Forever Young

The whole loop from "E" to "E" is a WIFI Free Zone.
"C" is Young and "D" is Roosevelt Lake Visitor Center.

We aren't forever Young but we've been wanting forever to GO to Young.  Today's the day.  Snappy's all perky and ready to roll.  We're going to be tent camping and most all that stuff is packed.

Some of you know we once had a "Tent Obsession" and bought almost 20 tents.  Their are mostly all "past tents" now since we joined The Tent Owner's 12 Step Program.  In fact, until recently, we have had only ONE tent here in Arizona and it's a one-man little thing.

We tried to buy a tent off Craigs List but even the Old Beater tents were way to expensive.  We were able to buy a new tent at Wal-Mart for much less than a crummy used tent would have cost.  Go figure.  If we would have traveled earlier in the year, we would have gone to Globe to rent a room for the night.  Now that it's much warmer, we plan to camp at Roosevelt Lake.

We're not actually saving any money by camping. The purchase of the camping gear cost more than a cheap room in Globe would have.  However, camping anywhere down in the lower desert this time of year is a real treat and the ambiance of a campsite sure beats the inside of a cheap motel room any day.

We're not sure what we're going to find on this trip.  We know we're going to visit the Young Cemetery.  (Is that an oxymoron?)  We will also stop at the Tonto National Monument and the Roosevelt Lake Visitor Center.  This trip might finally be the one where we get to take a picture of the hundreds of bicycles at Pumpkin Center.

We're prepared to spend two nights but chances are it will be a simple overnighter.  Our RT mileage calc's to about 300.  At our typical rate of travel, we'll be driving at least 10 hours, maybe 12.  We will probably average 25-30 miles per hour but it could be less depending on all the various potential stops along the way.
Supposedly the wildflowers are peaking right now and if we get into a profusion of blooms, well, our average speed could drop way down to around 15 mph which would mean a 20 hours Road Trip travel time.  We definitely prefer the low speed style of Road Trip.

Well, hey, we need to digress her a minute or two, OK?  So, prior to each Road Trip, we always tr to do a lot of reading about where we are going.  We all know you can't totally trust some of the stuff you read online.  This morning, we found a Real Whopper.  I mean a REAL WHOPPER.  Somebody wrote about traveling on Arizona Hwy 88 and they decided to talk about the Tonto National Monument.  Here is what they have to say.  (Fasten Your Seat Belts and wear hip waders!)


"The Tonto National Monument is connected to Tonto National Forest, Theodore Roosevelt Lake, Roosevelt Dam and Oak Creek Canyon.

Though Oak Creek Canyon is generally accessed by travelers near Sedona, it is actually so immense that part of it also runs below Tonto National Monument's upper cliff dwelling region."

WOW!  Who knew? OK, here's the link:
 http://voices.yahoo.com/historic-route-88-travel-guide-tonto-national-forest-7835278.html?cat=16

We will NOT be traveling the the Hood Camera on this trip--that is reserved for the Samurai.  We will be taking the usual 100's of photos, few of which we will use.  Heck, maybe we will Tweet This Trip.  Sure, why not?  That's always kinda fun and gives us a record of where we were when and why.

Well, that our story and we're sticking to it.  Happy Trails & Many Cheers, jp