Sept 1st to 3rd - Williams AZ

Sept 1st - Tues - to Williams AZ
On Sunday we saw so many huge cultivated fields and orchards and today it seemed that we drove through many times that acreage in absolutely useless land - rocks, hills, scrub brush, dried sparse grass. We managed to get to Arizona before we got diesel and it was much cheaper than in California - $2.55 vs. $3.19. We stopped in a rest area where I cooked breakfast for lunch and arrived at the Grand Canyon Railway RV park about 3. The weather was a lot cooler but we still had the AC on until the sun went down and the wind picked up a bit.
We drove through town and stopped at Safeway for a few items before settling in for the evening.

Sept 2nd - Wed - Williams
We headed for Camping World and Flagstaff this morning. Camping World is several miles west of Flagstaff on Hwy 40 and has no signs so we missed it. We decided to continue on to Flagstaff as the next exit was too far down the road. We found my favorite Big Lots store and picked up a few “essential” items. Then to a WalMart which turned out to be undergoing a remodel and was a real mess so we got the one item that I really needed. Next to Camping World for a new sewer hose. Hit Safeway on the way back to get ingredients for Salsa Salad that I have not made for a long time.
Put the Salsa Salad together and had some for a late lunch - good stuff. Then I got at a job that I have been putting off - entering our expenses into a spreadsheet. I was so happy to get caught up. I had a pork roast in the crockpot so dinner was easy. Went for a stroll around the park after dinner since the sporadic rain showers had quit.

Sept 3rd - Thurs - Williams
We spent some time this morning going over maps & camping books to decide exactly where we are heading next. Didn’t decide!
Off to Flagstaff again but this time to continue north to Sunset Crater Volcano and Wupatki National Monuments. Unfortunately, a parking area in Sunset Crater was being resurfaced so we couldn’t take the main walking path to view lava beds. We enjoyed walking around the preserved Wupatki Pueblo that had multiple stories and originally about 100 rooms.
This loop ended back at Hwy 89 which we took north to Hwy 64 into Grand Canyon Ntl Park. We have been to the south rim of the park previously but never to the east end. Shortly after you enter the park you encounter the Watchtower at Desert View. It is a stone tower built as a gift shop and to showcase Indian culture. We walked up the four stories to take pictures from the top - hard work at 7522 feet above sea level! We stopped at several more view points along the road before the highway turns south and out of the park. I was really impressed with the views and loved the lack of cars & people as compared to the main areas of the south rim.
We experienced several downpours during the day but it was nice when we got back to the park about 5. It wasn’t nice all day however as our neighbors had their awning flip over the top of their trailer while they were gone. Visited with neighbors, watched TV and walked around the park before dinner since we had a late lunch in the park - an amazingly good Philly steak sandwich at a snack shop.