Day 23: Happy Fourth of July from Flagstaff

According to Travel and Leisure Magazine, Flagstaff was considered the #1 place to spend Fourth of July, complete with a little road race, so we adjusted our plans and headed to the largest city in Northern Arizona.

So when I signed us up for the 1 mile race in Flagstaff, I was just trying to do so before I lost the sporadic cell signal, before the prerace registration closed. I really didn’t have time to read the fine print, so I just signed us up according to what I thought sounded about the right skill level. Ummm, Momma always said to read the fine print and I should have, but was in a rush.

So there were several age categories and abilities to choose from.   The no brainer was Viv which was a ½ mile free “Kids Run.” I chose “Citizen” for myself, as that sounded about my skill level. I chose “Elite” for the older two as I thought that would challenge them. Well, I was a little off (except Viv.) Apparently, I was considered a “Masters” as my age just missed the cut off for “Citizen.” Wow, way to make me feel old.  I did okay considering I was racing in 7000 feet elevation and had not been running. I had wanted to finish in under 7:30, but that 7000 lb elephant was sitting on my chest and I had to walk several times to catch my breathe as I felt like a fish out of water gasping for breath.

 

And then there were kids. I chose “Elites”, not because I considered them elite, but to give them some competition. It was an annual fun run and they were giving prizes for the best costumes, this can’t possibly be that intense. And unfortunately, we did not pack a lot of costume and accessories so we made do with what we had. What I had not anticipated was that of the seventeen Elites racing, two were Olympian trials runners, two were at USTF Nationals, one ranked 10^th in the US and the rest of them looked intimidating as H E double toothpicks! The male who won the race in 4:10 was a past Nationals elite and the Kenyan looking woman, complete with legs up to her armpits, also had an impressive running resume. Kids were not happy with me. Oh well, better get use to the pressure sooner or later. Now go run and have fun. For goodness sake, it’s the 4^th of July and your mom dressed up like a patriotic super dingdong.

The weather was 50 degrees cooler than in Las Vegas as we woke to 65 degree temps but quickly warmed before the impending rain that was due to hit around noon. We decided to stay for the 300 float parade, as we had found premium parking with the trailer earlier.  We typically attend the Carmel parade back home so it was fun to see how Flagstaff did parades.    There were some interesting floats including an awesome Star Wars group, a local foot surgeon with a paper mache broken ankle, and some pretty llamas, but for the most part you can only enjoy so many 275 + hometown companies driving old fashion cars with kids throwing candy. I was hot from wearing the patriotic tights so I stepped away for a bit to peruse the shops while the kids enjoyed popsicles and free candy.

I have decided that Flagstaff is unofficially the #1 most dog friendly place of earth. Every third person/couple/family had at least one if not two dogs, all as happy as their owners.  There were even several floats exclusive to pet care and Pre and Phelps scored two new treat  bags and four large dog treats.  I was missing my dogs and kitties so much.  I know they are in good hands but ten days can not come soon enough when it comes to seeing all of our critters.

After checking out of the hotel, we went back into town to eat out one of the numerous establishments. Anything and everything ethnic was available but since it was an American holiday, we thought it only appropriate to find something more traditional so we dined at Diablo Burgers, which the locals said was every bit the wait and we definitely concurred. Scott I firmly believe in supporting locally grown foods and establishments when we have access to them. We were all pretty hungry as we had only eaten a light breakfast at the Drury Inn before the run, and my typical go to food before  I worked out of honey and English muffins were not available. but this was by far the BEST burger I have ever had regardless of how many decibels my stomach growls reached. I opted for the Senor Smoke, a concoction of 95% lean beef, Ancho grilled onions, grilled avocado, cilantro, bacon, and Sriracha mayo but the bacon, beet and blue cheese had a serious consideration. Everyone selected a burger of their choosing branded on the best English muffin I have ever eaten!!! I immediately fell in love with Flagstaff-great food, great elevation, great boutiques, and great people. They can just leave me here. I’m happy.

We concluded the day with another attempt to connect with distance family, but could not connect. With the every present chance of rain, we decided to forego the fireworks and take our chances to camp at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon on the 4^th of July. Any other family might have not even consider such a wild idea, but luck has been on our side, so we thought we would take our chances.  Of course Zach and Viv, grumbled almost the entire way that there was no way we were going to find a site. I just love to prove my kids wrong. Let me say that again, “I LOVE to prove my kids wrong!”

So we got to the South Rim and enter the park and the Ranger confirmed Zach and Viv’s concerns. Scott tried two other locations close to the entrance and all were booked.  A different ranger however had stated that there were twelve sites available an hour ago at the Desert View Campsite about twenty five miles away, but she did not think it worth the trip. Well, she was not driving and did not have to worry about sleeping arrangements and the disappointments of three children. After a brief pro/con session, Scott and I collectively thought we would take the chance.  Worst case scenario, would be the campsite was full and we would turn around and see more great views back through the park and find a motel outside of the campground.

We pulled in to the small campsite as numerous cars were driving the circular campground.  Well upon first look it looked really full. There appeared to be several cars, RV’s and camping vehicles that had the same idea we had but arrived maybe thirty minutes prior to us. Darn! But as we drove around the tight fitting campground, there was a site that had a tent on it did not have the paper receipt attached -a requirement for “claiming” the site. Scott looped around again and asked a ranger about site 41 as there was another RV also questioning its availability which he delivered the surprising news that it was available according to his checklist. No quicker that you could blink, Scott jumped out of the front seat and ran to the payment kiosk located near the bathrooms and asked me to drive. It was a scene out of bad summer RV movie. Zach in his excitement jumped out as well and followed him with lightning speed. Score! We secured the last site.

Well, we set up camp not quite as efficiently as Yosemite, but an admirable attempt as we had to navigate around the vacant tent.  The ranger and his counterpart, perhaps even his wife, stopped by several times explaining how this could have happened and should any problems arise.  A fellow European camper had a similar experience with a tent on his site, and came over to our site several times to discuss, vent or share his concerns.  We were just happy as clams to have secured a spot and would work it out with the other campers when they returned.  In all honesty, it was a bit confusing the whole “claim it” process so we were willing to share.  After a meal of French bread, campfire chili and grapes, we decided it was too late for s’mores. We cleaned up and as we made our way to the last bathroom break of the evening, Kenzi managed to locate the only cactus on the dark trail and snagged her ankle with the prickly glass like splinters.  Well that’s one way to end a memorably holiday.

Our Polish campers, two gentleman traveling the US for the next three weeks, apparently set up their tent not knowing the process and left to go eat.  They were very nice and apologized for the misunderstanding.  Scott and I chatted with them a bit, sharing our experiences and offering any helpful tips to the few common places they were headed.  I am not sure how they were going to accomplish everything on their list, but then again, I was not sure we would get everything done and we have stayed pretty true to original schedule.

Day 23 complete.