We had such a good time on our jaunt to Flagstaff back in July that we couldn't wait to take Arlene the camper out for another adventure! We initially planned to head to Arizona wine country, specifically to Sonoita and Willcox. Even though these cities are a few hours south, the elevation there is around 5,000 feet, so it's normally cooler than here in the valley. However, after we started looking at how warm it would be - particularly how long it would take to cool down at night - we reconsidered our plan and booked some time up north instead.
Relaxing our first afternoon at Ten-X Campground,
near Tusayan.
As we were tooling around Prescott on a day trip with the girls earlier in the month, Chris suggested spending one night there and then moving up to even higher elevations, perhaps near the south rim of the Grand Canyon. Some internet searching led me to a neat, full-hookup RV park called Point of Rocks, just north of downtown Prescott. The park is a short stroll away from Watson Lake, and it's in the section of the state known as the Granite Dells. The pictures seemed super cool, so we booked a one-night stay.
Driving into the Dells area near Prescott - neato, right?
This state has some freaking cool stuff.
Sorry for the mirror close-up,
but that happens sometimes.
We headed north on a Wednesday just after lunchtime, and the drive was smooth sailing. After a quick stop at everyone's favorite rest area, Sunset Point, it was across the 69 and around the north side of town, and we made it to Point of Rocks right around 2pm.
Glamour shot of the rig at Sunset Point
We did a no-contact check-in (essentially, they left our site number and map pinned to the board outside the office) and got ourselves situated. This was our very first back-in site, and Chris did amazing! He told me I did a nice job communicating with him and spotting as well, so it's a win for all the Olsen's!
Backed in perfectly!
"Olsen" family. If that's REALLY your name.
We got all set up - plugged in the electrical so we could start the AC (which was a bit twitchy to start with, but eventually worked fine), screwed in the water hose, and hooked up the stinky slinky. Piggy Sue the SewiePig did a great job holding down the connector.
Do work, Piggy Sue!
While the camper cooled down, we went on a quick stroll to check out Watson Lake, figuring we'd do a longer hike the next morning when it would be a bit more pleasant.
The hikes in this area were part of a larger system,
known as the Prescott Circle Trail.
I think it was in the neighborhood of ~50 miles or so,
ringing all the way around the city.
Watson Lake
Cool location, right?
Only Point of Rocks guests past this point!
After our short exploration (with, thankfully, no broken toes, as we hadn't bothered to change out of our flippie floppies), we headed into downtown for some good brews and food. Our first stop was Superstition Meadery, which makes absolutely amazing meads and ciders (they're on track to open a new tasting room just a few minutes away from us in downtown Phoenix this fall!). Their tasting room was open and was appropriately socially distanced, so we found ourselves a seat far away from everyone else to enjoy some libations.
AZ Social Distancing
Noms!
We wanted to hit up Prescott Brewing as well for some take-home options, but their hours had changed, and they weren't open when we wandered past. Oh well! We made our way to a local liquor store/market and found some great options instead. We also called in our dinner order to Farm Provisions, a local restaurant, and picked it up about 15 minutes later. It was back to the RV park to eat and enjoy the rest of the evening!
Courthouse Square in Prescott
By the way, Farm Provisions was AMAZING -
I had the pot pie, Chris had a pork tenderloin,
and we split a small wedge salad.
Even with the time it took to get the food
back to the camper and get set up for dinner,
everything was outstanding.
We highly recommend!
We chilled outside until bedtime, enjoying some ciders and other brews, eventually retiring after doing some stargazing.
The next morning, we made some coffee and jotted down notes in the cute journal my friend Jen gave us, and eventually, we went on a short trek back down to Watson Lake (I still can't raise my
heart rate very much or for very long, so it was a short, easy trek, but it was pretty).
Journal time!
More shots around Prescott, the Granite Dells, and Watson Lake
I found a white dot!
These mark the route on the Prescott trail system.
They also kind of look like bird poop,
so fair warning.
We headed back to the RV park to eat breakfast (yogurt with blueberries and granola), take showers, and get packed up to head further north. Since our next destination, Ten-X campground, didn't have hookups, we filled up our fresh water tank at Point of Rocks; we also made sure to fully empty our black and gray tanks.
From the freeway to the one road that runs to the Grand Canyon (the 64), you have to pass through the town of Williams, and since we needed to kill about an hour of time before our campground check-in, we parked the rig in the lot for the Grand Canyon Railway/Hotel (it was so quiet, which was rather eerie - it's normally PACKED at this time of the year) and wandered around town. We hit up a souvenir shop on old Route 66 and picked up some momentos, and then it was on to the Williams location of Historic Brewing, where we found some delicious drinking options. With our purchases in hand (and after stopping at Dollar Tree for aluminum foil, nail files, and hair gel), it was back to Arlene and we continued our voyage north.
Downtown Williams is pretty darn cute.
Dang, look at those clouds.
We managed not to buy a pie in the cafe,
but it was close.
In Part 2, we camp off the grid for the first time, we have close encounters with various and sundry wildlife, and we see a big hole in the ground!
Later!
Amy
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