
![]() Update: November 2022: After more than twenty-six years of taking virtual road trips with Gerald Thurman, he closed down his travel web site (AZFOO.NET) and all of his articles, tips and finds are no longer on the Web. This page is retained as a tribute to what once was an epic roadtripper’s collection. |
![]() Live from Rice, California ![]() Cemetery in Ellisville, Illinois ![]() The Hassayampa Inn ![]() Yuma Cabana Motel ![]() Mojave sunrise ![]() The perfect lobster roll ![]() Royal Gorge, Colorado ![]() Dot's Diner in Bisbee, AZ ![]() On the peak of Scotts Bluff ![]() ![]() Roosevelt Dam ![]() Cholla cactus in bloom ![]() The Coronado Trail ![]() 140 beastly miles ahead! ![]() the road to Sacaton ![]() Googleville! ![]() Tom Sawyer's fence ![]() Blooming saguaro in Tonto National Forest ![]() Route 66 Mural in Kingman, Arizona ![]() Pinto Canyon Bridge ![]() Meteor City ![]() Duncan Family Farm ![]() Cave Creek Recreation Area ![]() Photogenic car in Bisbee, Arizona ![]() Saguaro Lake Byway ![]() Standin' on a corner in... ![]() Charlie Brown at home in Santa Rosa ![]() Kelso Dunes ![]() DARPA Grand Challenge ![]() Sitgreaves Pass, Route 66 ![]() Highway 387, Arizona ![]() Elvis, Thurman, & Marilyn on Hollywood Boulevard ![]() Mural in Flagstaff, Arizona, on Route 66 ![]() Wilson Arch near Moab, Utah ![]() Up-to-date mural in Casa Grande, Arizona ![]() RoadTrip: Wyoming ![]() Saguaros near Payson, Arizona ![]() Desert poppies, White Tank Mountain Park, Arizona ![]() Bartlett Lake, Arizona ![]() Route 66 sign (and Gerald, if you look closely!) in Illinois ![]() Charred Shoe Tree near Rice, California ![]() Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania ![]() Journey to Winslow, Arizona ![]() Zero Milestone, Washington, D.C. ![]() Great Basin Road Trip ![]() On the road ![]() Mt. St. Helens, Washington ![]() "Field of Dreams," Iowa ![]() Calico Ghost Town, California ![]() Grand Canyon, Arizona ![]() Saguaro National Park, Arizona ![]() Farm Toy Museum, Iowa |
New
Year's Road Trip to Tehachapi and Route 66: (2/8/09)
A three-day, 1102-mile round trip beginning in Tempe, Arizona.
Thurman checked on the state of various shoe trees in Rice,
California, then moved onward to the Fortynine Palms Oasis
in Joshua Tree National Park and a memorable night at the
El Rancho Motel in Barstow. He photographed several beautiful
roadside murals and captured some of the clearest images of
the Tehachapi Loop we've ever seen. Thurman also got some
great photos of the Twenty-Mule Team Museum in Boron and gorgeous
Fly
and Drive to the Great River Road:
(05/15/08)
A five-day, 744-mile fly & drive road trip from Phoenix,
Arizona to Warsaw, Illinois via Chicago and Joliet. Thurman
stayed on the bank of the Mississippi River, watched barges
and explored several historic towns including Basco, Carthage,
Ellisville, London Mills and Maquon. He captured some wonderful
scenery and colorful images of old town Americana, found a
mural and visited some old cemeteries. In the photo on the
left, he's sitting on a seat carved from a tree stump, flanked
by old grave stones.
Spring
Break Road Trip: (03/12/08)
A two-day, 262-mile roundtrip road adventure from Tempe, Arizona
to Prescott, Arizona and back. The mission of this trip was
to spend the night at the historic Hassayampa Inn, which opened
in 1927. While in Prescott, Thurman visited the oldest log
building (1863) and first bank of the Arizona Territory (1877).
He looked for fine dining along Whiskey Row and discovered
the resting place of "Mike the Community Dog". He
also found some beautiful old buildings and a
very nice mural.
