May 17 - 18, 2014 - Day 8 & 9 in Show Low and Phoenix, AZ

We enjoyed a wonderful stay at Karen and David's home.   Sitting on their back deck  watching the birds and wildlife (saw a fox and rabbits) was a real treat.  David showed us around Show Low and we  took a side trip over to Snowflake.  On the 18th, we drove from Show Low down through Globe and then to Queen Creek to visit Erik and Melissa and the kids for a great get together (about a 4 hour drive).

Here are some pictures of Karen & David's home which they designed and built:

These pictures were taken on the drive from Show Low to Globe.

Visiting the family:

May 15-16, 2014 - Days 6 & 7 in Show Low, AZ

The drive from Payson to Show Low was very easy.  A little over 2 hours because they are doing road construction.  In some locations they hold the traffic on one side of the road while the other side follows a "Pilot Car" to bring them through the construction.  This happened several times and slowed our arrival to Show Low.  

Dropped the car off at the rental office and David picked us up.  After lunch, David drove us around to communities and we walked some properties and saw some new developments.  David and Karen's home is beautiful and I will post pictures later.   

We are enjoying our stay and will cook David a salmon dinner on the grill tonight with grilled vegetables.

Love seeing the different wildlife.

May 14, 2914 - Day 6 in Payson, AZ

Left Prescott in the morning and headed to Payson.   It is a long 2 hour drive because of the twisting, mountainous roads.   The roads are excellent, but they are single lanes with short double lanes to allow passing.   The entire area consists of tall pine trees within a national forest.  We are in Mogollon Rim.  Very beautiful and cool temperatures.

Upon arriving in Payson we stopped at a Chili's for an early lunch.   Had a hard time finding our hotel because apparently they were bought out after we had made our reservations and the hotel named changed.   Our waitress told us where to go and all was fine once we arrived.

After lunch we headed to the area casino.  Won $183 on a penny slot and Bridget told me to take the money and run!  We did!  

After a little rest in the late afternoon, we went to a local ice cream shop for our first desert during the entire trip.  

Heading to Show Low tomorrow.





Payson to Show Low

May 13, 2014 - Day 5 in Prescott, AZ

We started our day with a trip to Sedona.  Weather was bright and sunny in the mid-40s but it warms up quickly.  High today will be around 72.   We left at 8:00 via route 89 through Prescott Valley.  We made some pullover stops along the way for photos and arrived in Sedona about 10am.  We walked around town and had a bite to eat in a cafe on the main street.   

We then headed out to Airport Road for a spectacular view of the valley and surrounding red rock mountains.

Since in was early in the day, we decided to take a different route back to Prescott.   Leaving Sedona we headed to Cottonwood and then onto Jerome. Jerome was built on Cleopatra Hill above a vast deposit of copper.  Mining operations began in 1883.  

Driving through Jerome can be difficult.  The town is built around narrow, twisting, roads.  We are climbing from about 4000 elevation to 6000 elevation and, again, the views are spectacular.   We did not stop in Jerome as it was extremely busy with tourist and difficult to find a parking spot.   The road from Jerome to Prescott can be hair-raising!!  I was glad I was going up the mountain passage and not down as the road is narrow with hairpin turns.  The vista views were amazing.  It is slow travelling this passage and it took an extra hour to return to Prescott.

Upon getting back to Prescott, we went back to the piece of property we are interested in possibly purchasing and I took a video.  We then drove around the neighborhood.

We changed gears and made a quick stop at Bucky's Casino.   It is a small, Native American Indian Casino, with slot machines and a few tables.  I played a slot, doubled my money, and we left.  Too smokey.

We ended our day at the Hassayappa Inn for happy hour.  We ordered a nice cheese and fruit platter with our drinks.  

Another great day!!!

May 12, 2014 - Day 4 in Prescott, AZ

Another great day in Prescott.  Temp was 41 in the AM and 69 by afternoon.  

We checked out Trader Joe's and looked at property at The Ranch.  Saw several interesting properties at The Ranch and took some videos.

Went back into downtown Prescott and stopped by the Chamber of Commerce.  Picked up lots of interesting material for our friends back home.

At 1:00pm we met with our real estate agent again and she took us out to look at land again for 3 hours.   We found a fantastic piece of property with great views.  We have a plot plan of the land and need more information from the real estate agent about requirements.  Need to discuss with brother David about  the potential footprint of the home.

Saw Quail, rabbits and a road runner on various properties today.

Had a bite at Applebees tonight.   Really tired today since we have been up since 4:30!  

Going to Sedona tomorrow.

May 11, 2014 - Day 3 in Prescott, AZ

Another bright, sunny, day with morning temp in mid 40's.  Cool and windy.  

First stop was a drive to Thumb Butte in the national forest area  We have both commented on the difficulty of breathing at this altitude and all little hikes we take always seem to start by going up hill.  They say it takes a while to acclimate to the altitude.

Next stop was at the Prescott Zoo.  A nice little zoo which is also adjacent to Willow Lake and the Granite Dells.  Another very nice place to hike.

We then proceeded back to downtown Prescott for the Wine Festival and Craft Show.  We had purchased Groupon tickets at a 50% discount for the Wine Festival before we left Connecticut.  It was a very nice event and we received a free bottle of Arizona wine when we left.

Lunch today was at Bill's Pizza which is very popular with the locals.  We had a caramelized onion, mushroom, and chicken pie (white) and it was fantastic!

Since I am still suffering with a darn cold, we had a quiet afternoon, but will venture out this evening.

Below are some random pictures taken today.