Category Archives: Tours

Grand Canyon Day Trip

Yesterday, we drove the rental car to the Grand Canyon National Park. We left the RV park around 10am and drove north on US89 to the little town called Cameron. We wanted to make a stop there to poke around in the Cameron Trading Post and also have an early lunch.

Cameron Trading Post

Cameron Trading Post

Donna bought a few items, including the book Code Talker for me. This book is a memoir of Chester Nez, the only living member of the Navajo code talkers of World War II. We went to the restaurant to have Navajo tacos. Navajo tacos are made with Indian fry bread. When we saw how large the portion was, we decided to split an order. The fry bread was the size of a large dinner plate – half was more than enough.

Navajo taco

Navajo taco

The fresh fry bread was light and crispy. I heartily recommend trying this dish, but you better be hungry!

From Cameron we turned back south and drove a mile to the junction of AZ64, where we turned west. This road takes you through the western end of the Navajo reservation to the east entrance of the Grand Canyon National Park. Several miles up the road, there’s a sign for a scenic overlook of the Little Colorado River Gorge. It’s on tribal land and the overlook is operated by the tribe. They ask for a donation at the entrance. We pulled in to take a look.

Little Colorado gorge

Little Colorado River Gorge

The view is nice, but it wasn’t worth the stop. The views in the national park blow it away.

Most people enter the Grand Canyon National Park from the south entrance on US180. This is the entrance closest to the village with hotels and restaurants. From there, most tourists never get to the east end of the park. When we entered at the east entrance, there was only one car in front of us. We used our annual National Parks and Recreation pass and didn’t have the pay the $25 per vehicle entrance fee. This pass was a parting gift from my colleagues when I retired. It expires next month. We’re planning to buy another one. It’s well worth the $80 cost.

Our first stop was at the Desert View Watch Tower. I’ve always come into the park from the south entrance and had never seen the tower before.

Desert View Watch Tower

Desert View Watch Tower

The tower was built in 1932. It wasn’t a replica of anything that existed earlier. It was an original design that was made in the manner of traditional construction found in the area. The tower is a few hundred yards from the parking lot. There are other buildings along the paved path to the tower, including a store, restaurant and public restrooms. The restrooms were modern and clean.

Behind the tower, the view was nothing short of spectacular.

View to the northeast from the tower

View to the northeast from the tower

View to the northwest from the tower

View to the northwest from the tower

We went inside the tower and climbed a steep staircase to the second floor. We walked out on an observation deck there. The view was great, but there were tiny black flying insects that were annoying us. We decided to move on.

Our next stop was less than two miles up the road. We stopped at Navajo Point, then Lipan Point and enjoyed more spectacular views of the Grand Canyon and Colorado River below.

You can see a portion of the Colorado River from Lipan Point

You can see a portion of the Colorado River from Lipan Point

Another view from Lipan Point

Another view from Lipan Point

We continued on along the East Rim Road (AZ64) through the park, stopping at most of the view points. The temperature was in the upper 70s and the air was very dry. We were 7,200 feet above sea level. We could feel the altitude as we walked around the view points. It was easy to run out of breath!

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We saw a man painting the landscape in oil on canvas at one view point.

Painter

Landscape artist

Donna found a level rock near the edge and struck a yoga pose.

Donna posing

Donna in tree pose

The little black insects were everywhere. We must have timed our visit to coincide with a large hatch. They seemed to be attracted to white. We saw white cars in the parking lots covered with the insects. They continued to annoy us and several would find their way into our car every time we opened the doors.

After awhile, the stunning views become mind numbing. It reminded me of the time we visited the giant redwoods. At first, the ancient old trees caused us to stop and stare in wonder. But after awhile, we just said, “Hey, there’s another big one” and moved on.

After we stopped at Grandview Point, we decided we had seen enough and drove on to the junction of US180 near the village and left the park.

Grandview

Grandview

Spectacular!