A Mid-December Desert Retreat:
(12/16/07) A three-day, 969-mile roundtrip road trip from
Tempe, Arizona to Palm Springs, California. Gerald and his
son captured some gorgeous photos in this back roads exploration
near the desert towns of Quartzsite, Yuma, Bond's Corner,
and Chiriaco Summit. Along the way they spent time in the
Carrizo Badlands of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and captured
some awesome views from Font's Point near the Salton Sea.
They also found time to take photos of historic buildings,
old neon signs, a bunch of trains, and a cool mural or two.
One of the highlights was the ride up the Palm Springs Aerial
Tramway -- and a snowman at the top.
A
Weekend Road Trip in the Mojave Desert:
(11/04/07) A three-day, 854-mile roundtrip journey from Tempe,
Arizona to Victorville, California to attend the DARPA
Urban Challenge event for autonomous robotic vehicles.
On day one, Thurman followed Interstate 10 to Quartzsite and
Palm Springs to San Bernardino and took some outstanding photos
of the historic California Theatre. Here is his photo journal
from the first
day at the DARPA event. Here are some excellent
photos and commentary from the competition on November
3rd. Day
three finds Thurman back on the road with stops at Twentynine
Palms for some more great murals and expanded coverage of
the shoe tree fence in Rice, California. He also stopped by
Bouse, Arizona, "home of 875 friendly people and 5 grouches."
In Search of the Perfect Lobster Roll (8/14/07) A four-day, 760-mile fly & drive roadtrip to New Hampshire and Maine with Boston, Massachusetts as the hub. Dodging rainstorms, Kathleen and Gerald visited Salem, Gloucester, and then made a beeline to Bangor, Maine where they explored some of Acadia National Park and the coastal highways linking Maine with Massachusetts. While in Boston, they visited the Commons and hiked the Freedom Trail. Want to know where to find the perfect lobster tail sandwich? Read this report!
Fly
& Drive: Denver (08/05/07)
A five-day, 1169-mile road trip with Denver, Colorado as the
hub. There are so many outstanding scenic views in this field
report, it is amazing. Thurman visited two national parks,
three national monuments and crossed the Continental Divide
four times. He found some awesome murals in Delta and Fruita
and captured beautiful shots of the Royal Gorge and the very
tall waterfalls at Seven Falls. He also drove to the top of
Pikes Peak and managed to get some great shots of Elk. There
is an especially excellent photo of a Denver and Rio Grande
Railroad steam engine in the gorge. If you are considering
a fly-and-drive from Denver, spend some time reading this
report!
Exploring Southeastern Arizona (07/04/07) A three-day, 524-mile road trip to Bisbee. While in Bisbee, Thurman stayed at the famous Shady Dell RV park. What sets this place apart from the thousands of RV parks across the country, are the vintage aluminum trailers that guests may stay in. Some of these unusual trailers include a 1950 Spartanette, a 1951 Royal Mansion and a 1949 Airstream. Thurman and Kathleen stayed in a 1957 El Rey. Also on site is the still-functioning Dot's Diner, and next door is the Evergreen Cemetery, which, Thurman says, is " the most interesting cemetery I've ever visited." Thurman also visited the Phelps Dodge open pit mine, and captured some beautiful photos of Bisbee and Tombstone, the old Western town that was "too tough to die".
Grassland
and Prairie RoadTrip (6/5/07)
A two-day ramble through the grasslands and prairies of northeast
Colorado and southwest Nebraska. This is a vintage Thurman
excursion: he documents examples of prairie town architecture
in little-known places like Last Chance & Brush, Colorado
and in Kimball & Arthur, Nebraska. He also travels the
back roads through the Pawnee National Grassland and explores
Scotts Bluff National Monument. Be sure to look at his photos
of the historic and beautiful arches of the highway bridge
near Fort Morgan and the arresting images of "Carhenge"
near Alliance, Nebraska. This report also includes images
of both Courthouse and Jail Rock, famous landmarks on the
Oregon Trail. This part of this journey ends in McCook, Nebraska
after a stop at Massacre Canyon.
