Flagstaff Retreat

One of the seven wonders of the world, no matter how many times you visit the Grand Canyon, there is always something new to see and experience.

We took a tour with American Dream Tours of Flagstaff. They picked us up at the Fairfield Resort at 9am and had us back after a full day at around 6:30pm. Look them up at www.AmericanDreamTours.com--$85 per person is a real bargain when you consider that the price includes park admission, lunch, and plenty of beverages.

Our tour guide (Drew) took us to several spots along the south rim, including one "secret" place that is off the beaten path and away from the usual tourist overlooks. Not only did we see the Grand Canyon, but we also stopped at a Hopi Reservation along the Little Colorado River Canyon, just outside the National Park.

This is a "must-see" in the National Park Service system!!

The Petrified Forest and Painted Desert are connected by a 26-mile loop road. As you drive through the park and see all of the logs and tree fragments scattered over the landscape, it is nearly impossible to imagine the area millions of years ago.

There are several overlooks and walks that provide you with opportunities to see and even touch the petrified wood. REMINDER: TOUCH--DO NOT TAKE! It is a federal offense to take samples. If you are interested in owning a piece of petrified wood, we suggest you stop at Jim Grays' Petrified Wood Shop located on the west end of the park in the town of Holbrook, AZ. They are open one hour past the closing time of the park, so take your time and enjoy!

We especially enjoyed the Giant Logs Trail and the Crystal Forest trails. Both are easy leisurely walks of less than 30 minutes.

If you enjoy touring the US National Parks and Monuments, this is a wonderful home base for a vacation! With our US National Parks Pass in hand, we were able to take in seven different sites.

Right outside of Flagstaff is Sunset Crater Monument, which is adjacent to the Wupatki National Monument. The loop road divides the lava flows of Sunset Crater Volcano, which makes for a great opportunity to get out and hike. As you exit Sunset Crater through the beautiful high desert, you will enter the plains that were home to many Native Americans. The loop road that connects these two National Monument areas allows vehicles to venture out to several pueblo homes of the natives of this area some 700 years ago.

Walnut Canyon is also located in the immediate Flagstaff area and is home to the Sinagua Ruins National Monument. What is most amazing here is the way these people built their homes right in the cliff walls on either side of the Walnut Creek. The walking tour requires an ability to climb rather steep stairs returning from the circular walkway. As you walk along the area that is maintained by the US Park Service, you will also be able to see the ruins of cliff dwellings on the opposite side of the canyon that are still in their natural state.

A bit further out is Montezuma Castle National Monument, approximately 45 minutes from Flagstaff heading towards Phoenix. Here visitors can see the single cliff house that has five stories and over 20 rooms. Believed to house nearly 50 of the Sinagua Indians, this dwelling is high above the flood plain below. Binoculars are recommended to be able to see up into Montezuma Castle, but if you don’t have them, no worry. There are drawings and artists’ renditions of what it is believed to have been like back in the 1400s.

Heading in the opposite direction of Phoenix towards New Mexico, we would strongly encourage folks to give the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert National Parks a full day visit...but be sure to plan for a truly long day, as it will take you about 2 hours to get there from Flagstaff. These two special parks are also connected by a loop road, making it a pleasant trip through without backtracking. I would suggest packing a picnic lunch and plenty of water, since there really isn’t much out in this desert area of Arizona. There is a restaurant at the Painted Forest Visitors Center, although during our visit, it was closed for renovation so we had to settle for high-priced sodas and snacks at the gas station just outside of the park entrance.

Of course, you cannot talk about or visit Flagstaff without including the Grand Canyon—the granddaddy of all of the US National Parks!! Visitors can make the 90-minute drive in their personal vehicle or take one of many tours available from the Flagstaff area. For us, we did the American Dream Tours trip (see separate review). If you choose to do the drive yourself, be sure to allow plenty of time for traffic. Many say that you can wait up to an hour or two to get into the park, especially during the peak summer months. Additionally, this is one of the more expensive parks at a pricey $25 per car, which includes all passengers.

For visitors who plan on visiting all of these great treasures of the US National Park System, you may want to consider investing in one of the US National Parks Passes. In 2007 the pass program has changed and the price has gone up, so ask questions at the location of your visit.

If you are planning a trip to northern Arizona, you've certainly heard of Sedona and the surrounding red-rock areas. We only had time to drive through Sedona en route to Phoenix on a sunny Saturday afternoon. We found the landscape to be breathtaking. Slide Rock State Park is on the north end of town and was jammed and essentially inaccessible. (We were there Easter weekend.)

We traveled up into a housing development on the south side of town. There, among the $250,000 homes, was a small pack of javelinas (essentially wild pigs - see photo below). They were rooting through trash cans in the neighborhood, looking for food no doubt.

We wish we had had more time to really look around the area. We did see a tour company (Pink Jeep Tours) that offered desert tours.

If you enjoy shopping, there appeared to be plenty of opportunities to flex your VISA card. We stopped into the Sedona Photo Express to buy film. They were very helpful and sincerely nice.

During our weeklong vacation in Flagstaff, we found a couple of local restaurants through www. restaurant.com. If you haven't used them for dining gift certificates, you should do yourself a favor and reduce your dining expenses while on vacation or even around your hometown community.

Jotini's on the Green
2380 N. Oakmont Dr.
Flagstaff
(928) 527-7998

Jotini's is located at the golf club overlooking the San Francisco Peaks and the golf course. The large fireplace and beautiful view were very nice. In addition to the full-service dining room, there is also a small sports bar with TVs throughout.

We dined at Jotini's twice because of their close proximity to the Fairfield Resort in Flagstaff. The first time we were there our steaks were a bit overcooked. They were very accommodating, fixing it and giving us a certificate for a free dessert on a return trip. A few nights later we did return, only to have our medium-well prime rib served essentially uncooked and ice cold in the middle with ice crystals in the rare meat. We didn't even stay for the free dessert given to us earlier in the week.

The Fairfield staff highly recommends this place, including them in their featured restaurants list with a 10% discount. Our view was that Jotini's was highly overrated and that we would not return in the future.

Gypsy's Hideaway
1926 N. 4th St., Suite 8B
Flagstaff
(928) 526-4333

This is a real diamond in the rough, off the beaten path. We also found this restaurant through restaurant.com, but unlike Jotini's, we LOVED it!! As you approach the entrance, you will feel like you are walking into a neighborhood blues bar. You pretty much are, but don't let that frighten you away. Our meals were truly gourmet and very reasonably priced (entrees under $20). David enjoyed a broiled fish dish with garlic mashed potatoes and asparagus. I, on the other hand, had the thick pork chops with the same side dishes. Completed with a wonderful fresh mixed greens salad and sourdough bread, our meal was outstanding!!

The entire staff made their way by our table and asked how things were. Because of their local neighborhood customer base, EVERYone knew we were from out of town and made us feel most welcomed. If you don't know this place is there, you will easily miss it as it is tucked behind a small strip shopping center.