Head up to Prescott for hiking/kayaking/getting out of the heat. Weather should be in the 80s/90s and dry (with possible afternoon monsoons). Great restaurants and shopping there too. You can also head off to Sedona from there, passing through the cool little town of Jerome. There is also Horseshoe bend (my avatar photo), and Lake Powell, if you have more time.
AZ is beautiful in summer, just carry water in your car, and avoid the more remote highways when its really hot (many parts of rural AZ don’t have cell coverage or roadside phones). Be safe.
edit: Oops, looks like I’m late to the party lol
Never too late! If you go to Prescott, you can park on the NE edge of town at the Phippen museum which has parking for the nearby Granite Dells hiking. You go in a tunnel under the road and you can get a free trail map to all the hikes around Prescott and hike around. It’s quite a beautiful spot and never crowded (and you always get cell service).
You can also park beyond the dog park south of Embry-Riddle and hike around Willow lake. That took longer than we thought. 5-6 miles with about half of it scrambling over rocks. Went out for a big lunch after.
Prescott is home to one of the best “meaderies” in the country (the other one is in Detroit). It’s called Superstition Meadery and it’s just off Courthouse Square inside a spice shop. Very interesting stuff and they have food too.
@Corinthian Wow that’s very cool! I’m glad to see how successful they’ve been - I’ve been going on and off since they first opened. In the early days they were much more modest in terms of dishes and prices. I think they have multiple locations and even one at the airport now.
IN Pheonix right now. Heading to Williams tomorrow. Will go to Sedona first.
Drove the Apache Trail the first day, past Canyon Lake. Beautiful views and scenery. Went to the Desert Botanicals today. Spent about 1 and 1/2 hours in the morning. It was all we could do in this heat. Spent this afternoon at MMI. It was very interesting and a good way to be out of heat. Thanks for the suggestion.
Ate at Barrio Queen last night. It was ranked one of the best Mexican restaurants in Scottsdale. Diners, Dives and Drive- Ins featured this place. H hated his meal. I enjoyed mine.
Will be back in Pheonix in 4 or 5 days. Maybe will check out Barrio Cafe.any other restaurant recommendations? All types are ok, except Asian.
Pizzeria Bianco is a nationally recognized wood oven pizza place…AWESOME. In downtown.
For destination restaurants, Binkley’s in Cave Creek has been our #1 for 10+ years. Unfortunately it’s closing this summer, but I understand he’s switching one of his satellite restaurants over to becoming the flagship.
Based on reviews, people seem to love the other Binkley locations but I’ve been underwhelmed and never thought they lived up to the reputation of the flagship. Give the Cave Creek location a call to see if they’re open as it’s definitely worth visiting for people who enjoy a world-class meal. I belive Binkley was a former sous-chef at French Laundry and trained under Thomas Keller.
http://binkleysrestaurantgroup.com