After a crazy few weeks spending time with our families down south, we finally had the chance to explore something closer to home when my parents came to visit last week. It's always so fun to have them in town and I'm incredibly proud to have such adventurous and supportive parents. Every time they visit, we have the best time exploring new places and usually baking a yummy dessert or two. I couldn't think of a better way to spend my spring break! One of the adventures we decided on was something we had again avoided prior to having our Forester: Fossil Creek. Read any guide or post about it online and you'll pretty much scare yourself out of attempting the drive. I saw the 14 mile winding gravel road described as "torturous" in more places than one. Don't let this scare you off too much though! While the drive isn't for the faint of heart (thanks to Johnny for driving!) isn't not as horrendous as most online resources claim. And even if it was, boy is it worth it. After the long drive, a short mile walk, peppered with smaller waterfalls, will lead you to the finale, Fossil Springs. There you will find plenty of people, a few brave cliff jumpers, and cool, inviting turquoise waters. We chose to go when my parents were here partly because it was outside the permit season. As of April 1, you will need to buy a parking permit through Recreation.Gov website prior to making the trek. I was the only one that day brave enough to get in the water but the cliff jumpers, blue waters, and large falls provide plenty of entertainment for those who would prefer to stay dry. Fossil Creek is a place we would readily return to, despite the foreboding drive in. Thanks for braving this unknown adventure with us mom and dad!
0 Comments
Wishing our friends, family, and readers (mostly friends and family :P) a very merry Christmas!The three of us loaded up for one last crosscountry road trip in our Honda Accord and will be spending the holidays with our family back home. We plan to make the most of our time at home and will not be posting any new content until after the New Year. We'll see you in 2017!
- Johnny, Ali, and Winslow 2016 has been a heckuva year! As we're prepping to head home for the holidays to spend time with family, I figured now was as good of time as any to reflect on the past year and pick out a few highlights to share with you all. Best wishes and cheers to 2017!
After a weekend down south visiting my grandma, my parents joined us in Flagstaff during our favorite time of year. The aspen shed their leaves a little earlier than expected but hiking Inner Basin still did not disappoint. Last year, we had tried to hike Inner Basin only to be chased out by an incoming storm so we were excited to get back out there this year with my parents in tow. They were champs! Remembering back to our first few weeks in Flagstaff, I know just how hard the transition to 7,000 ft. elevation can be but despite being low-landers, they were amazing! After 4 miles, much of which was at a somewhat steep gain in elevation, we were pooped and spent the rest of the day recovering and baking an apple pie (this is turing out to be a tradition whenever my parents visit Flagstaff in the fall). The next day we headed out to one of our favorite, lesser known places in Flagstaff: Hart Prairie. After we arrived and hiked the short distance to the old abandoned cabin we love, we were devastated to learn that it had recently been fenced and caution taped off due to thieves harvesting its warm, ancient wood and subsequent collapse. My stomach sank as I thought about how horribly a few people had disrespected this admired, historic building. Despite the devastation, we enjoyed sharing one of Flagstaff's hidden gems with my parents and even got a few (totally adorable) snaps of them. Our October was filled with travels and visits from family and friends and although we're happy to have our routine back to normal, sharing Flagstaff has been one of the greatest parts of living here.
This... this is the Arizona I knew until just over a year ago our cross country move took every expectation and understanding I had and turned it on its head. If you're a regular reader of our blog, you already know that Johnny and I have family (our grandmas and Johnny's aunt) in the same small city in southern Arizona. Their nearness is part of the reason we chose to move to Flagstaff. Prior to our move, we had both visited Arizona many, many times but never together. Our first weekend trip down south came just over a month after we had moved to Flagstaff and we've gone back several times since. Every time we make the trip, I fall more in love with a place I used to think was just brown, ugly, and hot. It's been so special to make new, shared memories in a place we both have so many old, fond memories in as well. Earlier this month, our worlds again collided when we decided to spend the afternoon in the small, artisan community of Tubac. It had been at least 10 years since I'd visited but the colorful ceramic pieces brought me back to afternoons spent bartering in the streets of Mexico with my parents. With our own place to decorate, Johnny and I settled on cement cow skull (seen below) and couldn't have been happier with our purchase. Visions of a fireplace mantle in an unknown, future home inspired the purchase. With the shops starting to look more and more all the same, we grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed back to spend more time with our grandmas. With fall quickly disappearing up here in the "north country" and winter looming, we're looking forward to more weekend trips down south.
|
Archives
June 2017
Categories
All
|