Albuquerque,
New Mexico RoadTrip! (3/13/07)
A three-day, 339-mile roadtrip around Albuquerque, New Mexico
with special attention paid to Route 66, some incredible murals
in both "old town" and the Nob Hill Section of the
city and a visit to the University of New Mexico. Thurman
also drove to the Petroglyph National Monument, the Volcanoes
day use area, and along the Sandia Crest Parkway. His mission
this trip was to have a piece of blueberry pie on PI day (March
14th) which he found at the Route 66 Diner. This adventure
features two video clips!
Historic
Apache Trail (2/11/07)
Thurman reprises one of the first road trips he took for RTA
back in December, 2003. This time, he chose to drive it in
reverse (west-to-east), and the desert views in this seven-hour,
183-mile road trip are outstanding. He captured some really
nice views of the Roosevelt Dam and bridge, towering saguaro
cactus and gorgeous light on the surrounding mountains. If
you have ever thought about driving this route, which is easily
accessible on a day trip from the Phoenix area, check out
this field report!
Three days in a convertible! (12/10/06) A three-day, 811-mile road trip to southern California. Thurman travels to Rice to check on the Rice Shoe Tree and her progeny. Other stops include a quick check on the "Oasis of Murals" in Twentynine Palms, a drive through Joshua Tree National Park, and a cruise on historic Route 66 between Victorville and Barstow. There are some wonderful scenes from Joshua Tree and the surrounding desert in this roadtrip field report.
RoadTrip
to a Yurt! (10/17/06)
A four-day, 564-mile roadtrip to Lyman Lake State Park via
US-191, known as the Coronado
Trail, which has some of the curviest stretches of pavement
in the continental forty-eight states. Along the way Thurman
visits the towns of Thatcher and Clifton and photographs a
bunch of petroglyphs and some stunning cloud formations, including
one that looks like the mathematical symbol for Pi.
RoadTrip
to Bagdad (9/22/06)
An eleven-hour, 363-mile road trip to Bagdad, Arizona, including
visits to Wickenburg, Prescott, Skull Valley and Yarnell.
This route included scenic drives on US Highway 93 and Arizona
Highways 97, 96 and 89. Gerald found a very strange parking
sign in Skull Valley and some very colorful murals in Prescott.
The
Road To Sacaton (8/7/06)
A three-hour, 102-mile road trip to some small Arizona towns
along the Gila River south of Phoenix. Along the way, Gerald
finds a new mural that replaces one lost when a building was
torn down near Freedom Park in Sacaton and shares some photos
of the Pima Mission which was founded in 1870. Gerald was
last in this area in March, 2005, and his photos
of the desert in spring bloom are noteworthy.
The
Oregon Trail & Beyond
(7/29/06) A 4-day, 353-mile roadtrip
that explores sections of the Oregon Trail, downtown Portland
and the surrounding countryside. Along the way, Gerald captured
some gorgeous photos of Oregon City, Mt. Hood, the Portland
Rose Garden and waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge. In
Oregon City, Gerald shot scores of photos of murals.
Look for the hydrant-swallowing tree that he found near Thurman
Street in Portland! He also stopped by the Timberline Lodge
near Government Camp which was used as the exterior of the
hotel in "The Shining." He found a bonanza of new
murals for our collection in The Dalles and a sign announcing
the location of - get ready - Googleville!
The Great River Road (6/29/06) A five day, 1,475-mile road trip starting and ending in St. Louis, Missouri including travel along historic US Highway 61 with visits to Hannibal, Missouri (home of Mark Twain), Chester, Illinois (Popeye's home town), Metropolis, Illinois (Superman's hometown), the Eiffel tower in Paris, Tennessee, Jackson, Tennessee (Casey Jones' hometown), and the St. Francis Scenic Byway in Arkansas. Along the way, Thurman found scores of new murals, walked in the footsteps of Lewis and Clark at the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, captured an intimate moment with two giant bison, explored Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee, and enjoyed some epicurean delights at the famous Lambert's Café, (home of "thrown rolls") in Sikeston, Missouri.
Searching
for the "Grand Saguaro"
(6/15/06)
A six-hour, 120-mile round trip from Tempe to the Horseshoe
Lake reservoir in the Tonto National Forest in search of a
giant saguaro cactus known as the "Grand One." The
roadtrip included visits to Horseshoe Dam and Lake, the Sears-Kay
Ruin, and an exploration of the fire damage caused by last
year's Cave Creek Complex fire.
