# Arizona



## Pingu (Aug 7, 2012)

I may be off out there for 4 weeks from the middle of September. exact location will be confirmed but will be either Tuscon or Pheonix.

My preperation will mostly consist of watching westerns and living in a sauna for a bit to aclimatise but was wondering if anyone had any first hand experience or advice?

note this trip is work related so sightseeing opportunities will be very limited


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## TruXta (Aug 7, 2012)

I hear Austin TX is nice.


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## Pingu (Aug 7, 2012)

cheers. if i get the urge to do a 2000 mile round trip i will most certainly take it into consideration

eta my needs when traveling to new places are simple btw but anything that has featured on Man Vs food has a high chance of geting a look in if i am thinking of somewhere to go


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## what (Aug 7, 2012)

Was there many moons ago. Not much to say about Phoenix but Tucson I really enjoyed for just a couple of days. If you can time it I went to this many moons ago and it was cheap and fun. http://clubcrawl.ning.com/
If you need it a haircut what must be the best named hairdressers ever is here http://www.thecoyoteworesideburns.com/
This was worth a drive around http://www.nps.gov/sagu/index.htm also the aircraft grave yard (can't remember the name).

This was the main place for nightlife. I'm sure its changed by now. http://www.hotelcongress.com/

If I can think of anything else I'll add.

Note it is worth having a car as public transport does not exist.


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## Voley (Aug 7, 2012)

I'd love to see all of this:


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## Pingu (Aug 8, 2012)

looks like there is a distinct lack of air conditioning there tbh


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## FridgeMagnet (Aug 8, 2012)

If you don't like the heat (which I don't) it's worth noting that some areas, like the rim of the Grand Canyon and the high plains around it, are so far above sea level that there can be snow on the ground at the same time as it's 40C in Pheonix. There are quite a lot of observatories up there as well, if astronomy is your bag.


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## Mrs Magpie (Aug 8, 2012)

Don't we have an Arizona-based poster?


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## TitanSound (Aug 8, 2012)

We do now!


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## Pingu (Aug 8, 2012)

FridgeMagnet said:


> If you don't like the heat (which I don't) it's worth noting that some areas, like the rim of the Grand Canyon and the high plains around it, are so far above sea level that there can be snow on the ground at the same time as it's 40C in Pheonix. There are quite a lot of observatories up there as well, if astronomy is your bag.


 
oooh big telemascopes... that would be pretty cool to go see.


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## Yuwipi Woman (Aug 10, 2012)

Keep your passport with you.  The cops there are insane about those "ferreners."


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## petee (Aug 11, 2012)

Pingu said:


> oooh big telemascopes... that would be pretty cool to go see.


 
http://www.noao.edu/kpno/


> Kitt Peak is located 56 miles southwest of Tucson, AZ, in the Schuk Toak District on the Tohono O'odham Nation and has a Visitor Center open daily to the public.


 
http://www.lowell.edu/


> Lowell Observatory is located at 1400 West Mars Hill Road, Flagstaff, Arizona, 86001.


 
here's alot of them:
http://www.azcentral.com/travel/art...na-stargazing-planetariums-observatories.html

here's more of them:
https://www.as.arizona.edu/outreach/tours.html


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## 2hats (Aug 11, 2012)

Pingu said:


> I may be off out there for 4 weeks from the middle of September. exact location will be confirmed but will be either Tuscon or Pheonix.


 
Phoenix *yawn*. Go to Tucson, far more interesting. Search out the microbreweries. Hang out in Saguro National Parks (east and west).

Aircraft boneyard is AMARG at Davis-Monthan to the SE of town. Visit Kitt Peak (west) and see the McMath solar telescope. Tombstone is away to the east. Go south to the border and look for hummingbirds in the mountains. You could cross to Nogales for real Mexican, or a good old fashioned gun battle between drugs gangs. There are quite a few old Spanish missions scattered around the desert if that floats your boat.

Of course, if you are able, head north via Sedona to Flagstaff then NE to the Painted Desert and Monument Valley (nip north into UT to drive around the Valley of the Gods and up/down the Moki Dugway for the views) via Sedona. Track back west from there to hang out around Page and see if you can make it in (literally a lottery) to hike Coyote Buttes and the Wave (Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness). Kill time in the slot canyons (eg Antelope - lower tends to be easier to get in to than upper) or drive nearby Cottonwood Canyon Road (UT) up into Kodachrome Basin and on to Bryce Canyon (if your vehicle is up to it). Coral Pink Sand Dunes aren't far away either and a surreal place at sunset/rise. Try to locate James Turrell's Roden Crater (not far from Wupatki and Sunset Crater to the south of Page). On the way dangle your legs over the cliff edge at Horseshoe Bend. Meteor Crater, the Petrified Forest and Canyon de Chelly are a days drive away to the ESE off Route 66. Stay in the concrete teepees at the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook for the kitsch value (even better get a 4WD, emergency weather radio and go sleep in the desert). Don't forget that there's also that big old hole up in the NW of the state, of course.

Arizona is a great place for rock nuts with dramatic landscapes.


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## Pingu (Aug 11, 2012)

sadly, as i said earlier, sightseeing opportunities will be limited as i will be there for work. its currently looking like it wil be pheonix. but i wil have weekends to have a mooch so hopefully wil get to see something interesting


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