Spectacular!

US180 took us over an 8,000′ pass near the Snow Bowl ski area. When we made it into Flagstaff, around 4pm, a stop at the Beaver Street Brewery was in order. I enjoyed their stout while Donna had the del Sol – a Mexican style lager.

When we returned to the RV park, we found that several of the sites had emptied during the day and a few newcomers arrived. We were still feeling full from the Navajo tacos and didn’t have much of an appetite. Later, Donna made a light meal – cumin spiced tilapia and Spanish rice.

This morning, we awoke to unexpected gusty winds. The weather guessers are calling for  high of 72 today. A cold front is forecast to hit the area on Wednesday.

Vulture Mine Shortcut

Donna started her day yesterday with a bike ride here in the park. She rode around the park and through the streets, trying to get some mileage in. She kept passing a guy on a golf cart. He would raise his hand as she went by and she thought he was waving at her. Finally, as Donna made another pass by the guy, she could see he was motioning for her to slow down. She called out, “I’m only doing 16 miles per hour!” The speed limit on the roads is 20 mph. Maybe 16mph looks faster on a road bike.

After Donna’s bike ride, we took the scooter to town. I turned off US93 at Vulture Mine Road. This was a shortcut with little traffic. We stopped at El Ranchero Mexican Restaurant. Our soon to be full-timing RV friend, Brett Miller, recommended the place and it had good reviews.

When I try a new Mexican place, I usually order the chili verde. This is one of my favorite dishes and I can compare the food to other favorite Mexican restaurants. I didn’t do that this time. I allowed the waiter to talk me into the daily special, which was chicken enchilada casserole. This was basically chicken enchilada filling between layers of corn tortilla and cheese. It was constructed somewhat like a lasagna.

Donna ordered the tricolor enchiladas which consisted of three enchiladas – a chicken enchilada with green sauce, a cheese enchilada and a beef enchilada with red sauce.

Tricolor enchilada plate

Tricolor enchilada plate

The chips were good and they served them with two great salsas and an excellent bean dip. However, I don’t think they were on their “A” game on this day. The chicken enchilada casserole was bland and made with too much cheese. Donna’s tricolor enchilada plate was good, but they had the sauces mixed up. The chicken enchilada had red sauce and the beef enchilada had the green tomatillo sauce. I would go there again, but next time I’ll try the chili verde.

We rode the scooter downtown and parked next to the City Hall. We wandered around and looked at clothing and boots in the western wear shops. Wickenburg is a quirky old west town, but it’s not too touristy. The western wear and saddle shops cater to the real cowboys working on the ranches in the area.

Double H hat shop - Wickenburg

Double H hat shop – Wickenburg

Wickenburg is the oldest Arizona town north of Tucson.  Henry Wickenburg discovered gold here in 1863. The Vulture Mine became the richest Arizona gold producer ever. Many of the historic buildings in the town date back to that era. We were told at the Chamber of Commerce information center that tours of the mine can be taken on Saturdays.

On the way back from Wickenburg, I stopped at the NAPA Auto Parts store to buy a solenoid to replace the sticking accessory solenoid I wrote about a couple of days ago. I didn’t see any part number on the old solenoid when I looked at it. I showed a picture of the solenoid and described its function to the guy at the parts counter. He said he knew what we needed.

He came back with a ST89 solenoid rated for 36 volts. I thought that seemed odd, but he was very sure of himself. I figured since this was a continuous-duty application, the higher voltage rating may be correct.

When we returned to the park, we saw Mark and Emily Fagan’s rig in the dry camp area (Roadslesstraveled.us). Their fifth wheel trailer was set up but their Dodge Ram 3500 truck was not there.

