Have You Slept in a Wigwam Lately???

Today we set out to enjoy the Flagstaff area. Though we had already passed though this area twice now, it has been just that, passing through; now it was time to explore. Via our atlas, we had learned that the area was chalk full

of National Monuments and we made this our charge for the morning. Just north of Flagstaff, east of the San Francisco mountains, and south of the Grand Canyon lies Sunset Crater National Monument and Wupatki National Monument. Sticking to our strict Route 66 path while traveling east, we hopped back on to the Mother Road in downtown Flagstaff and took it for a while until we reached the road that would take us to Sunset Crater NM. This National Monument was named for its rust colored crater that shines particularly red at sunset. It is a dormant volcano, much like the nearby San Francisco Mountain Range, and the evidence of volcanic activity is everywhere. We again drove by the familiar lava beds and spatter cones

which we now associate with a volcanic area. At the visitor center we learned about some hikes that we could do and set off for a couple around the base of the volcano in the lava fields. Here we barely even read the interpretive trail guide that accompanied the hike, again it was all old news to us. Because we visited the park so early in the morning the rust colored top which gave it its name appeared to us a normal

blackened volcanic crater. In the interest of time, we decided to move on and not await the sunset to experience its reddish hue. Our next destination, Wupatki National Monument, was just down the road from Sunset Crater NM. If you can't tell by the name, this

location was another Native American archeological site. There were about 5 or 6 different dwellings along the 23 mile loop trail. In the distance and from lookouts along the way you could see the painted desert stretching for miles around. It was an awesome sight to see the ancient ruins in the blazing sun, set

against the backdrop of the painted desert. We visited 3 different sites walking in and around them, even exploring one intimately with the help of an interpretive guide. Once satisfied with our northward excursion we again traveled south to pick up Rt. 66 heading eastward once more. Along the way we passed the iconic Rt. 66 town of Two Arrows which consisted of a trading post and 2 giant arrows stuck in the ground. Our next stop was at Meteor Crater. Half tourist trap and have amazing oddity of nature, this

place is family owned and in no way associated with the National Park Service; basically meaning our pass didn't work here. Still, because of the many documentaries and science specials I have seen in my day, I really wanted to see this place. We decided to

eat the entrance fee and explore the crater. As fate would have it we were just in time for one of the daily tours that walked along the rim of this massive crater, led by a would be park ranger. The group that he took out was pretty small, besides Katie and me there was only 4 other people, which made for a quick but intimate tour. It turned out that our guide was from Alaska so in between our 2 stops Katie and I got to talk to him and share our adventure and love of the state with him. We learned about the reverse strata effect that helped prove that Meteor Crater was actually formed by a meteorite. Up until the late 60's the scientific consensus was that this crater was like all the others in the area, volcanic. The reversed strata, when the bottom layers of sediment are on the top, helped prove that this was indeed an impact crater. Meteor Crater was even used by the Apollo astronauts to help them prepare for the moon landings, allowing them to identify impact craters on the moon thus giving them a better understanding of the rocks which they collected. As we exited the

visitor center, after our tour and a long browsing of the gift shop, we noticed what appeared to be a picture set against a wall. As we took a closer look we realized that it was actually just a

square hole in the wall perfectly framing the mountains in the distance. Needless to say it was pretty cool. We again headed east on Rt. 66 making our way to Winslow Arizona. This town turned out to be much smaller than we had hoped. We were planning on grabbing

a bite to eat here, but instead we just parked the car, stood on a corner just like Jackson Browne, then continued on down the road. We passed another legendary stop on Rt. 66 miles down the road, again named for a trading post. This town was called Jackrabbit and featured the infamous "Here It Is" sign as

well as a giant jackrabbit which Katie and I both took the time to ride. We passed a few other towns along the way before reaching our destination for the night,

Holbrook Arizona around 4 p.m. This town is famous along Rt. 66 for a couple of reasons. First, it is the gateway to the Petrified Forest National Park and Painted Desert. Second, it is home to 1 of 2 of the remaining Wigwam Motel's along the route. As we pulled into Holbrook,

we stopped in at the Wigwam Motel, curious to find out if you could still stay inside them and how much it would run us for a night. Unfortunately when we pulled in, it was deserted and closed. Old classic cars were parked in front of every wigwam and there was a newly erected sign designating the site as a historic landmark.

This sealed the deal for us and we figured it was now closed permanently. Disappointed, we carried on to the Petrified Forest National Park. As we entered the park we learned that it closed at 5 p.m. on the dot. At 5 p.m. you must be in a car and driving toward an exit; it was crazy.

Luckily, we entered the park on the south side near the Giant Logs Nature Trail. This is the best place to view the petrified logs. After a quick hike we continued down the road and were lucky enough to make 2 more stops at the

Agate Bridge and Crystal Forest before 5 o'clock came around and we were forced to drive to the exit. However, since the painted desert is beautiful during sunset and because you can view everything from the comfort of your vehicle, everything worked out just fine

for us in the end. Once we left the park we headed back to Holbrook to find some dinner. We were roped in by a sign declaring "best food in town" and we were

not disappointed; the food was great. After dinner we didn't really have many plans so we drove through town once more and found to our joy that the Wigwam Motel

was now open! The elderly lady inside told us that they are only open 4 hours a day form 4p.m. to 8p.m. We just missed them earlier in the day and we almost missed them this time around as well. It seemed to us that it was our fate to stay at the Wigwam Hotel for the night. We piled into our teepee and spent the night away from the cold in our warm bed.