Arizona Ending: Carefree

Our final stay was at The Boulders Resort in Carefree, Arizona. 

 On our last morning we went for a hike around the resort. 

Prickly Pear Cactus

 Then we went to "downtown" Carefree 

where there is a sundial

and this place that serves a delicious brunch.

Keith's meal (in the background) was the inspiration for our Christmas breakfast.

After brunch it was time to head to the airport to come home. We decided that although this long weekend couldn't have come at a more hectic time, it was much needed and we loved getting away and spending time together. 

Arizona: Grand Canyon, Part Two

We woke up on Saturday morning to even more snow and zero visibility, but we decided to head to a popular overlook anyway. We definitely didn't have the views of the canyon that we did on Friday afternoon, but we got up close and personal with an elk. Judging by the number of photos I took, I obviously was really excited about it. 

We left the Grand Canyon late morning to head south. Unfortunately, the weather was terrible and roads were closed so we had to change our route. We made the most of having to go a little out of our way and added this stop to our itinerary:

After lunch in Seligman, we continued to make our way towards Carefree, AZ. We drove through snow, sleet, rain, hail and sunshine. Once again the scenery was amazing, which made the long drive and unpredictable weather bearable. 

We were so happy to reach our resort, The Boulders. A picnic in front of the fire turned out to be the best ending to a long day.

Arizona: Grand Canyon, Part One

Our drive to the Grand Canyon started off like this:

And quickly turned to this:

We made it to our cabin, right on the edge of the Canyon, before sunset. 

The view from our room was AMAZING. See:

Before dinner we took a walk on the rim trail. The scenery really was incredible. Sorry for the picture overload, but I just couldn't get over it!

It was so cold!

So hot chocolate and a fire was an easy decision.

After we got cozy, we went to dinner at the El Tovar Lodge restaurant. Then it was back to the room to watch it snow.