We came back to our rig. I turned the chassis battery switch off and disconnected the accessory solenoid. Once I had the old solenoid out, I saw it was stamped 88-24V on the bottom. I looked up specifications and found the correct replacement would be an ST88 24-volt solenoid. The ST89 36-volt solenoid wouldn’t work. Usually you need to apply nearly half of the rated working voltage to trigger the solenoid. I didn’t have enough voltage available to trigger the 36-volt solenoid. I put the old one back in temporarily and decided to wait until morning to take the ST89 back and exchange it for an ST88.

We had the air conditioner running. It was the hottest day since we’ve been here with a high temperature of 92 degrees. We’re on a 30-amp service so we can only run one air conditioner. I closed the bedroom doors and we had the front air on. We relaxed and read books for awhile.

Donna saw our neighbor, Lynda, outside and went out to talk to her about campgrounds at Lake Mead Boulder Beach. While she was out, Emily came over. The three of them chatted outside until after dark. Emily came inside with Donna and we caught up on their travels. Mark was napping back in the trailer. He had a tough day dealing with a punctured tire on the trailer. He was concerned about the trailer being overweight, so they came here to get the axle weights. There are three Escapees parks where you can always get your rig weighed. They weigh each wheel individually. That way you can determine if you should re-balance your load and also know what the correct tire pressures should be.

This morning, Donna went out hiking in the desert. While she was doing that, I made the 13.5 mile ride back to the NAPA store. On the way out, I saw Mark and Emily with their trailer at the weigh station. Their trailer weight is fine. Mark will move a few things around for better balance, but he doesn’t have to worry about overloading the tires or axles. They’re heading out this morning to Camp Verde and on to Sedona.

On the way back, I stopped and took a photo of one of the memorial signs for the 19 firefighters killed last year in the Yarnell wildfire.

4_22htshtmem

I installed the new ST88 solenoid when I got back a little while ago. I’m still scratching my head though. The new solenoid is acting like the old one. It sticks and I have to tap on the case to make it engage. I’ve checked voltages and grounds and can’t find a problem. That will keep me going for awhile today.

EDIT: I worked the solenoid by turning the key to the accessory position and tapping on the solenoid. I repeated this several times. Now it’s functioning fine. When I turn the key to accessory, the solenoid engages without me touching anything other than the key. My theory is that internal friction was causing it to hang  up. Working the solenoid burnished whatever was causing the friction and now it operates without any issue.

 

 

 

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I didn’t post to the blog yesterday. Tuesday was just another day. Nothing too exciting to report. Yesterday, on the other hand, was full of activity.

While I was reading through the blogs I follow, I saw that our friends at Technomadia announced the roll-out of a new social media site for RVers. It’s called RVillage.

“It’s not only about the places we go, it’s also about the people we meet along the way”

Once you join RVillage, you enter your location. Other members of the site can see where you are and view your profile. You can see if other members are nearby. This will facilitate meet-ups with fellow RVers who share common interests. This morning, I saw that 1,109 people have already signed up. There are groups you can join on the site to follow forums on topics that are of interest.

I think it’s a great concept. If we had this a few weeks ago, we probably would have had the chance to meet Tim and Amanda Watson. They’re fellow full-timers and blog at WatsonsWander. As it was, I found out too late that we were at Usery Pass Regional Park at the same time. We didn’t get together.

Later, around noon, Mark and Emily Fagan stopped by (their blog is Roadslesstraveled). We sat and chatted together. We don’t know when we’ll get together again. They’re heading down to Tucson. By the time they come back to this area, we’ll probably be on our way north.

I had to cut our visit short. My friend, Mike Hall, works at ATK in Mesa, near Falcon Field. ATK is Alliant Techsystems Incorporated. ATK has many divisions. They are involved in military defense systems, aerospace, sporting arms and ammunition among other things.

The facility in Mesa builds Bushmaster medium caliber cannons, such as the M230 chain gun used on the AH64 Apache helicopter. This cannon fires linkless 30mm ammunition at a cyclic rate of 625 rounds per minute. It’s accurate out to 4,000 meters – that’s more than two miles! In operation Desert Storm and in Afghanistan, it demonstrated armor piercing capability at ranges of up to 2,000 meters.

