Sept 3rd to 6th - Cottonwood AZ

Sept 3^rd – Tues – Parker

We decided to do a couple loads of laundry as we don’t know what facilities will be available when we move tomorrow.  On the way back we stopped for lunch and then for a last visit to the casino.  We didn’t win but had several hours of air conditioned comfort.

It wasn’t long until dinner and then the usual TV, reading & computer stuff.

Sept 4^th – Wed – to Cottonwood

We packed up, dumped the waste tanks and were on the road about 8.  We chose a route that took us north on Hwy 89 into Prescott.  We have been on the road once before but neither of us remembered 2 sections with lots of sharp curves and hills.  The road is restricted to trucks less than 40 feet in length which we were told last time was intended to exclude 18 wheelers.  We stopped for lunch in Prescott Valley and shortly after for diesel.  While Terry was fueling, I checked the GPS instructions and we decided to back track a mile or so and take 169 across to Hwy 17 rather than going through Jerome which we know involves more hills & curves.

We are staying at Verde Valley RV Resort which is a Thousand Trails park that accepts Passport America – ends up just over $20 a night including a “resort” fee and taxes.  It is a nice park located between Camp Verde & Cottonwood and down in the Verde River canyon.  We registered, selected our own site, set up and sat outside to relax for a while.  We have shade on the door side in the afternoon and it is nice to be able to sit outside instead of inside with the AC on.  Yes, it is still hot but not insanely so.

We had to go back to the entrance to let them know which site we picked so we decided to check out Cliff Castle Casino back at Hwy 17.  I didn’t do well, Terry hung in quite a bit longer before we headed back for dinner.  Terry just had time to BBQ steak before it got dark.

Sept 5^th – Thurs

After a lazy morning and breakfast, we went through Cottonwood to Sedona.  We wandered through the Tlaquepacque arts & crafts shopping area which is very interesting but we didn’t find anything that we needed to buy.  Then we went to the “oldtown” area and browsed both sides of the street.  It was hot but cooling off a bit in each store made it OK.  We finished a loop by returning on I17 which might have been a mistake as it took us past the casino – or rather, to the casino.  We started there by having a very late lunch and finished the same as yesterday!

A drink, TV, reading & dessert followed back at the rig.

Sept 6^th – Fri

I searched for something through old blog entries this morning and ended up reading a lot which was quite interesting and amazing to see how much I have forgotten.  I enter the blog in a word processing application and it is in “upside down” order like the posted blog.  I have redone a couple of years in Jan-Dec order and will have to do the rest just for my browsing pleasure.

Late this morning we went sightseeing again and started at Montezuma Castle which is a cliff dwelling.  It was open to tours until 1951 when I17 was built and the increased number of tourists caused too much damage.  At that time, a model was made to show the interior of the dwelling and it is still displayed below the cliff.  Next we went to Montezuma’s Well just up the freeway a few miles.  It is a short walk to the “well” which is a small lake in a crater.  It is fed from springs in the bottom and never runs dry.  On the path coming back, there are steps leading to the outlet from the well.  We were trying to decide if we wanted to take the steps down – we were hot – when a lady walked up and said it was worth it.  She was right – it was much cooler just a few feet down the hill and very scenic.  The same thing happened when we came back up – we told a hesitant group that it was worth the short walk.

We stopped at a thrift store on the way back to the freeway and found an amazing amount of stuff in an old house where every room was filled.  I got a couple of books and Terry picked up 2 tins that are the perfect size for buddy burners and can be hard to find.  Then it was time for a nice cool Blizzard at DQ.

We talked about going to the pool but ended up watching TV and getting lazy.  I used up leftovers for dinner and discovered that the oven is not relighting after it reaches the selected temperature and then cools down.  This happened once before and we thought a propane tank was empty.