October 29, 2012
Dead Horse Ranch State Park, Cottonwood, AZ
Every year when we get back to our place in Arizona, I say I want to use the winter months to explore closer to home. Too often, when we get back, we’re basically parked until spring. There’s so much to see in Arizona that we’re missing an opportunity, primarily because waiting until our normal April departure makes much of the state too hot to enjoy.
So, this year, we decided to make a stop in Arizona before getting back to the Phoenix area. And, what brought this on? We bought a Groupon for a wine tasting deal. Hey; whatever it takes!
Our travel began on Wednesday. We left Malibu relatively early, circling back up the PCH to Camarillo and cutting across to US-101 heading towards Los Angeles. Near Burbank we shifted east onto CA-134 to Pasadena then I-210/CA-210 along the Foothills. We picked up I-15 to Barstow then I-40 heading east to Needles. Just over the CA-AZ border, we pulled into the first rest area and called it a day.
Up early on Thursday morning, we were back on I-40, stopping in Kingman for fuel, and continuing on to Flagstaff where we turned south on I-17. We exited near Cottonwood and were soon parked at Dead Horse Ranch State Park.
We don’t often stay at state parks because of the perception that they aren’t set up to handle rigs of our size. Well, with a little research, parks we can use are out there and are often a good deal. With a 50 Amp Water-Electric site for $25/night, this is a good deal.
Friday, we took a ride back up to Flagstaff, then back via the “scenic route” on AZ-89A through Oak Creek Canyon through Sedona to Cottonwood. Very scenic.
Saturday, we did our wine tasting, after being fortified by one of Geri’s famous brunches. We made the short drive over to Cornville and visited Oak Creek Vineyards and Page Springs Winery. The former focuses on Arizona-grown grapes and the latter uses a mixture of Arizona and California fruit. I say “Arizona” instead of “local”, since there are two different areas where wine grapes are cultivated: here in the Verde Valley about 100 miles north of Phoenix and down near Patagonia and Sonoita south of Tucson. Another place we’ll have to visit!
Yesterday, we relaxed, had a walk around the Park, did a little local grocery shopping, and took the pups to the local Dog Park. They really enjoyed meeting all the “locals” and Merlin even let one of the other dog owners pet him.
Today, I caught up on bills and this travel Blog, even though posting has been a bit of a struggle since we’re on the fringe of cellular data coverage. Tonight, we’ll do our standard travel preparation so we can get a nice start in the morning. It’s only a couple of hours of driving to get back to Peoria, and then the process of unloading can begin. I called a week ago to have the water and cable turned back on. I’ll turn the gas on and get the appliances started and we’ll be all set. The next two weeks will be pretty busy with all the various appointments we have set up. I’ll probably post a travel summary next weekend, and we’ll come up for air from all the “welcome home” activities by the 15th. Then we’ll be able to relax!
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