Unless you really like winter sports, this time of year the greatest place to be is Arizona. I know Arizona’s been taking a lot of hits lately, but the weather In January and February is why Arizona has a major tourism influx.
Daytime temperatures get into the 70ºs (Fahrenheit) and the sun is shining. Soon, we’ll have a profusion of flowers – yes, it really can flower in the desert! (more…)
A few weeks ago, I promised to tell about the images on my new web site, Hiking.fortheCouchPotato.com That’s – Hiking for the Couch Potato – -http://hiking.forthecouchpotato.com
Head over there now! (I’ll wait!) http://hiking.forthecouchpotato.com
Take a quick look at image number 4 at the top of the page (just scroll over) and you’ll see a reddish, sandstone rock that seems to have some people tucked in an opening.
Okay, now that you’ve seen that truly unusual natural development, wouldn’t you like to know where it is?
That image is the closest of the four to my home in Arizona.
It’s – Papago Park in the Phoenix, Arizona area. Of the many natural formations in the central Arizona area, Papago Park allows visitors to come and hike up (from the area behind the photo you’re seeing) and look out at the world. The walk is not too challenging, but since it’s terraced with some built in “stairs,” it would be tough for someone in a wheelchair. However, most other people would be able to walk up to see the view.
Papago Park also is well-located, as it is near both the Phoenix Zoo and Desert Botanical Garden. Plan a day seeing all of those sights if you’re planning to come to Arizona.
And, despite the bad press Arizona is getting these days about guns, most of us are not gun-toting, wild west types spoiling for a fight. You can expect to be treated well here as some of the most luxurious hotels and exotic scenery of the US southwest is right here in the Phoenix area. And, the majority of people are well- behaved, law-abiding citizens.
I promised to tell you about the images on my new Website, Hiking for the Couch Potato – http://hiking.forthecouchpotato.com.
So, take a peek at the site and look at the second image near the top. When you do, you’ll see an almost other-worldly location where the rocks have encircled a watery, breathtakingly beautiful lake. If you look really carefully, you’ll even see a mountain with snow on it off in the distance.
Where is it?
The shot is of Granite Dells, just north of Prescott, Arizona at Watson Lake. It’s a park, a picnic place and a fabulous place to hike. There is a small entrance fee, but just sharing the view is worth it!
Take a look at our previous blog on this site that tells you more. http://traveltipsandadventures.com/?p=1687
Enjoy! We certainly have and we’ve been back several times.
If you’ve seen the new Hiking for the Couch Potato website – http://hiking.forthecouchpotato.com – you’ve seen some images at the top of the page.
I promised to identify the images at the top of our new website.
Image number 1 is: ta – dah – drum roll -
Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, Oregon.
A monolith that juts 235 feet high above the long stretch of beach in Cannon Beach, Oregon, Haystack Rock seems to follow you in any direction wherever you are on the beach. Birds and other creatures – especially humans – find it almost magnetic, but it is a protected site. See our longer blog for more information – http://traveltipsandadventures.com/?p=1134
Return next week and we’ll identify our #2 image.
We hope you’ll visit our Hiking for the Couch Potato website – and maybe even consider buying a book! Especially for those of you who know someone who really needs to get off the couch and get some activity in their life.
Have a great week, everyone!
You’re invited, starting Wednesday, to a new blog where people can encourage each other and have some fun while they “get off the couch.”
My new book, Hiking for the Couch Potato: A Guide for the Exercise-Challenged is debuting and you’re invited to take a look at the new website —-
Do you have a great recipe that’s easy or suitable to take on the trail? Please submit it to the “Recipe” section.
Found a great hike that you want to recommend? Submit that, too.
We’ll ask people to become a member so we don’t have those spammers who try to take advantage of everyone and fill their inboxes. (I’ve had more than my share of those.)
Also, if you’d like to purchase a book, you have the option of linking to Amazon or Barnes & Noble to purchase an ebook or buying a soft cover book , which will be very secure. All of this will launch later this week, so we hope you’ll come back and become a regular. (Also, see copanews.com, which has word of my book’s debut and first book signing.)
I hope to have fun and motivate everyone to be a healthier person!
Back to you soon!
I know I promised to tell more about shopping in Scottsdale – and I will get to that next week.
But, I’m ready to share a new project I’m about to launch-
Drum roll, please.
Da- da- da- dum- da- dah!
Very soon you’ll be able to see my book: Hiking for the Couch Potato: A Guide for the Exercise-Challenged
In about three weeks, the book will be available as both as an e-book and a printed book.
A light-hearted guide that encourages people to get off the couch and go hiking, Hiking for the Couch Potato has everything from advice on hiking gear to recipes to an “Ode to Frozen Green Peas.”
It even talks about how to meet that significant other!
So, be on the lookout for the book – soon to be available at an e-store and on my new (not available yet) web site.
Suitable for gift giving! (And the web site will be a community where people can share their hiking experiences, recipes, and encourage each other!)
Looking forward to sharing Hiking for the Couch Potato with you! Everyone likes potatoes!
PS Please let me know your reactions to my book! I’ll autograph any book personally for someone who orders it through this travel blog.
Since nature can accomplish amazing results, we decided that a trip to Tonto Natural Bridge State Park in Northern Arizona would make an interesting field trip. And, it did.
A difficult, winding road, State Route 87, from the Phoenix area is a challenge – definitely not for the faint of heart. North of Payson by just a few miles and still on 87, a turn-off leads to another winding access road. Wiggling every which way, when you finally arrive at the bottom, the park is spread out below, but the natural bridge is not immediately noticeable.
Pay your entry fee ($5 per person) and head to a parking lot. There are several trails and viewpoints to visit so you can see the travertine (according to Wikipedia a “sedimentary rock, formed by the precipitation of carbonate minerals from solution in ground and surface waters”) bridge, which has a waterfall dripping down.
A picturesque grotto with waterfall awaits the intrepid
Well, really, that’s what the Grand Canyon is: It is a one-mile hole in the ground that is over a mile above sea level that stretches for nearly 300 miles. But it is vast and a testament to what nature can do over the eons of time that the earth has evolved.
Grand Canyon - just a very small part of the vast view
A trip to the Grand Canyon is a “must see” when you travel out West in the USA. Arizona recognizes it as one of its finest attractions by designating itself the “Grand Canyon State” on license plates. (more…)
The first time I flew into Phoenix, I was amazed at how spread out the metropolitan area is. From west to east, Buckeye to Apache Junction, the metropolitan area of Phoenix, with all its suburbs, easily reaches 70 miles.
In some giant US cities, they build up with multi-storied skyscrapers. But, with the vast spaces available in Arizona, they have built out and even have had height restrictions on how high buildings can be built.
So, welcome to Phoenix. Spread out and still in the desert.
Saguaro cacti and mountains are a short ride from the hustle and bustle
Sometimes, you just need a chance to relax. When that need overtakes you, the perfect place to relax is Coyote Trail Bed and Breakfast near Maricopa, Arizona. (more…)