More
Route 66 Adventures! (6/2/06)
A two-day, 631 mile round trip roadtrip from Tempe
to Flagstaff and Kingman, Arizona, along historic Route 66.
Gerald undertook this particular trip, in part, to identify
the names of the artists who have created some of the amazing
murals along Route 66. (The Route 66 scene to the left was
painted by Sandy Ruskino.) Along the way, Gerald shares shots
of desert vistas, blooming saguaros and historic roadside
attractions including some real epicurean discoveries at the
Copper Cart Restaurant in Seligman (famous pancakes) and Mr.
D'z (excellent hamburgers) in Kingman.
What
happened to Christmas?
(5/19/06)
In Gerald Thurman's ongoing quest to document
the vanishing architectural vestiges of Arizona's mining history,
he undertook a 7½-hour, 210-mile round trip journey
through the Superstition Mountains from Tempe to Globe, Winkelman
and Superior. Along the way he tried to find the small town
of Christmas. While he missed Christmas, this trip report
includes photographs of the "the most beautiful steel
bridge of 1949," a huge array of blooming saguaros in
El Capitan Canyon, and a beautiful mosaic mural he found in
Hayden. There are also some photos of the historic mining
towns of Miami and Kearny.
Route
66 & Beyond (3/18/06)
A two-day, 594-mile roundtrip road trip from
Tempe, Arizona, to points of interest in northern Arizona
and New Mexico. Thurman captured some gorgeous scenery and several new murals.
His photo slideshow has scenery from Walnut Canyon National
Monument, Petrified Forest National Park, and the towns of
Payson, Flagstaff, Winslow, Holbrook, Show Low, Miami and
Superior.
Goodyear,
Arizona (2/21/06)
A 189-mile road trip from Tempe to Buckeye,
Gila Bend, Maricopa, and back to Tempe. This seven-hour trip
included stops at the Robbins Butte Wildlife refuge, and the Sonoran
Desert National Monument. Thurman also captured some photos of very odd-looking
saguaro cacti along Arizona Highway 238.
Bad
Ass RoadTrip
(1/6/06)
A seven-hour, 164-mile roadtrip to the Sunset Point rest area
on Interstate 17 north of Phoenix. The trip included visits
to Carefree, Cave Creek, Cave Creek Recreational Area (and
the old Clay Mine), the sundial at the Sunset Point rest area,
and the High Desert Trail near Black Canyon City. Along the
way, Thurman found an eclectic collection of sculptures in
the Carefree City Park, sampled delicacies at the Bad Ass
BBQ in Black Canyon City, and enjoyed a tasty piece of Jack
Daniels Pecan Pie at Rock Springs.
SE
Arizona and SW New Mexico
(12/23/05)
A two-day, 705-mile road trip from Tempe, Arizona, to the
historic mining towns of Fairbank, Tombstone, and Bisbee.
Thurman then traveled west into New Mexico with stops at the
Geronimo surrender monument, the site of the Clanton Gang
hideout in Animas. He crisscrossed the continental divide
three times before reaching Lordsburg. Back in Arizona, Thurman
photographed some interesting older buildings in several semi-ghost
towns including Bowie and San Simon. His slide show includes
some mysterious shots of "The Thing" and some oddly
shaped cactus at Saguaro National Park. As on many of his
other trips, Thurman found some great murals and wonderful
scenic vistas.
Saguaro
Lake Byway (12/14/05)
A three hour, 73-mile road trip from Scottsdale on the Beeline
Highway (Arizona Highway 87) to Saguaro Lake with a return
to Tempe on the Bush Highway. The trip includes a walk through
part of the Butcher Jones Recreation Site around the lake
and some great views of picturesque Saguaro cactus plants
and plenty of ducks. The final section of the road trip winds
down into the canyons in the Tonto National Forest & Lower
Salt River area.