Bushmaster M230 chain gun

Bushmaster M230 chain gun

Mike had arranged for me to meet him at 1pm to tour the facility. I was given a security pass and clearance to enter. I saw how they take four-inch diameter billits of steel, about 100 inches long and turn them in gun barrels. This is a very long process. It takes many machining steps, polishing and hardening processes, straightening and stress relieving and so on before they have a finished, accurate barrel.

The way they cut the rifling inside the barrel is fascinating. They have a mandrel that fits tightly inside the barrel. The mandrel has the rifling pattern cut into it. They pump a salt water solution charged with electricity through the cuts in the mandrel. This process is precisely controlled and erodes the rifling grooves in the barrel. I had the opportunity to inspect the finished rifling with a high-magnification boroscope.

A real treat came next. We watched as a newly finished M230 30mm chain gun was test fired. It was bolted to a test stand and carefully hand cycled with dummy rounds to ensure everything functioned correctly. The test stand was in a concrete walled room about 20′ x 20′. The room had a large, heavy steel door. The gun was pointed down range through a tunnel. The cardboard target was down the tunnel, followed by a large sand trap for the projectile.

We exited the room as the final preparations to fire were made. The operator checked everything over, looked around the room and called out, “Clear!” Then he walked out of the room and closed the heavy steel door. I was off to his side, looking at the gun through a thick plexiglass window. The operator pressed the fire control button. Brrrrp. Twenty rounds were fired in about 2 seconds. The shock waves created by the 30mm rounds blasting out of the barrel through the muzzle brake could be felt in my chest even though I was standing outside of the concrete chamber where the gun was mounted.

The operator opened the door, checked the room and again called out, “Clear!” Then we were allowed to enter the room. I picked up one of the spent, lightweight casings. He told me I could keep it if I wanted it. I brought it home to take a picture of it to give some sense of scale of this ammo.  I wasn’t allowed to take any photos inside the facility. I also brought a heavier casing from an M242 Bushmaster 25mm cannon. The 30mm casing is a special lightweight material to reduce the weight of ammo payload on the Apache helicopter.

Spent 30mm casing from an ATK M230 chain gun

Spent 30mm casing from an ATK M230 chain gun

ATK M242 25mm casing

ATK M242 25mm casing

It was an interesting tour. The people working in the plant were all very pleasant and willing to take time to explain things to me. I’m grateful for the opportunity and the effort Mike made to allow this to happen.

Afterwards, I met Mike and John Huff for a beer at Lucky Lou’s. I couldn’t stay long though, because we had more visitors on the schedule. At 5pm, Lana and Joel came over from our old neighborhood. We drove in their Toyota Highlander to Tia Rosa’s, our favorite Mexican restaurant, a few miles from here.

We planned an early dinner to avoid a long wait for a table. When we pulled into the parking lot, I was amazed to see only a handful of cars there. As we were walking across the parking lot, I saw why. There was a sign in front of the restaurant that said “Closed due to fire.” The cars in the lot were from people going to the smaller taqueria across the lot from the restaurant.

We changed our plan and drove over to Red, White and Brew and enjoyed a great meal there. After dinner we stopped at Gus’ and sat on the patio for an after-dinner drink. It was a great finish to a fine day.

Today, Donna is preparing for her trip to Chicago tomorrow. She’s attending the International Home & Housewares Association show there, where she’ll be the cleaning expert in Reliable Corporation’s booth. Reliable makes, among other things, a great steam mop that we use to clean our hardwood floors. For the show, she created a 1-Minute Spring Cleaner Notebook on Springpad (an app she uses to organize her recipes, book ideas and other things). Her Spring Cleaner Notebooks includes 10 quick and easy spring cleaning tips plus her top 10 favorite cleaning tools, including the Reliable Steam Mop.