AZ Archives - Our View From The Road

Day 13: From Sin City to Silence

By tony.barb.fisher April 14, 20242024 Cross-continent tour

After a great nights sleep in this amazing campground, (Willow Springs) we took advantage of the amazing shower facilities (9/10) before prepping for the road. Departing Willow Springs campground Our first stop was of course Hoover Dam. It was just 20 minutes from the campground and we arrived at about…

Day 12: Take it easy

By tony.barb.fisher April 13, 20242024 Cross-continent tour

Up early and showered! These time zone changes are making getting up early easier and easier. The showers at our campground were rating 3/10. Lots of hot water and a private lockable shower room but that’s it. Dirty, dilapidated, hard to set the perfect temp water. It got us clean,…

Day 11: When is wood not wood?

By tony.barb.fisher April 13, 20242024 Cross-continent tour

We awake to look out across a lava field left by a volcano some 10,000 years ago. It seems alien in what can already be considered by many an alien landscape. Lava from ancient volcano in Grants, NM Oh, and we discovered that we have a mouse in the van…

Day 35: Angels Peak

By tony.barb.fisher April 11, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Driving day today as we awake from another quiet night of slumber. The wind has picked up a bit and is from the West so that should help with our travels today. A normal pre-travel morning routine sees us enjoy a small breakfast and then it’s time to disconnect from…

Day 34: Monument Valley

By tony.barb.fisher April 10, 20232023 Southwest US tour

7:00am and an alarm wakes us. The time has gone ahead an hour now that we’re (just) in Utah and we are being picked up at 9:00am for our guided tour of the Monument Valley and backcountry. We enjoy a light breakfast and get ready to be out and about…

Day 33: Onto Monument Valley

By tony.barb.fisher April 9, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Another chilly night, I thought we came South to get some warmth? Had issues starting furnace during the night so used electric cube heater as we were plugged in at the site. Turns out that the propane was NOT turned on thus no furnace, Doh! Although I suppose it’s nice…

Day 32: The Grand Canyon

By tony.barb.fisher April 8, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Another chilly night in the high desert. This one required running the furnace for a few hours in the early morning hours. Brrr. We managed to get ready for the day and on the road before 9:00am. The drive to Grand Canyon National Park was only about 20min and we…

Day 31: Flagstaff and beyond

By tony.barb.fisher April 7, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Today = Driving. We leave Lost Dutchman State Park headed toward the Grand Canyon and the drive looks to be about 4 hrs but we have to stop for groceries and gas. It will take longer than 4 hours (foreshadowing). We start off well at about 9:00am and the traffic…

Day 30: Lost Dutchman State Park

By tony.barb.fisher April 6, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Whoa, chilly start to the day but supposed to heat up to 26C this afternoon. A light breakfast and then both ready ourselves for our morning walks. We were visited by Quail while eating our breakfast Barb will walk about the campground exploring some of the nature trails while I…

Day 29: “Nature is the inspiration for all ornamentation” – FLW

By tony.barb.fisher April 5, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Today we head towards Phoenix, AZ. The sun is up early and we go about our morning rituals to get ourselves and the van ready for a drive. We will miss Picacho Peak State Park, it is beautiful and serine. Our drive along I-10W is uneventful, yep back to our…

Day 28: Picacho Peak State Park 3

By tony.barb.fisher April 4, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Another short post today, the wind continues but it’s only going to get to 17C so it will feel cooler than that. The days starts with my walking around the park again, I take the following selfie. Once back to the campsite Barb catches me relaxing. We have breakfast and…

Day 27: Picacho Peak State Park 2

By tony.barb.fisher April 3, 20232023 Southwest US tour

A quick post today. We’re relaxing and doing some reading while the warm winds whip around our site knocking over chairs and footstools. We both finish the books we are reading by the end of the day. Sometimes staying still is very therapeutic. Enjoy a few pictures taken while walking…

Day 26: Picacho Peak State Park

By tony.barb.fisher April 2, 20232023 Southwest US tour

What a night! I still struggle with the complete silence that envelopes you here at night. I suffer from tinnitus and as such when it’s as quiet as it is in the desert, the only sound I hear is literally in my head. As for darkness, well. As you can…

Day 25: Ancient places

By tony.barb.fisher April 1, 20232023 Southwest US tour

It’s time to leave Tuscon and continue our journey. The days are definitely getting warmer here yet the nights are still chilly. I awakened this morning wishing I had my extra blanket last night. So, up again at 6:00 and out for my walk. Nobody else seems to be awake…

Day 24: Moving day

By tony.barb.fisher March 31, 20232023 Southwest US tour

As we extended our stay at this park by one day we have to move sites to accommodate other reservations. Not a problem as we have plans to go ‘off-site’ today. Another beautiful morning, another walk about the park. It seems a little emptier as I walk about, a few…

Day 23: When life gives you lemons… or Seville oranges

By tony.barb.fisher March 30, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Good day. So another restful night here in Tuscon, AZ. The morning sun rises early into the clear blue sky, yet it is cool at only 2C. I repeated yesterdays walk and then headed to the shower. The shower gets an 8/10 but there are signs that indicate the parks…

Day 22: annnnd relax

By tony.barb.fisher March 29, 20232023 Southwest US tour

First full day parked in Tuscon. I should have slept in but nooo, I had to be up at 6:00am for no known reason. Ok, time for a walk then. The park is large enough that I walked along every roadway and it totaled a 5km walk. Nice. Breakfast included…

Day 21: The town that will not die

By tony.barb.fisher March 28, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Three weeks into this trip and today will be the hottest yet with a forecast high of 28C. Ahh. 😎 To follow on from yesterdays theme of ‘Stranger things’, we awoke this morning to the notification that we had crossed into a new time-zone. Hey! Wait a minute, AZ is…

Day 20: Stranger Things

By tony.barb.fisher March 27, 20232023 Southwest US tour

Today is planned to be a day of travel as we head into Southern Arizona. Up by 6:30am and out for my walk through a new housing development near the KOA. Total distance of 4.3km with a 79m elevation gain, phew. Nice homes being built here in the southwestern adobe…