BK Olson, Travel Blogger

Category: The Trip that Started it All 2014

  • The Trip that Started it All Recap

    The Trip that Started it All Recap

    While a series of trips to see family renewed my love of Arizona, this two-week vacation with great friends stirred the pot. After some encouragement from one of those friends (you know who you are!) and a three-week hiatus on my own, this blog (and also a book) were born! This post provides an outline of where we went, what we saw, and links to posts associated with each stop.

    Our itinerary:

    Day 1: MKE to PHX to Sedona
    Sedona, AZ (7 nights) The Ridge on Sedona Golf Resort. We flew into Phoenix, but started our vacation in Sedona for seven nights, then to the Grand Canyon for two, and back in Phoenix for five, close to our flights back home.

    Tuzigoot, choo choo
    Our stay in Sedona continues with two great stops pretty close to Sedona to make this a relatively short day. We visited Tuzigoot National Monument and took a ride on the Verde Canyon Railroad.

    A Castle and a Ghost Town
    Our stay in Sedona continues with two more short trips. Montezuma Castle has lots of history and the loop trail was easy to walk, lined with Sycamore trees, and Kodak moments at every turn. Next stop was Jerome – once known as the wickedest town in the west.

    Route 66 – West of Flagstaff
    Our stay in Sedona continues. We traveled along Route 66 as much as possible to Williams, Seligman, Peach Springs, and Oatman, with an overnight in Lake Havasu City.

    Route 66 – East of Flagstaff
    Our stay in Sedona continues. Today we traveled along Route 66 as much as we could to Walnut Canyon, Meteor Crater, Winslow, Holbrook, the Painted Desert, and the Petrified Forest. Yes, that was a LOT! And did we see much of Sedona while we were here? Not really. But we’ll make it up to them later in Return to the Red Rocks 2024.

    Grand Canyon
    Grand Canyon, AZ (2 nights) El Tovar Lodge. As the name implies, our stop at the Grand Canyon was grand, with a capital GRAND! We visited nearly every stop on the south rim and our hotel was right on the canyon rim. It was fabulous waking up to such an awesome view both mornings.

    Desert View Watchtower
    Our stay at the Grand Canyon continues. On the far eastern end of the south rim of Grand Canyon, the Watchtower offers great views of the Painted Desert, the Canyon and the Colorado River. Climb the tower for even better views from the highest point on the South Rim. Stunning artwork adorns the inside.

    By the Time I Get to Phoenix
    Peoria, AZ (5 nights) Cibola Vista Resort and Spa. By the time we got to Phoenix, we were exhausted! We were ready for the relaxation we had all signed up for. We had lots of things on our itinerary, but we said no more road trips!

    Taliesin West
    Our stay in Peoria continues. OK, we did do one excursion, and it was a marvelous one!

    My first series of blogs are officially in the books. I hope you continue on our journeys, because as long as we’re able, we’ll be traveling! Use all of your vacation days my friends! Every last one!

    Happy trails,
    Barb

  • Taliesin West

    Taliesin West

    Located in the beautiful Sonoran desert in northeast Scottsdale, we experienced Frank Lloyd Wright’s brilliant ability to integrate indoor and outdoor spaces.

    Click on the first photo in each group and scroll to see the square photos at full size.
    To start at the beginning of this series, visit The Trip that Started it All 2014

    Wright’s Winter Retreat

    In 1937, at the age of 70, Frank Lloyd Wright and the Taliesin Fellowship began building Taliesin West as a winter home, studio, and architectural campus. It remained in a constant state of change as Wright experimented and redesigned it over the years.

    Frank Lloyd Wright has become of particular interest to me lately. Whether it’s the craftsman style or his love of blending so beautifully with nature, we find ourselves in search of his buildings whenever we travel. Following is an excerpt from the Foundation’s website that best describes his philosophy. I think it’s just wonderful.

    “To Wright, architecture was not just about buildings, it was about nourishing the lives of those sheltered within them. What were needed were environments to inspire and offer repose to the inhabitants. He called his architecture “organic” and described it as that “great living creative spirit which from generation to generation, from age to age, proceeds, persists, creates, according to the nature of man and his circumstances as they both change.”

    “Wright himself grew up close to the land and in touch with its creative processes and it gave him constant inspiration for his architecture. He believed architecture must stand as a unified whole, grow from and be a blessing to the landscape, all parts relating and contributing to the final unity, whether furnishings, plantings, or works of art.

