This trip was unscheduled and will eat up vacation time we hadn't expected to use so we will be flying out and renting there -- if I get my butt in gear and make the motorcycle reservation. We are still tentatively scheduled for 7/3 to 7/12.The root reason for going is Helen's niece but we have family and friends in the Phoenix area so we will be visiting with them too. I've rented from AZRide in Scottsdale and their service is great, the condition of the FJRs they rented was not as good as they should have been IMO, though I will say that they were retiring that crop of FJRs and replacing them with new ones for the next riding season.
Jenn is doing miraculously well which isn't to say things are fine, but the recovery exceeds expectations by a lot.
North of Phoenix is good! We enjoy the area around Payson, Pine, and Strawberry. Recommended: start early from Flagstaff and drive south through Sedona, plan to pretty much make a day of it but $taying the night in $edona may be more $$$ than you would like to $pend. If you can work it into your plans, recommended: try to ride Rt 89A out of Jerome and stop in Prescott for lunch. The World Famous Grand Canyon is indeed worth the time and fighting the crowds. The ride to access the Grand Canyon can be HOT, slow, HOT, traffic packed and HOT. It's worth it.
Enjoy your trip, safe riding! You are going to love it all except for the span from Arkansas to Colorado.