Return to Winslow: (11/12/05) A three-day/two-night 175-mile road trip visit to Winslow, Arizona, where Gerald documents a number of Route 66 buildings and murals found around downtown. He also has some great photos of historic trains and the gardens at the famous La Posada hotel. The return leg of the trip
San
Francisco Bay Area: (10/31/05)
A four-day/three-night fly-and-drive 227-mile roadtrip from
San Jose to San Francisco, Santa Rosa, and Sebastopol. Highlights
of this Halloween trip included sunrise at the Golden Gate
Bridge, a drive along the Pacific Coast Highway, murals and
statues of the Charlie Brown characters in Santa Rosa, a visit
to Stanford University, and a stop at the humble garage that
is considered to be the birthplace of Silicon Valley.
Kelso Dunes and the Rice Shoe Tree (10/9/05) Thurman travels from Baker, California to Tempe, Arizona and visits the Mojave National Preserve, the Kelso Dunes, the famous Roy's Café on Route 66, and the Rice Shoe Tree near California State Highway 62. This was actually the fourth leg in a four-day/three night roadtrip covering 918 miles. To view it in order, click here.
DARPA Grand Challenge (10/8/05) Gerald Thurman's coverage of the autonomous vehicle race that covered a 132-mile off-highway desert course between Primm and Las Vegas, Nevada.
Route 66 over Sitgreaves Pass (10/7/05) Road trip between Kingman, Arizona and Primm, Nevada via Route 66 through the town of Oatman. Gerald found a bunch more murals along the way and documented a number of historic buildings.
Northwest Indiana RoadTrip (8/11/05) A four-day/three-night trip to Joliet, Illinois, and a 227-mile round trip road trip to northwest Indiana. Highlights of this trip include brief visits to the Illinois and Michigan Canal Museum, iron-work sculptures in Munster, Indiana, the Myers Castle in Dyer, some really cool bulldog (especially the "Marine Bulldog") public art displays in downtown Crown Point, the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, and some truly awesome murals on Route 66 in Joliet, Illinois.
Two-Hour RoadTrip (7/26/05) A one-day, 35-mile drive between Chandler and Coolidge, Arizona, on Arizona State Route 87. This route follows the Gila River and crosses two of the three former irrigation canals that were built in the early 1900s. Thurman captured photographs of some of the former locks -- pretty surprising to find them in the dry desert landscape! He also found a very photogenic example of Spanish architecture -- a church and graveyard near Chandler. His return trip to Tempe was via a 15-mile scenic section of AZ-Hwy 387.
RoadTrip: Los Angeles (7/05/05) A four-day/three-night road trip from Tempe, Arizona to Los Angeles, California covering 825 miles. Highlights of this trip included visits to Santa Monica, Griffith Park, the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood, the famous Watts Towers, skyscrapers in downtown LA, Union Station, and, of course, more murals including some unusual ones in downtown L.A.
Mormon Lake Road Trip: (6/18/05) A two-day/one-night roadtrip between Phoenix and Mormon Lake Village via Flagstaff covering 380 miles. Thurman and his daughter Bree stopped at the Flagstaff train depot, Northern Arizona University, Mormon Lake, and the Tonto Natural Bridge State Park. In addition to an impressive cow mural, Thurman found another amazing mural depicting a cowgirl's dream during his brief visit to Flagstaff.
Four Corners RoadTrip: (6/5/05) Thurman's five day/four night roadtrip through northeast Arizona, northwest New Mexico, southwest Colorado, and southeast Utah covered 1,822 miles. This awesome road trip yielded breathtaking photos at El Morro National Monument, the Bandera Volcano and Ice Cave, Mesa Verde National Park, Newspaper Rock, Canyonlands National Park, Dead Horse State Park, Arches National Park, Goblin Valley, Valley of the Gods, Canyon de Chelly, and extensive coverage of the murals in Moab, Utah. Be sure and look for the "Poison Spider" mural.
Casa Grande RoadTrip: (5/16/05) A six hour, 200-mile road trip between Tempe and Casa Grande, Arizona with a stop for pancakes at the famous Space Age Lodge in Gila Bend. Along the way, Thurman found some blooming Saguaros, a friendly Gila monster, a rock church, and some really interesting murals in downtown Casa Grande.
