Three days in Arizona: Grand Canyon & Route 66

In today's post, I would like to elaborate on my recent visit to Arizona, also known as "The Grand Canyon State".

On Easter Saturday, I picked up a car and headed out of LA. I was being accompanied by a friend from my office, so there was someone to help me navigate.

Traveling east on Interstate 10 towards Phoenix, the landscape starts to change slightly and Joshua Trees give way to Saguaro Cacti. These are pretty giant cacti that are characteristic for the Sonoran Desert. Fun fact: each car registered in Arizona has a small Saguaro Cactus on the registration plate.

We arrived in Phoenix in the afternoon, parked in downtown and went to see the Saint Mary's Basilica. I am not overly religious, but I was in the spirit of Easter and wanted to see a church.

Unfortunately, the basilica was closed and we could not wait until the evening. We found a small park adjacent to the church. There stood a statue of Pope John Paul II who apparently visited Phoenix in 1985. Back in my country, Poland, he is still extremely popular and there are many statues of him everywhere. Some of them look pretty bad, but the one in Phoenix made a positive impression.

Statue of the Pope, Phoenix.

Downtown Phoenix took us by surprise, as it was quiet and clean. The buildings looked modern and the whole place had a positive feel to it. Granted, we saw only a small portion of Phoenix's downtown, but still.

We went to see the Civic Space Park and walked across the Arizona State University campus. Then, it was time to get back to the car. After stopping briefly at a McDonald's for a couple of cheeseburgers, we got on the I-17 freeway heading north.

Unfortunately, a few miles after leaving Phoenix we got stuck in a traffic jam, because of an earlier accident on the freeway. It was dark when we finally arrived in Flagstaff. We checked into our motel and went to sleep.

Space Park, Downtown Phoenix.

Waking up early next morning, the plan was to sight see in Flagstaff. Our motel was beautifully located along Route 66. It was one of the numerous motels in Flagstaff, as the town is quite touristy. It also serves as a "bedroom" for those visiting the Grand Canyon.

We drove to Flagstaff's downtown and explored the area on foot. The railway station, still operational, reminded me of the one in Barstow. A couple of vintage railway cars stood nearby, just like in Barstow.

Downtown Flagstaff looked very pleasant. Houses were small and featured street-facing stores and pubs, similar to what one can see in European towns. Most of the stores were closed, I suppose because of Easter.

Streets in Flagstaff.

Our next stop was on a hill overlooking the town. We parked atop of the hill and went to see the famous Lowell Observatory where planet Pluto was discovered. The observatory is hidden in a forest and is spread over several buildings. There is an educational path linking them, so one can walk and learn about things like the Solar System or galaxies. Overall, we really liked the observatory and the path.

Leaving Flagstaff for Grand Canyon Nat'l Park.

After returning to the car, we left Flagstaff and headed towards Grand Canyon National Park on Highway 89. The forest that surrounds Flagstaff gave way to a red-ish desert.

We made a quick stop to refill in Cameron. In Cameron, there is a roundabout (not common in America) where Highway 64 starts. The highway goes all the way along the South Rim to eventually merge with Interstate 40 close to Flagstaff.

Before entering the park proper, we spotted a vista point and pulled over. There was a toll booth at the entrance. We did not bring any cash with us, but they let us in without paying. The vista point featured a preliminary view of the Canyon and some stands where clothes and other traditional items were put on sale by Native Americans.

We continued to the main gate of the park and - what a lucky day! - did not have to pay to enter. Apparently, they have some free days during the year and one of them was on Easter Sunday.

Desert View Watchtower.

Our first stop was at the famous Desert View Watchtower. Usually, when one sees a packed parking lot, there must be something interesting in the area.

We could take our first look at the Grand Canyon. Needless to say, the view was truly spectacular. We explored the immediate surrounding of the tower and did a mini-hike to an overlook just below the rim. The tower was built in the 1930s based on a design by architect Mary Colter and today hosts a souvenir shop.

Continuing on Highway 64 along the South Rim, we made stops at vista points, for example the Navajo and Lipan points.

One may be surprised to see a forest here, because the Grand Canyon is often associated with a desert. The trees, mostly pines and oaks, have variable sizes depending on the elevation at which they grow. Higher elevations receive more rainfall and can support taller trees. The actual desert can be seen a mile below at the bottom of the canyon.

First view of the Grand Canyon.

Pulling over to a rest area, I noticed a park ranger behind us. Apparently, we had not come to a complete stop at a stop sign somewhere earlier and the ranger had seen that. He also suspected that we were drunk. After a few tense moments and explaining what the "California rolling stop" is, he let us go without a ticket. Did I mention we had a lucky day?

After our adventure with the park police, we went to see the Tusayan Museum, standing next to remainders of a pueblo. Our next stop was at the Grandview Point. Here, in 1540, soldiers from a Spanish expedition became the first Europeans to see the Grand Canyon. One also cannot forget a hotel that was built here in 1895, but nothing is left today.

Grandview Point.

