Summer Scamp 6- AZ to CA

This is the happy baby, yummy donut dance, in the seated position, of course.

The upright position of this particular move requires a lot more space.

Originally when we booked at Point of Rocks we were going to stay for three nights instead of four.  

I am so glad we extended.  The time went by way too fast.  We so needed this time to reintroduce ourselves to outside.  A1 understands this perfectly, which is why she waves to every ant she meets.

A favorite stuffed animal helps to make the four+ hour drive manageable. 

Good Peanut.

Crossing over the Colorado River; we are officially back in CA.

And we are back in Indio, at Indian Waters RV Resort.  

Yep, just doing our mini-vacation in reverse.  It makes for easy planning.

Happy baby, happy mommy.

TKB.

Again.

TKB is the best deli I know.

Geronimo! 

!ominoreG

Run.  Jump.  Repeat.

This child of ours LOVES water.  

And adventures.

I am so glad summer isn't canceled.  It wasn't the summer we were originally planning but it will more than do!

Summer Scamp 5- Downtown Prescott and Watson Lake

Just hanging out at Point of Rocks, hmmm, what to do today?

Any ideas, Daddy?

How about Downtown Prescott?

Sounds like a plan.

Prescott has been the capital of Arizona twice, once in 1864 and once again in 1877.

We started our tour on Whiskey Row, where some of Prescott's oldest history took place.

It is called Whiskey Row because of the concentrated number of saloons in the area (40 at one point).  The saloons were a result of the gold rush culture.  Drinks cost 12.5 cents here in 1870.  

If only I could be a fly on a Prescott saloon wall.  

Where were smart phones in the 1800s?!  Ugh.

Us in front of town hall.

The historic architecture in Downtown Prescott screams prosperity.  

This bank, although the name changed four times, is thought to be the longest running bank in Arizona.

The Elks building and theater was completed in 1905.  It started with plays and theater and upgraded with the times, from silent films to talkies.  Movies played here until the 1980s.

What was the last film to play?  ET?  Back to the Future?  Stand By Me?

The world may never know.

In 1864 this land, overlooking the court house, was originally set aside for the "capital block" but a wealthy man (minor/ real estate developer) bought it and sold off a few plots to a selected few, creating a beautiful little block of houses.

As you walk around the downtown area there is stained glass everywhere.

Surrounding the capital building is grass to delightedly run around on.

Whiskey Row is just 4 miles from our campground.  After we settled back home we decided to check out Watson Lake once again, but from a different location.  A1 was ready to show us around.  Not only did she want to lead the way but she wanted to walk over boulders instead of walking around them.  Even after some tear-free falls this toddler (I don't know, I guess she isn't a baby anymore!) did not want her hand held. Who knew stubbornness is inherited?  I would have thought it was a learned behavior.

Ugh, I can't believe my amazing dragonfly pictures are BLURRY!  You get the idea.  

I have never seen so many dragonflies in my life.  And they are BLUE!

We ate lunch at the Lazy G and got a crowler filled just for fun.  Without thinking about the name we bought the 6 hour drive, exactly the amount of drive time we have left before we get home.

We leave tomorrow.  The time has gone by so fast but what an amazing trip it has been.

Our little toddler needed some outside time to explore the great outdoors. 

Summer Scamp 4- Jerome

This is baby boundary pushing. A1 isn’t allowed off the carpet without permission. 

Jerome is an old miner's town, located just 32 miles from Prescott. 

It was founded in 1876, and since its birth on this billion year old+ undersea caldera, it has produced 33 million tons of ore.

Today Jerome was a ghost town.

Literally and figuratively. 

Literally because Jerome is known as the most haunted town in Arizona and one of the most haunted in the US, and figuratively because we arrived just after 9:00 am and there was hardly anyone around.

Jerome is located directly on the only road that winds through town.

The buildings are in great condition, and you can tell they are putting a lot of money into restoring it.

Unfortunately, because of the pandemic, a big Chamber of Commerce fundraiser (a historic building tour) was cancelled.  I would love to take part in that.  But we will take what we can get.  It was super satisfying just walking around looking for ghosts seeing all of the historic architecture.  

The Jerome post office was established in 1883.

This isn't the original post office.  The first was destroyed in a fire that started in the post office and then proceeded to burn the entire town.  (Not the first and only fire to destroy the city.)

Maybe its the 1937 Jerome post office?

This picture was taken in 1937, after mining explosions caused landslides which destroyed many buildings (the post office was spared this time around).

This town is wrought with bad luck.  And its that bad luck which brings its good luck of being haunted, which entices tourists.

We are on the only sidewalk on the only road that goes through town, right next to an oddly constructed house that abuts the road.  I am sure they had no idea when they were in the midst of construction how much the world population would grow, or how many tourists would come to this town of 500 people.  (An employee at a local shop informed us they accommodate 2 million tourists a year!)

The Jerome Grand Hotel has seen its share of deaths.  A caretaker committed suicide in the boiler room.  A maintenance man was crushed by an elevator.  

Once again, a town of BAD luck...

This is an original roof in a shop we went into.

Exploring Jerome is so much fun.  Honestly, I think I could spend a week here poking around this tiny town.  There is so much to see!

This hotel was established in 1898.

They filled barrels with cement to hold street signs.

It works...

This is a guy thing.  Eric loved this road (one of the few off the main road) which is made from flat rocks.  

Boys are from Venus and girls from Mars.  

Its official.

The sidewalk next to the road, which has steps in it (hmmm...) was part of a WPA project.  This proves the New Deal was supplying work to unskilled workers.  

They may have even been responsible for the cement barrels.

Check out this tall metal slide at the local park (this so would have been removed by now in California).

Kids aren't allowed to have too much fun in California, its too dangerous. 

This is NOT quality work, WPA workers of America.

Sorry to inform you (and your grandchildren).

Please tell me they didn't build this!  Haha.  

This is a work of art for sure.

Jerome is so interesting!

Back at the campsite... A1 took this picture.  How?  I don't know.  It doesn't make sense.  It contains the roof to our screen room, the roof to the Scamp, the car, and a leg.  It is not possible to fit these things into one frame.  I hope we didn't bring a ghost home with us...

These are happy baby feet, attached to a baby that has seen a lot of new things today.