    To materially realize such a result, he created environments of carefully composed plans and elevations based on a consistent geometric grammar, while skillfully implementing the integration of the building with the site through the compatibility of materials, form, and method of construction. Through simplification of form, line, and color, and through the “rhythmic play of parts, the poise and balance, the respect the forms pay to the materials, and the repose these qualities attain to,” Wright created plastic, fluent, and coherent spaces that complement the changing physical and spiritual lives of the people who live in them.”     – READ MORE

    We Can’t get Enough of Frank

    Because of our excellent tour guide and of course this beautiful campus, this was a wonderful tour. She was so dedicated to the foundation and to portraying Wright as the brilliant and dedicated teacher of architecture that he was. She really added to the experience by telling stories and bringing out the little nuances that made him as human as we are. It must have been a great honor to learn from him. We left this place and immediately made plans to see the “original” Taliesin, in Spring Green, WI. So close to home, but we had never been there.

    Next up: Taliesin

    Happy trails,
    Barb

  • By the Time I Get to Phoenix

    By the Time I Get to Phoenix

    Click on the first photo in each group and scroll to see the square photos at full size.
    To start at the beginning of this series, visit The Trip that Started it All 2014

    By the time I get to Phoenix sounds a little like a Glen Campbell song from the 60’s, (if you’d like to listen to the song while you read, click on the link) but in this case it was by the time we got to Phoenix, we were exhausted. We were ready for the relaxation we had all signed up for. We had lots of things on our itinerary, but we said no more road trips and we relaxed by the pools and enjoyed cocktails on our patio. We did visit a Frank Lloyd Wright house (my next blog) and of course, we shopped, enjoyed dinners and an Artwalk. Since we had family in the area, we spent time with them and before we knew it, our five days were over and we were back to reality. Dang it. One good thing, we had to drive on the Carefree Highway to get to my cousin’s!

    We stayed at Cibola Vista Resort and Spa, a Bluegreen Vacations Resort in Peoria, which was up north a ways, far from the hustle and bustle of Phoenix and close to the family we had in the area. Cibola Vista is a beautiful resort, with two pools and a great desert view with horseback riding. We enjoyed several meals on the grill and loved both pools (especially the adults only one with a poolside bar). We would highly recommend this resort.

    Even though we had gotten several recommendations to see the colorful sheer cliff walls of Canyon de Chelly, it was just too much farther to the east and we couldn’t add another thing to this trip. There is a whole list of things we will be doing on our next trip to Arizona, including much more time in Sedona – with visits to Bell Rock, Cathedral Rock, Devil’s Bridge and Chapel of the Holy Cross, much more time in Flagstaff and Oak Creek Canyon, Payson and Pine. Around Phoenix, we’d love to visit Lake Pleasant, The Apache Trail, Roosevelt Dam, Tempe and Mesa. And in southern AZ, there’s Tucson, OK Corral, Tombstone and Bisbee. Could be another jam-packed two-weeker!

    If there are things you have seen on your travels to Arizona that we should add to our re-visit of Arizona, please comment below. You’ll have to sign in, but it will be worth it. Then you can get on my mailing list (if you want to) (once I get that set up) and you can comment freely on any of my posts.

    I have 4 Frank Lloyd Wright visits for my next blogs (click here for Taliesin West). Since my next vacation isn’t until February (the Caribbean yippee!), I’ll have to visit the archives for some materials after that. I have tons of pictures of a Maine/New Hampshire trip, our Mediterranean cruise and many more. If you have suggestions on things you’d like to hear about, please comment below. I’m always up for suggestions.

    Next Stop: Taliesin West

    Happy trails,
    Barb

  • Desert View Watchtower

    Desert View Watchtower


    To start at the beginning of this series, visit The Trip that Started it All 2014

    Standing on the far eastern end of the south rim of Grand Canyon, Desert View Watchtower offers great views of the Painted Desert, the Canyon and the Colorado River. Be sure to see the stunning artwork that adorns the inside.

    The Desert View Watchtower is way-high on our list of top stops. The shuttle service inside the Grand Canyon does not go far enough east to see it, but it is well worth the drive over. The views are magnificent even from the ground, but get up in this 70-foot-high stone building and you’ll be at the highest point on the South Rim and have even better views! You are the closest to the Colorado you’ll get on the South Rim and there’s a beautiful bump in the ground out to the northeast (pictured above) that will leave you wondering – is that a plateau, a mesa or a butte?

