18 April ‘07

Wednesday

Ron (Pete) Petersen and I have known each other since the 9th grade at Jane Addams Jr Hi.  During the summer of 1955 I was asked by Ron and Chuck Schoning to join them in an R&R band called “The Four Frantics”.  Going into high school and being a member of one of the most recognized R&R bands in the Seattle area was great.  We played at most of the school dances for Lincoln High and for all of the other 7 high schools one time or another as well.  I remember playing at the Seattle Coliseum in 1955 and having the Musicians Union Representative stop the “gig” because we weren’t members yet.  Well it was either sign the application and pay the fees or pack up and head home.  Hell, with a huge group of teenagers from 8 high schools on the dance floor, we signed and paid…  I had a great time playing with these guys.  Then there was the time when we tried out for The Ted Mac Amateur Hour program.  We had to drive to Spokane and preform for the auditions...we came in 2nd.  Oh well, it was the opportunity that mattered (at least that's what they said).  We drove to Spokane in my dad's new 1955 Pontiac convertable, 4 of us with all of the instruments.  Top down and off we go...We were fortunate in having the opportunity to make some “45’s” under the “Dalton” label, and we even made it to into the national charts with an instrumental in 1959.  Louise and I just happened to be in London, England  in June of 2005, listening to BBC 2, when we heard this DJ telling his listening audience that he had brought in his personal collection of records from the 50’s to the 70’s, that he personally enjoyed listening too.  Yep, he played one of our songs, “Straight Flush”.  His comments were;  “This is a group from Seattle, called the “Frantics”.  That Ron (Guitar), Chuck (Organ), Bob (Alto Sax), Dean (Bass), and Jim (Bass) and myself on (Drums) that at one time either made up the “Four Frantics” or the “Frantics”. 

17 April ‘07

Tuesday

We wanted to visit a place called Walnut Canyon, so we finished our coffee, drove through Oak Creek Canyon and Flagstaff and at last found Walnut Canyon National Monument.  This canyon was occupied in the 1100’s by the same tribes that we have found across the many planes of Arizona.  This group has been dubbed with the title “The People Without Water”.  There were as many as 300 homes (cliff dwellings) dug into  this canyon.  Far below there was a river that would flow for a short while each year and then just disappear.  They were found to be farmers, or as some would put it, “seed planters”, and they would find a small or somewhat larger spot on the side of this canyon and plant their seeds.  We walked down just under 300 steps to get to a land bridge that would take us to “The Island”.  This island, being elongated, allowed us a chance in walking the perimeter, to visit some of the “homes”, easily see across to the canyon walls, and as we got lower, study the dry river bottom.   

17 April ‘07

Tuesday

Yesterday was spent at “home” for most of the day.  I did run into Cottonwood to talk with a man at “Custom Muffler”.  I wanted to find out what they could do for the missing muffler on our coach.  Well, I liked the way they talked, the look of the shop, and the price that they quoted me to get what I wanted done, so today it was taken care of.  While they worked on the tail-pipe Louise and I drove to Sedona and then took the drive through the Oak Creek Canyon.  Prior to heading up into the canyon, we stopped in and had a cup of coffee at Starbucks.  I think the main reason for wanting to stop was to take in the stunning atmosphere of Sedona.  We have had the chance to visit a lot of beautiful towns and cities, but this one takes the “Most Beautiful” trophy.  We have all seen the “Red Rock” formations of Arizona in the magazines and movies, but when you see Sedona in person…everything we’ve seen before just doesn’t do the real thing (Sedona) justice.  First, you are up at 4400 feet, with the air so clear and crisp that you could cut it with a knife.  Second, once you are in town the “Red Rocks” are standing guard so close, you would think that the homes and stores were carved directly into them.  The giant striped monoliths take on shades from bright red to pale sand, and then seem to change with each passing cloud or ray of sunshine.  Now remember, we were just passing through…we will be coming back in a few days and then I can really get excited.