Leaving the vista point behind, we arrived at Grand Canyon Village. It is the park's focal point and is where most restaurants and lodges are located.

The spacious parking lots were fully occupied. Looking for a spot, we found a railway station. Trains continue to come to the park from Flagstaff. The station is built from wood and looks very stylish.

Finally, we parked and took a blue line bus to Hermit's Rest. There is a system of shuttle buses in Grand Canyon Village going to places where private cars are not allowed. Once in Hermit's Rest, our plan was to hike all the way back to the village. The trail led along the rim and featured evening views of the Canyon. Unfortunately, after two hours of walking, it got dark and we had to cut the hike slightly short.

Evening hike along the South Rim.

After the hike, we were leaving the park. Seven miles forward in Tusayan, we stopped at a McDonald's. My friend ordered again two cheeseburgers and I got a fillet-o-fish. For the same food, we paid more than in Phoenix, but still less than we would have paid in LA.

An hour later we arrived in Seligman, where we had our motel booked. The motel, called Stagecoach 66, stood outside of town. At the office, we were welcomed by an exceptionally friendly couple. We got a room decorated with photos and gadgets related to John Wayne. There was a cardboard statue of him in one corner, a VHS player and a stack of cassettes with western movies.

Next morning, we checked out early and hit the road.

Since we were on the historic Route 66, I expected a ton of interesting things to see. In a nutshell, Route 66 was the first highway to link Chicago to Los Angeles and was named "The Main Street of America". After the construction of the freeway system, its popularity diminished, but many original sections survived as a tourist attraction.

Route 66 in Arizona.

Seligman was just a mile away. We first explored a souvenir shop featuring a collection of vintage cars. They had a rusty Ford Model T, the first massively produced car. Seligman is one of the classic towns on Route 66 and looks like a time capsule from the 1950s.

Continuing on Route 66, we were advancing across empty stretches of land typical for Arizona. We drove past a couple of other towns, like Peach Springs and Hackberry, each stuck in America's Golden Age. Our next destination was Kingman, where we planned to stay longer.

Seligman, souvenir shop.

We drove past the known "Welcome to Kingman" water tower and parked in the Locomotive Park.

There are two museums in Kingman, Powerhouse Visitor Center and Mohave Museum of History and Arts. It is possible to visit both on the same ticket. Interestingly, the powerhouse museum occupies a building of a former power station. Electricity produced there was used to power machines and lights in nearby gold mines. We spent over two hours in the museums, learning about the American Southwest, pioneers, Native Americans, survival methods in the desert, old cars, western movies, minerals and gold mines.

Leaving Kingman behind, we were still on Route 66. The road became wavy and steep, as we drove across  the Black Mountains.

A few miles forward, we arrived in Oatman, a former mining town that has become a tourist attraction. If it was not for the parked cars, the town looked as if nothing has changed since the Wild West era. In the main street, "cowboys" were playing a bank robbery type of scene, shooting each other with blank bullets. We were lucky to be there just in time for the show. Funny observation: wild donkeys, known as burros, were wandering freely in the streets of Oatman.

Oatman, Arizona.

After Oatman, we stopped at a place called Topock, an intersection of Route 66, Colorado River, Interstate 40 and a major railroad. Here, the river overflows into a couple of bays. There are boats and a fancy restaurant with a pool.

We kept driving south on Highway 95 along the Colorado River, which also happens to separate Arizona from California.

In Lake Havasu City, it was time for a stop at a McDonald's. Fed with cheeseburgers, same food third day in a row, we went to see the famous London Bridge. I thought the bridge was going to be a replica of the original bridge in London, UK. In reality, the actual bridge was moved from Europe to Arizona in 1967 and reconstructed from parts. It was strange to see it standing in the desert, with palm trees in the background. Lake Havasu City is basically a resort at the Colorado River with fancy hotels and marinas. More importantly, the lake supports water to Southern California via an aqueduct.

London Bridge, Lake Havasu City.

Leaving Lake Havasu, we made a brief stop at the Parker Dam. Not the largest of dams, but it connects two states, so it is worth seeing.

We crossed the Colorado River in Parker and found ourselves on the way back to LA. Approaching Vidal Junction, we came across a sort of checkpoint, where they inspect cars entering California from Arizona. The person at the checkpoint only asked what city we were coming from, I replied Flagstaff, and we were free to go.

After the checkpoint, Highway 62 becomes one of the most desolate roads in California. For a 100+ miles, one does not see any signs of civilization. It got dark and the traffic was nonexistent, so it felt spooky driving across the desert.

Eventually, we made it to Twentynine Palms just next to Joshua Tree National Park. From then on, it was a straightforward drive to LA. I was back home shortly before midnight.

Highway 62 in California.

So this is the end of my report. I tried to make it as compact as possible, which was not always easy. We visited a number of towns (Phoenix, Flagstaff, Seligman, Kingman, Oatman, Lake Havasu City) and saw a lot of nature (Grand Canyon, Colorado River, deserts). The trip was super intensive, but one cannot regret any of the 1206 miles driven!