"Hit The Road Jack" - I think that was a song, wasn't it?

On Monday March 2rd we started the trip back home to Ohio. I wanted to be back for a meeting at church on the evening of March 11th and thought that would give us time for a relaxed trip back and some time to stop and smell the flowers along the way if we found some. We had picked up the fifth wheel from storage on Saturday as we had to have it out on the last day of the month or we would have to pay for another whole month. We stretched the rules slightly by letting it sit on the street in front of Tracey and Anjan's house for two nights. The HOA rules say only one night but hey - we have Ohio plates and they wouldn't want to treat out of towner's too bad.

We decided to come back via I40 and keep our fingers crossed a late winter storm did not catch us in route. Tracey and Anjan live on the northwest corner of Phoenix in Peoria and just a couple of blocks from Rte. 101 which circles the city. We got on 101 heading east over to I17 and took the ramp north towards Flagstaff.

Phoenix is at an elevation of about 1,100 above sea level and Flagstaff is up in the so-called high desert area at 6,900 ft. It's pretty much a steady climb although at times it gets a little steep and made the diesel growl quite a bit. The geography changes quite a bit from the brown, flat and low plant growth of Phoenix to the rolling forested area around Flagstaff. In Flagstaff we turned onto I40 and headed east. Flagstaff is on the old historic Route 66 also known as the "Mother Road". Route 66 was the first major highway across the country connecting Chicago with Los Angeles. I40 replaced Route 66 but remnants remain that many people try to retrace.

We made a stop at the Meteor Crater which is just a few miles south of I40 and close to Winslow, AZ. The meteor that created the crater hit the earth an estimated 50,000 years ago traveling at over 28,000 miles per hour and weighing over 300 tons. It made quite an impact and crater.

In line with our philosophy of relaxed travel we had targeted Holbrook, AZ as a stopping point for the day. The next morning we went through the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest.




A friendly raven that we thought was going to get in the truck when we left the door open. He was just begging for a handout.

Some of the painted desert.

End of a petrified log.

Sitting on a petrified log. Would be very hard on a chain saw. Picture was taken by George, a visitor from Germany. He said it was his 10th trip there, it was only our second.

Wigwam Motel in Holbrook on an old piece of Route 66. Check the vintage autos.
"Have you Slept in a Wigwam Lately?"

More teepees.
By the way - Do you know where a bee goes when he has to go to the bathroom?
Ans. - a BP of course.
Sorry Bill I know that's your joke!

I took a look inside one and they're a nice room.

The visitor center at the meteor crater and road leading up to it. Extreme visibility!

The meteor crater. More Information at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor_Crater