HowardWright.com

Arizona Adventure - Day 7 Saturday

Well we have had a whole week now although it seems like a lot longer. After breakfast sat outside the RV we headed down on the bikes to the resort to book a boat trip on Lake Powell and up Antelope Canyon.

The trip was excellent although the temperature by 11am was very hot and there was no shade on the boat - Lorna was falling asleep!

After the boat trip we had lunch at the resort overlooking the lake and then cycled back to the RV for a lazy afternoon with our Kindles - sad huh. To be fair it was very hot and it can make you lethargic - thats out excuse.

Late afternoon we had another cycle ride up to a scenic point that wasn't so we headed back on the bikes to the resort to watch the sunset = due to clouds this wasn't as spectacular as last night.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Lake Powell, Arizona/Utah

Arizona Adventure - Friday Day 7

We had a better night last night after employing a second duvet cover and this morning the weather seems a bit milder (or it could be that we got up a bit later!). The plan today is to bike down to the Market Plaza for Breakfast and then on to the rim trail for one last look at the Canyon and then back to pack up and on the road up to Lake Powell.

These few days have been great - having the three nights has given us time to explore and time to do some walking and cycling. My own previous experience of the Canyon has been in one afternoon and out the next morning and just doing the 'touristy' bits. This time we have had time to explore the quieter areas and have seen the Canyon in its many moods and from many angles.

On route we stopped off at Dessert View which is one of the better places to view the canyon away from the main visitor centres.

We had a longish drive up to Lake Powell and arrived around 3:30pm just in time to check in to our site for the next two days. We are overlooking the lake and we had a walk down to the waters edge this evening to watch the sunset - breath taking!





Tonight we are sampling the culinary delight of Chicken Fajitas cooked in the RV and tomorrow we plan to take a photographic tour of one of the canyons and have a trip on the lake.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Grand Canyon to Lake Powell

Arizona Adventure - Day 5 & 6

Not sure what happened to yesterday's post so I will combine it with this one.

Yesterday (Wednesday) we had a leisurely breakfast at the local hotel Resteraunt and than headed up to Hermit View on the bus, with an intention of walking back to the camp site. Unfortunatley by the time we got there it was gone 11o'clock and the heat was up in the 40s so it was hard going and we only managed 6 miles of the rim trail. We chickened out at Mariposa point and caught the bus back to the Market Plaza, for a late lunch and then walked back to the camp.

An early night was called for as we were knackered from the heat!

Thursday started similarly with breakfast at the hotel cafe and we then caught the shuttle bus up to Mariposa point to carry on the rim walk. This time we got there around 8:30 so managed to get quite a bit of the 8 miles done before it got too hot.

The views, as you can imagine are breathtaking and I think I have taken over 1000 photos - so far!




After the long walk we headed straight back to the camp and picked up our push bikes and headed back to Bright Angel Hotel for an Ice-Cream (Lorna had promised me one earlier but we never got round to find another place to buy one!). After the ice cream we headed back on the cycle-way (which was mostly up hill!), time for a shower and then changed to head off to watch the sunset.




Lets hope its not as cold as it was last night - 4c at night 40c during the day!!!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Bright Angel, Grand Canyon

Arizona Adventure - Day 4

Today we left Prescott around 9am and headed North up to WIlliams and then on Route 66 up to the Grand Canyon.

We arrived at the Grand Canyon around 2pm and got settled in our campsite at Mather which is around 250 yards from the Rim edge.




The campsite is pretty basic and we have no hook-up (Electricity, Water, Sewage) but we have enough in our yanks for a few days. After settling in we had a walk up to the Market area to get a bit of shopping for the evening meal and then got the bikes out and cycled up to the rim and along for a few miles.

The sunset was amazing and the colours change minute by minute. Lots of people at the look-outs - all on Benny-Hill tours!




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Grand Canyon

Arizona Vacation - Day 3 (Tuesday 25th of September)

Yesterday was a day of good and the stressful!.

After a lazy breakfast at the hotel I realised that we had to phone the RV rental place up BEFORE 10am and not after as I had thought. Anyway I got in 10 minutes before 10 and arranged to pick the RV up at 12 noon which was better than I thought - we had assumed it was going to be 3pm from the documentation.

So a quick flurry or packing saw us checked out an on the road to the RV rental company by 10:30. The plan was to drop Lorna and the Luggage off at the RV place and then I would head over to the airport to drop the car off and get a taxi back. Surprisingly it all went to plan and I arrived back at 12:10 to start the orientation of the van. Not as big as I thought and reasonably luxurious.

We had decided to leave unpacking until we got to our first campsite so we set off to downtown Phoenix to pick up the rental bikes we had ordered. Again, apart from having to do a three point turn in the 32 foot RV, everything went OK and we picked up two brand new bikes.

