Upcoming Arizona Trip

[Dougtone]

I will be making a trip to Arizona next month, a long weekend trip to be precise.  I will be visiting Phoenix and Sedona, and may have some extra time to go east of the Phoenix area, or possibly down to Tucson.  While my main purposes for the trip will be sightseeing and also to see a Phoenix Coyotes hockey game, I will be doing some roadgeeking as well.  So my questions would be what is there to see that is road worthy, anything interesting signs or roads to see, suggestions for scenic drives, and what to avoid.  Any other suggestions (sightseeing attractions, restaurants, etc.) would also be appreciated.

[AZDude]

One thing to prepare for is closed rest areas.  Because of budget cuts nearly all rest area in AZ have been closed. 

If driving on I-10 in Phoenix, be aware of construction between Cotton Lane and 91st Avenue.  Also Loop 101 has frequent backups during the day.

[hm insulators]

This is a good day trip: Head about 100 miles east of Phoenix on US 60 to a town called Globe. Where US 70 dead-ends in Globe, turn left to stay on 60 and go about 40 miles to the Salt River Canyon--sort of a baby Grand Canyon. There are overlooks to view the canyon; if you have the time, the highway winds and twists and twists and winds down into the bottom of the canyon, crosses the Salt River, then winds and twists and twists and winds back out. I had heard or read somewhere that when US 60 was a major transcontinental highway back in the day, truckers found the Salt River crossing the most treacherous stretch of the entire highway.

If you do this on a Saturday or Sunday and it's getting close to dinner time as you drive through Mesa (an eastern suburb of Phoenix) on the way back, here's a fun place to eat, especially if you have kids: Organ Stop Pizza. You can have pizza and watch the man play this huge theater pipe organ! Get off the US 60 freeway at Stapley and go north about half a mile to Southern; the place is a few hundred feet down Southern (southwestern corner of Southern and Stapley).

I like going to Organ Stop on Saturday or Sunday because Charlie is the organist on those nights.