Wyoming RoadTrip: (05/8/05) A 3-day/2-night fly/drive roadtrip from Phoenix, Arizona to Denver, Colorado, including an all-day cattle branding on a ranch near Ft. Laramie, Wyoming. Gerald found some great murals & "boot" art, and he captured some truly great western scenery. Along the way, he drove 608 miles and explored parts of Colorado, Wyoming, and Nebraska.
April Fools Day RoadTrip (4/4/05) Gerald explored Arizona's Rim Country during a one-day, 337-mile roadtrip from Tempe to Show Low to Payson and back to Tempe. Along the way he got some gorgeous shots of the Salt River canyon and a Saguaro forest southwest of Payson.
Estrella Mountain Park (3/20/05) Wildflower displays within a couple of hours of Phoenix
White Tank Mountain Park (3/20/05) Two-hour road trip from Phoenix, with petroglyphs and more wildflowers.
New Mexico Spring Break RoadTrip (3/20/05) A two-day, 858-mile trip from Tempe to Silver City, New Mexico, and back with awesome views of Salt River Canyon, desert wildflowers, colorful murals, and snow-covered passes.
Two-Hour Road Trips from Phoenix (3/6/05) In the spirit of "The Art of the Two-Hour Road Trip," Gerald visited Bartlett Lake and Arizona City. Check out how green the Arizonan desert is this year in these two field reports.
Getting
Kicks on Route 66 (2/6/05) Gerald
took this 3-Day/2-night roadtrip on the 30th of January through
rural Illinois, including 80 miles along historic Route 66.
Highlights to check out on his latest ramble: Frozen waves
on Lake Michigan in Chicago, great examples of vintage murals
in the town of Chenoa, a truly awesome courthouse in Pontiac,
nice photos of the historic 1932 Standard Oil gas station
in Odell, and other route 66 historic artifacts. Be sure to
check out the sign for gasoline prices in 1932!
Shoe Tree in Rice, California (12/22/04) Gerald takes a 511 mile trip from Tempe to southern California to check on the current health of the fire-ravaged Shoe Tree and still-struggling Underwear Tree. Along the way he took in some beautiful desert scenery and snagged photos of some of the rock banners along California Highway 62 between Parker, Arizona, and Joshua Tree National Park. He also visited the town of Earp (named after Wyatt Earp) and Dome Rock Mountain near Quartzsite on his way back to Phoenix.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (11/21/04) Proving the adage that any trip can be a roadtrip, Gerald Thurman flies to Pittsburgh and gets some incredible photographs of bridges, buildings, and murals. He sneaks away from his computer conference and travels along the famous Lincoln Highway while exploring parts of West Virginia and Ohio. The murals in Stubenville, Ohio, are outstanding, as are his photos of Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater House in Pennsylvania. Gerald's five day visit to Pittsburgh culminates with a "Mystery Sandwich" at Chiodo's Tavern in the famous steel-working town of Homestead, Pennsylvania.
"Standing on the Corner in Winslow, Arizona" (11/06/04) Gerald travels to the town in Jackson Browne's "Take it Easy" song made famous by The Eagles. He wanted to check out recent fire damage at "the corner." While there, he stayed at the Franklin D. Roosevelt room at the historic Rte. 66 La Posada Inn, watched the trains go by, and checked out the local murals. His photographs and comments give a good look at an iconic, off-the-beaten-path western town.
Washington, D.C. (10/31/04) Gerald captured some awesome photographs of the monuments, buildings, and parks at the nation's seat of power. He also managed to find a field of cows, murals, gorgeous vistas, and autumn foliage. His five-day roadtrip also explored sections of West Virginia, Maryland and Virginia.
(8/15/04) Gerald Thurman completed a 6 day/5 night 2,255 mile, round trip exploration of the Great Basin departing from Salt Lake City, Utah. Along the way he visited the Bonneville Salt Flats, the little Sahara Dunes area, and Great Basin National Park. He found some incredible murals in Ely Nevada, explored the western outback of Oregon, scouted US-395 in California looking for shoe trees, and visited Craters of the Moon National Monument in Idaho. This report includes over 100 photographs and more examples of his pithy road trip commentary.