The traffic out of Phoenix was horrendous and it seemed to take us ages to get to clear roads but eventually we hit clear space and we made good progress arriving in Prescott around 5:30pm where we managed to get settled in our first site - power, water and sewage all hooked up.

Then started the unpacking - always a stressful time!

Finally we were settled around 7pm it was pitched black outside and we decided to just have some ham bagels which we had bought in WalMart on our way out. These and a bottle of cheap plonk sealed the evening and we ended up having an early night as we were both knackered!.

Tuesday saw an interesting night in that it got really cold around 2am so the duvet that we had packed away as it was going to be too hot was definitely needed!

Today we are having breakfast in the van, taking a walk in to Prescott and then will be heading up to the Grand Canyon for the next three nights.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Prescott, Arizona

Arizona vacation day 2 - Sunday 23rd of September

Today is our 'lazy' day and after a hearty breakfast buffet we lounged by the pool for most of the day - occasionally dipping in the pool to get out of the heat.
I headed back to the room to get out of the heat around 2pm and got on with another chapter for my next Children' book - Dragons, Diamonds and Dung. SItting on our patio was very relaxing with the noise of the nearby fountain. I managed to get another 2000 words done!

Around 3pm we headed off to find some lunch and a spot of retail therapy at Paradise Valley Mall - although we found lunch at Subway we didn't manage any retail therapy - makes a change!
After wandering around the mall for an hour or so we headed off to find the RV place for Monday which is only about 20 minutes from the hotel and the airport. So Monday we will head off after breakfast, drop the luggage at Cruise America and I will take the car back to the airport whilst Lorna sorts the RV out (that's the plan anyway!).
In the evening we headed out to a local Mexican Resteraunt for Chicken Fajitas and some of the best Marguerites w e have had for some time!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:N Scottsdale Rd,Paradise Valley,United States

Dragons, Diamonds and Dung - new childrens book

SInce writing my first children's book last year I have been mulling over whether to write another. The experience of writing for children was interesting to say the least and the response to the book has been amazing - we have sold over 200 copies and I still get the odd order through Amazon.

The issue has been what the plot of the second book should be and should it follow the format of the first i.e. a series of short stories or a more cohesive 'novel' style.

Well last week it all seemed to coalesce - in the space of a few days the plot lines formed in my mind and the structure of the book seemed to fall into place.

The title "Dragons, Diamonds and Dung' is pretty self explanatory although it may change between now and publication but spells out the three key themes. Firstly the legend of Piers Shonks the last English Dragon slayer from Putnam in Hertfordshire, the quest for the owner of a lost Diamond Ring and the benefits, or otherwise, of various types of Dung on Vegetables.

OK these seem to be a little disparate themes but they come together a reasonably cohesive fashion in the book.

What is interesting is that once the pieces come together is is amazing how the words flow - in the last week I have written three chapters (8,000 words) and am on target for finishing the book by the end of October. My plan, if I can find an illustrator, is to get the book into print for Christmas.

I will keep you up to date on progress and I am looking for some proof readers if anyone is interested - no pay but a signed copy of the final book and a mention on the back cover.

Howard

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

The start of another adventure - Arizona Vacation 2012

Yesterday saw the start of a new adventure to the US with a flight on BA from terminal 5 at Heathrow. We are heading out to Phoenix, Arizona for a two week break - getting away from the strange UK weather and for me the day to day 'excitement' of being a 'house husband'.

We arrive in Phoenix at around 5pm and our first stop will be Dollar car rentals to pick up a rental car for the first two days. We booked through USRentalcars.co.uk which my son, Ben, has found last year - the great benefit of using this website is that the prices are great and they are all inclusive. This latter point, I feel, is so important - typically when you get to a US car rental desk the great deal you thought you had suddenly doubles with all the extras they try and sell you - insurance for this that and the other.

Arriving in Phoenix last night was a bit of a shock, weather wise. Getting off the plane was like walking into a sauna with the temperature at 6pm of 41c!

We are staying just outside Phoenix for a few days at the Double Tree Paradise Valley in Scottsdale. Not sure how good this will be but the reviews aren't bad and it came recommended from the company we booked the RV through - so lets hope.

The RV is coming from Cruise America and I went for the largest they have on the fleet - same price as the smallest so I thought why not. It will sleep 7 so if we have a tiff there are plenty of beds to sleep in!

Lorna fancied hiring some push bikes so after some Internet Research I found a company in Phoenix which will rent us bikes - including all the safety gear called Bike Barn in Phoenix and we will pick them up on Monday too. So a busy day.

The plan for Sunday is a day of rest - a bit of sun bathing and swimming in the morning, off to the Mall for lunch and a spot of retail therapy, and then back to the poolside for about 3pm. This way we will, hopefully, miss the heat of the sun, which today was 41c at noon!

I will be posting on a daily basis so come back and see what's happened. I will also be posting a few pictures as we travel along.


- Posted from my iPad


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Phoenix Arizon