15 April ‘07

Sunday

This morning we decided to run up the highway 75 miles to Flagstaff and then go and see a couple more Arizona wonders.  The wind was still blowing, but if we were to travel only on the days that were perfect, we would still be sitting in Seattle.  Apparently Flagstaff got its name from a large Pine tree that was devoid of its branches and used as a flag pole.  As the settlers that were heading for California were to come into this area they could easily find a safe place to stay by locating this huge flag pole…the name stuck.  Flagstaff is about the same size as Coeur d’Alene but without a lake and sitting at 6,905 feet above sea level.  I have to tell you, at that altitude I found it surprising how the altitude affected my breathing.  We did go to the Sunset Crater Volcano and take a 3/4 mile hike up its side to follow some of the lava flow.  After a couple more stops along the way, we finally ended our drive east by coming to the famous Wupatki Pueblo Trail.  From roughly 400 to 1700, a culture of farming and pottery, in the southwest, was started by large migrations of Sinagua, Cohonina, and Kayenta Indians.  This became a densely populated landscape supporting a complex society of people, goods, and ideas.  As people gathered here during the 1100’s, the housing grew into a 100 room pueblo with a tower, community room, and ceremonial ball court.  This wasn’t what you would think was a perfect spot to stop and develop farming…summers are hot, dry and windy, and the water supply was and still is almost non-existence.  By 1190, as many as 2,000 people lived within a day’s walk and today I would guess that you could possibly find as many as 6 people that live within a days walk, quite a difference.  Another thing that we found very interesting was the "Blow Hole".  At the bottom of the hill and next to the Ball Court, was this 12"x12" hole that was capped with local rock.  If you were standing within 10 feet of the hole, you could hear what sounded like running water, but what it was, was wind that was pushing (with a lot of force) out of the hole.  They say that the wind that was blowing, the more force coming out of the hole.  It was another of those moments that tell us how lucky we are to be on our journey. 

14 April ‘07

Saturday

After leaving Fort Verde, we headed east to Payson and a couple of stops before to see some local sites.  We soon came to a tiny valley surrounded by a forest of pine trees that run clear across Arizona to California and onto the Pacific Ocean.  In 1877 a prospector named David Gowan stumbled across a huge natural bridge while he was being chased by Apaches.  He hid there in one of the many caves for 2 nights and 3 days before coming out.  Once out, he saw that he had stumbled into something quite unique.  As it turned out, he had stumbled into what we now know as Tonto Natural Bridge. It is believed to be the largest natural travertine bridge in the world.  The bridge is 183 feet high over 400 feet long and at its widest point, 160 feet.  It is huge.  The walk down the cliff is not the easiest hike, but it was well worth it.  Once there, we were pelted with water coming from over the top while trying successfully to traverse the interior.  There was a small river flowing through the tunnel, but we could cross it by jumping from rock to rock.  Now it was time to hike back up to the top…

Now we were off to see Payson.  Payson is a small and very charming town of 35000.  If we were looking for a place to settle down, Payson would most likely be our first choice as we see it now, BUT WE’RE NOT LOOKING !!! 

14 April ‘07

Saturday

Yesterday morning Louise and I took the self-guided walking tour of Fort Verde State Historic Park.  In doing so, we were told of a special happening starting this morning…”History Of The Soldier 2007”.  They were already setting up for the next morning by setting up tents and displays.  Well this morning as we arrived, the parking lots and all the streets were covered with cars and the fort grounds, covered with people.  As we walked past the gates we were met by soldiers playing brass instruments and wearing period clothing from the late 1800 or early 1900’s.  Then to our right were some of the tents that were being set up yesterday.  These were manned by soldiers from WWI to the Army of today.  All were there to introduce us to who they were and are today, what they do or did, and answer any and all questions that we might have had about their job or position in the services. 

