the red rocks are lovely is just a little too over tourist-fied. Sally remembers an upscale shopping village which after a little seeking we find: Tlaquepaque, "Sedona's Arts and Crafts Village," is all new (from the 1970s) but made to look old and they've pulled it off pretty well. This seems like a good place for lunch so we repair to the Oak Creek Brewery and Grill and fare nicely.

After lunch we drive north through Oak Creek Canyon and around Flagstaff to I-40 going west to Williams, then north to Tusayen where we check into the Canyon Plaza which is perhaps 8 or so miles south of the Canyon itself. It's approaching 4 pm so we head to the Canyon and go to several viewpoints, eventually ending up at the El Tovar, a hotel built in 1905 and named for Don Pedro de Tovar, the first European to visit the Hopi Indian villages in 1540.


The Grand Canyon. Pretty impressive what water can do.


A Canyon panorama.


Posing the dog at Grand Canyon.

As the sun begins to set we head back to the hotel where we have dinner after a few drinks in the Larsens' room.




El Tovar


I liked this painting in the lobby of El Tovar.

Thursday 24 March 2011. We have a surprise in the morning: several inches of snow! Bruce and I go across the road to a McDonalds and have breakfast. Once checked out we retrace our steps of yesterday, back to the Canyon and work our way east stopping for a view or two as we go. Soon we're down lower and away from the trees. Make a quick stop at the Cameron Trading Post. No Indians with deerskins looking for guns and whisky, just trinkets for us tourists.

Continuing south, we take a left off of I-89 to visit the Wupatki National Monuiment and the Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. A nice diversion but not the big deals I was expecting.


Wupatki


On the way between Wupatki and Sunset Crater.




Paoli Soleri's Arcosanti—will it ever be finished?

Our next stop is Flagstaff and lunch at a Thai restaurant close to the railroad station. Back on the road, south on I-17 to Arcosanti, Paolo Soleri's experiment in planning and architecture. The tours were over for the day but we walk around a bit and visit the shop where Sally buys a wind bell, for which Arcosanti is famous.

The end of the day is approaching and after some back and forth over logistics, the simplest solution is for the Larsens to swing by the airport and drop me off which they do around 6 perhaps. This gives me plenty of time for my 11:30 flight and means a relaxing time with no airport stress. I reorganize my stuff, have a few drinks (mostly my own stash), and a reasonably good dinner.

The flight seems very fast, about four hours. This time the kid beside me (different one) has a massive nosebleed.

Friday 25 March 2011. Arrive on time in Boston, and back to the cold weather. The Boston Express bus is right on schedule and not too later I'm at the terminal in Nashua, reclaim my car and before long am back home in Jaffrey, a couple of pounds heavier but otherwise not the worse for wear.