Midwest
Road Trip (7/18/04)
Gerald's six day July roadtrip covered 1176 miles following
back roads in Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota. 122
photographs in travelogue format chronicle stops at the SPAM
world headquarters, at the baseball diamond made famous in
the movie "Field of Dreams," and the boyhood home
of President Ronald Reagan in Dixon, Illinois. Thurman also
found some truly incredible murals in Sterling, Illinois,
and a huge collection of John Deere tractors at the National
Farm Toy Museum in Dyersville, Iowa.
Tempe
to Verde Valley, Arizona (6/27/04)
Leave Tempe at 9:00am heading east on US Hwy-60. Drive
through Mesa, Apache Junction, Gold Canyon, Florence Junction,
Superior, and Miami to Claypool. After driving 73 miles east
on US Hwy-60, go north on AZ Hwy-88 into the Tonto National
Forest..[More]
Tempe
to Coolidge Dam (6/20/04)
I left Tempe at 8:00am heading east on US Hwy-60. US
Hwy-60 in the eastern part of the Valley of the Sun is a littery
expressway that goes through Mesa, Apache Junction, and Gold
Canyon. It switches from an expressway to a four-lane highway
just east of Apache Junction and it is at this point that
I become happy to be on the road again...[More]
"Standing
on the Corner in Winslow, Arizona"
On Memorial Day weekend of 2004 we took a two-day/one-night,
346 mile, road-trip to Winslow, Arizona. The purpose of the
road-trip was two-fold: get out of town for a weekend; and,
get a picture of...[More]
Gila
Bend & Dateland
I haven't kept count, but I've probably driven pass Dateland,
Arizona, a dozen times since 1985 without ever stopping. On
Monday, 24 May 2004, I took a one-day roadtrip from Tempe
to Dateland via Gila Bend and other places...[More]
Spring
Break!
Catch a Sunday, 11:08am, flight from Sky Harbor in Phoenix
to San Jose, California, arriving on-time at 12:01pm. It was
a sunny day that allowed for some picture taking from 30,000
feet...[More]
US
Hwy 60
The plan was to head west on I-10, exit the Interstate
at Exit #45 to visit New Hope, continue I-10 west and exit
at Exit #31 onto US Hwy-60. This is the western end of US
Hwy-60 (it used to go to LA -- the eastern end is in Virginia
Beach, VA.) The plan was altered when I could not find any
visible signs of New Hope. Instead of returning to I-10, we
took Vicksburg Road north to Vicksburg Junction and...[More]
Southeast
Arizona
Day One: Leave Tempe, AZ, at 6:45am. It is dark and chilly.
Thanks to Valley of the Sun urban sprawl, I can take Loop
101 south that connects to Loop 202 west that in turn connects
to I-10. From my home in Tempe, the drive to I-10 is 12 miles
non-stop. The drive south on I-10 was 3 miles before taking
AZ Hwy-347 south. The town of Maricopa is 15 miles and AZ
Hwy-84 is 44 miles. AZ Hwy-84 hits I-10 in 5 miles. The drive
west on I-8 is a 33 miles scenic drive. Yes, some portions
of Interstate are surrounded by Mother Nature...[More]
Top
of the World
On Monday, 29 December 2003, I took a one-day, 134 mile, road
trip to/from Top of the World, Arizona using US Highway-60.
I left Tempe at 11:30am and returned home at 5:00pm. Why the
Top of the World? I decided to drive to the Top of the World
because for some reason it was given a dot in my Arizona Road
& Recreation Atlas, and I wanted to know why. In addition,
I wanted to hike Silly Mountain, re-visit Superior, go to
the World's Smallest Museum, and get pictures of the Queen
Creek Tunnel...[More]
The
Apache Trail
Starting location is Tempe, Arizona. Enter the Apache
Trail where Mill Avenue curves into Apache Boulevard and head
east. It is 9:45am and already a sunny day. Apache Boulevard
has a negative reputation in Tempe and political sign litter
doesn't help improve stuff. The Apache Trail in Tempe will
be part of the path for the future light rail transportation
system imaginatively named Metro...[More]