Hello!
We’re taking this opportunity of no international travel to head north of Tucson for a (hopefully) two-week trip! I’m not yet sure if I’m going to be able to blog this, as I haven’t set up a blog in a VERY long time. However, remaining forever hopeful, I’m hoping to be able to put it together tonight, and see how it goes. (Katy, wish me luck!). And, as not to forget yesterday, I’m beginning now!
We left Tucson about 10 am for the “back road” way to get to Flagstaff (NO freeways!). Turn right at Oracle and head north; it’s really easy! The road splits and we headed for beautiful downtown Florence! LOL. We stopped at the McDonald’s in Florence, but, unlike the last time we came through here a month or so ago, their lobby is now open for take-out and bathrooms ONLY, meaning that we grabbed a couple of Big Macs and ate in the car. From there we headed up into the mountains east of Phoenix and Payson. There was a horrible fire outside of Payson in June, and truly, the damage is horrible. R just says “wait a year or so” but I find it devastating. Turned west at Payson and then through Strawberry and past a very, very low Mormon Lake, and popped out and voila! Flagstaff!
Found our hotel, the Embassy Suites, and unloaded the car. (Masks required!) Room 218 – and there are actually screens in the windows so that we were able to open them (to full width!) on to a lovely 73-degree late afternoon! (Between suitcases, there is our big picnic basket and cooler, as well as a crate of “stuff.” It’s amazing what you can bring on a road trip!) Robert has brought Bernard DeVoto and several other authors along with us so as to be able to read to me as we pass through some really beautiful country.
Being hungry, we searched Trip Advisor for a nearby restaurant. It’s interesting to read that some of the places are closed until 1/1/21, and yet others opening today (9/1/20). At any rate, we drove 7 minutes (2.2 miles according to GPS) and went into Northern Pinesrestaurant. We have eaten there in the past, and it was quite good! Beautiful dinner salads first, and then I had their excellent pot roast (comfort food!) and R had their steak tips and pasta, which he very much enjoyed. Way too full for dessert, so headed back to the hotel for an early night. I was in bed by 8:30 pm and R apparently followed me about 9! I got 9½ lovely hours of sleep; it was fabulous!
Up this morning about 6 and have decided as the hotel offers the “bagged breakfast” which we know from experience is pretty marginal, we will instead wait until 8 to go to my very favorite Flagstaff restaurant (small chain) Wildflower Bakery. Everything we’ve ever had there is great, so have great expectations!
More tonight from Bluff, UT!
m
xxx
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