Monterey Bay Aquarium - Monterey, California

Tom, Jenn and Kayla flew out from Colorado for a spring break visit. Our first stop was the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
Kayla loves animals of all kinds so she was naturally drawn to the touch pools.

The aquarium is one of my favorite places. It is both a public attraction and a research facility, specializing in aquatic species found in the Monterey Bay.

The jellyfish exhibit is so calm and peaceful that it is no wonder it has been one of the most popular attractions for several years.

Apache Trail - Arizona Highway 88

The Apache Trail is a scenic roadway through the Superstition Mountains and Tonto National Forest from Apache Junction, near Phoenix to Globe. The drive consists of 40 miles of steep, winding and mostly unpaved roadway with spectacular views. The road is bumpy (washboard) and I certainly would not recommend it for an RV - it is more suited for an SUV style vehicle. Allow about 5 hours for the trip.

Near the middle of the trip (and where the pavement ends) is the old-west style settlement of Tortilla Flat (population 6) with it Superstition Saloon. Some time ago a tradition started to hang a dollar bill on the walls for good luck. Our waitress said that there were over 100,000 bills stapled on the walls and ceiling at last count. The tradition certainly seems to bring good luck to the owner.

Near the end of the trail you'll pass the Rooseveldt Dam and reservoir. By now you'll be happy to be getting back on paved highway.

That puts us at the end of another great trip. Steve and Natalie are ready to hit the road. An all-night marathon with driving shared by Gene and Steve will get us back home early Sunday.

Spring Training in Arizona

We finally made it to Scottsdale and Spring Training! Here's the whole gang.

Timmy!

If you click on the image below and look real close at the scoreboard, you'll see it says "Happy Birthday Allison Morris". Our St. Patrick's Day baby!

Montezuma Castle National Monument

Our next stop was Montezuma Castle, a five-story, 20-room dwelling built by the Southern Sinagua in the 1100's. (It was originall thought to be Aztec in origon, hence the name.) The visitor's center shows a video about the history and surrounding area. You can view the monument from below but are not allowed to climb up into it. The buildings were badly crumbling and in danger of collapse several years ago when restoration work was started (and funded) by two individuals who could not get funding to preserve the deteriorating structures from federal or state sources. Thanks to their efforts and personal sacrifice, this remarkable site has been preserved for us all to enjoy. A short distance to the west of this site (easy walking distance) are the ruins of another structure that was even larger than this one.

V Bar V Cultural Site

This is the largest known petroglyph site in Verde Valley and is extremely well preserved. Because it is staffed by volunteers, the site is only open 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. You can drive fairly close to the bookstore and visitor's center but to get to the rock art, you must walk about a half mile on a dirt and gravel path. Because of the rough terrain it is not suitable for wheelchairs or those with limited mobility. There are docents at the rock wall who are very knowledgeable, friendly and willing to share their knowledge of the origins of the artwork.Archeologists have attributed the carvings to the Southern Sinagua and estimated they were carved between 1150 and 1400 AD.Our docent explained how the sun casts a shadow across "sun symbols" at the equinox and the 3rd week of May (primary corn planting), as well as the summer and winter solstices, so the carvings also served a seasonal calendar.

Gold King Mine and Ghost Town

About a mile outside Jerome lies the Gold King Mine and Ghost Town. It's kind of tricky to get to but if you continue straight where highway 89 makes a sharp turn and follow Perkinsville Road all the way to the end you can't miss it. The atttraction consists of a bunch of rusting equipment scattered around several old mining buildings and an old working sawmill. Some of the buildings have chicken wire across the doorway and are set up as they would have appeared in the prime of this copper mining community. There is a small entry fee but it is worth a stop. Be forwarned that it looks like someone bought a junkyard and plowed a few paths through it - so don't expect a replica of a real mining town. It is a photographer's delight as there are many pieces of old rusted out mining equipment scattered around.

This is a replica or maybe the actual tools from the town's dentist's office.

Besides the rusting vehicles, there are several fully and partially restored antique cars housed in various buildings in the back.

Several of the original mining buildings are still intact but no trails lead up to them from the public area so I assume they are "off limits" for safety purposes. However there seems to be no concern with safety in public areas as they allow anyone to freely climb on the old equipment and explore the grounds on your own, with a few "watch out for rattlesnakes" signs...

Betty seemed to get bored with all the junk and ended up in the gift shop after a while but I found it interesting to explore through the piles of discarded equipment. If I remember correctly the admission was $5 each.

Jerome, Arizona

Jerome is a fun town. After it's time as a mining town, Jerome was repopulated in the 60's and 70's and, in many ways, time has stood still since then. A quaint mixture of tie-dyed articles, brothel souveniers and eateries make it a fun place to visit--best summed up by the bumper sticker reading "We're all here because we're not all there, Jerome Arizona, population: strange".

One of the highlights is The House of Joy, which originally provided joy as a brothel in the 20's. Later it was purchased by John and Mary Dempsey who converted it into a restaurant. John had been a chef in San Francisco and his cullinary skills earned his new establishment a Conde Naste rating as one of the 10 best restaurants in the U.S. Several years later, John was injured in a bicycle accident and could no longer spend the time on his feet that the restaurant required so John and Mary closed the restaurant and converted it to it's current shop of Brothel novelties. Definitely worth a visit. Betty and I had a nice visit with Mary as she happily shared the history of their home/art studio/shop. Mary and John personally make many of the articles for sale in their establishment.

The alley next to their store is a mini muesum in the eclectic.

Lunch Time! A quick quick check with Yelp (iPhone app) led us to Quince restaurant. Excellent food and a great atmosphere. Another spot worth visiting when in town.

Spots of the old mining town still remain on the main street.

I love the local art and artists.

Tuzigoot National Monument, Arizona

Tuzigoot is the remnant of a Southern Sinagua village build between 1125 and 1400. The original pueblo was 2 stories tall in places, with 77 ground floor rooms. The structures have been partially restored to show the layout of the basic wall structure. The two story portion of the pueblo has been rebuilt to show roughly how it looked and afford a view of the surrounding area.