    The gift shop is on the bottom floor and the upper floors serve as awesome observation lookouts. Desert View Watchtower was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987 and is part of the Desert View Watchtower Historic District. The interior walls of the tower feature murals by Hopi artist Fred Kabotie. The link below offers more details and history.

    “From Desert View… aptly named because of the views to the east of the Painted Desert…you can see the Colorado River make a big bend and continue to the west, the North Rim more than 10 miles away, and a panoramic view for well over 100 miles on a clear day.

    The Watchtower dominates the near view. This structure was designed by Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter who is often referred to as the architect of the southwest. She traveled throughout the southwest to find inspiration and authenticity for her buildings. The architecture of the ancestral Puebloan people of the Colorado Plateau served as her model. This particular tower was patterned after those found at Hovenweep and the Round Tower of Mesa Verde. Ms. Colter indicated that it was not a copy of any that she had seen, but rather modeled from several.

    As you get closer to the building you might see how well it blends into the environment. It is difficult to tell where the rock of the canyon walls end, and the tower begins. She said: “First and most important, was to design a building that would become part of its surroundings; one that would create no discordant note against the time eroded walls of this promontory.”

    To obtain this result she insisted that the rocks not be cut or worked, so they would not lose the: “weathered surfaces so essential to blend it with the canyon walls”.     – READ MORE

    Oh! And by the way, the beautiful bump in the ground I refer to in the first paragraph above, is a flat-topped mesa called Cedar Mountain. A butte is a small flat-topped or pointed hill or mountain. A mesa is a medium-sized flat-topped hill or mountain. And a plateau is a really big flat-topped hill or mountain. So give a prize to the woman who said it went alphabetical according to size! You know who you are!

    Desert View Watchtower. A Definite Must-See.

    Next Stop: By the Time I Get to Phoenix

  • Grand Canyon

    Grand Canyon

    Grand Canyon is at the TOP of our favorites list in Arizona! The angles of the sun on the various elevations and colors of the rock are breathtaking and make for some beautiful photos.

    Click on the first photo in each group and scroll to see the square photos at full size.
    To start at the beginning of this series, visit The Trip that Started it All 2014

    As the name implies, our stop at the Grand Canyon was grand, with a capital GRAND! We visited nearly every stop on the south rim and stayed at El Tovar Hotel, a National Historic Landmark, right on the canyon rim. It was fabulous waking up to such an awesome view both mornings. I would highly recommend reserving a room at one of the lodges in the canyon, both to save time driving back in the next day, and to feel a little more of the history of this beautiful place. Our room was on the small side and we didn’t spring for a view room (although we did have a partial view), but it was very clean and cozy and of course, it was right on the rim of the Grand Canyon!

    A free, environmentally-friendly shuttle system replaces possibly hundreds of cars fighting for parking. This is great – not only because you don’t have to worry about crazy drivers running you down, but the buses drop-off and pick-up every five to ten minutes at whichever stop your heart desires.

    The farthest west the shuttle travels is called Hermits Rest. Staying at El Tovar, we were able to cover the central lookouts on foot and we opted to drive some of the eastern route on our way out of the park traveling back to Phoenix, to check out the Desert View Watchtower – a definite must-see.

    The different angles of the sun, the variations in elevation and clouds – all make for some fabulous pictures from any of the lookout points. We caught glimpses of the Colorado River making its way through the canyon at most of the lookouts and with binoculars were able to see rafters enjoying a float down. Of course, there were lots of folks who thought it was a good idea to teeter on the edge of the canyon for a picture. We got plenty of great pictures from behind the railing that was put there for a reason. There’s that safe and sound grandma talking again!

    There is a really nice visitor’s center where they frown on your plastic water bottles and encourage you to refill using the bubblers in the park. The movie that was offered had some maintenance issues, so we weren’t able to see that, but just looking out on the canyon was fine by us. We were in awe for two solid days.

    Be sure and read on about the Desert View Watchtower, another top stop on our favorites list. We caught an IMAX movie right at the entrance to the park, which was very interesting as well. For a trailer for the movie and for more information, click here.

    Grand Canyon. Simply Amazing.

    Next Stop: Desert View Watchtower