Quote:
Originally Posted by Archie F. Swin
In March I plan on taking my family to see landmarks and (hopefully) some spring training baseball in Arizona. While I'm familiar with how the state is laid out, our travel will take us into some wide-open, sparsely-populated areas I wouldn't want to be stranded in.
From our home in Texas, my first destination is Farmington, New Mexico to stay the first night. Our second day will be in a region I'm completely unfamiliar with and need the most help with. From Farmington, we will make a stop at the Four Corners Marker (not really a big deal, but if we're in the the neighborhood...) and on to Monument Valley (something I've always wanted to see). Ideally, I would like to end this day of travel at a motel within a reasonable distance of the Grand Canyon. As far as I can tell, this would mean I have to drive from Monument Valley to Williams, Flagstaff or near the south rim to find accommodations. Doesn't look like there's much east of the Grand Canyon (unless you want to snuggle up to a Navajo). Can anyone tell me if its a reasonable drive from Monument Valley to Flagstaff (under normal driving conditions) to where we won't be pulling into town at midnight? Are there any surprisingly affordable places to stay within and hour of the south rim?
Anywhoo, we'll probably devote an entire day to the Grand Canyon (first visit in 25 years), then eventually make our way down to the Valley of the Sun (Phoenix/Surprise) and catch at least one Royals game and visit a distant cousin. Any must-see (also quick)stops between Flagstaff and Phoenix?
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Do yourself a favor when driving to Farmington. DON'T go from Wichita Falls to Amarillo and take I-40 across to Albuquerque. Instead, go to Amarillo and head north to Dumas, then Clayton, Springer, Taos, Tierra Amarilla, Chama, Dulce, and Farmington. You will be treated to a much more beautiful and senic drive that you won't get so much of if you take the southern route.
Trust me - I grew up in Wichita Falls and my dad is from Taos, so we made that journey many times.