13 April ‘07

Friday

Montezuma Well was our second stop and is about 5 miles north of the “Castle”.  This “well” was formed by the collapse of an immense underground cavern.  The springs that ran through the cavern now feed the well, and flow continuously up into the well and then exit through a series of man made ditches.  This is how they could channel the water to their crops.  All along the top and in the cliff sides you can find dwellings like those found at the larger cliffs of Montezuma Castle.  Some of the large pueblos found here range from 50 rooms to one.  It is estimated that anywhere from 150 to 200 Southern Sinagua people lived here in the periods between 1100 and 1400 AD. 

13 April ‘07

Friday

Now that we are in Camp Verde and the Verde Valley, we are going to be very busy visiting some wonderful locations and sites. 

Montezuma Castle is one of them.  It stands in a cliff recess about 100 feet above the valley floor.  It is thought to have been built by the “Southern Sinagua” farmers in the 12th century.  A lot of the earlier settlers thought the structures were built by the Aztec and that is how the name “Montezuma” came about.  The largest of the dwellings is about 45 rooms, but is badly deteriorating.  Most of the other dwellings are but one room, but again, built right into the sides of the cliff.  The creek below was a source of water for personal use and a reason for the land to be so fertile for farming.  Game was abundant during this period, so everything that was needed for survival was here. 

13 April ‘07

Friday

We leave Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well and travel west about 30 miles and come to Tuzigoot.  Tuzigoot is Apache for “crooked water” and is the remnant of a Southern Sinagua village that sits high on a hill and was built about the same time as the others were.  It sits about 120 feet above the Verde Valley and has a river that winds all around the fields that they cultivated.  The original pueblo was 2 stories high and had 77 ground floor rooms.  Unlike homes of today, most of the entrances were through the roofs.  They used a ladder to get to the top of the roof and then another ladder to get down into the rooms.  They always had a security person located at the top of their dwellings to watch for the “enemy”, whether it was here at Tuzigoot or either of the Montezuma locations.  Somewhere in the 1700’s the Southern Sinagua Indians started to disappear.  It’s not known whether they just walked away because of the decline of game, or what, but they do know that they just didn’t die there. 

Then there was one more stop for the day…as we were driving to Tuzigoot, we saw this small town located high on the side of a hill.  It reminded both of us of the hill towns of Italy, France or Spain.  Well we just had to find the road that would take us up there.  It turned out to be the town of Jerome.  It initially was a mining town that got its name from the guy that owned the mine and just about everything else in the town itself.  All the buildings were hanging off the side of the hill and the streets were either going up or going down, not a single flat piece of land or road available.  The shops were still set up in the original buildings from the early 1900’s, with the squeaky floors, high ceilings, large storefront windows that not only looked into the store and all it’s displays, but on through to the large windows at the back that looked out over the Verde Valley below and the red rock plateaus heading toward Sedona.  We (  I  ) found a wonderful bakery in the basement of one of the buildings that was started by this young lady and her husband.  She is the granddaughter of “Giselle” (also the name of the bakery) who developed all the recipes in France while she (Giselle) was dreaming of starting her own business in the US back in the 20’s.   

11 April ‘07

Wednesday

After a “terrible” nights sleep in the parking lot of Applebee’s, we were up and on the road by 7am.  We can’t blame the noise on the loss of our sleep, because it was a relatively quiet night.  I don’t know, maybe it was just that we were in a parking lot and not a standard “campground”.  Our destination this morning was Phoenix, which was about 150 miles away.  We have been hearing about this wind storm that was to arrive this afternoon and it was one thing that we didn’t want to be a part of, so that was another reason to get the early start.  The scenery hasn’t changed a lot, except as we got closer to Phoenix we got to see more and more cacti.  The cactus here are large, fact is, VERY large…it must be the water…  Tonight we had to make a trip to COSTCO, we were in the need for our jar of mixed nuts.  Tomorrow…North…