Featured Touring Three Days Of Moto-therapy: Riding & Respite In Prescott, Arizona

I always find riding motorcycles to be therapeutic. Sometimes in a calm, peaceful way. Sometimes in a speeding-into-the wind kind of way. But always good for the soul. So when Steve suggested we do a three-day two-night moto trip up to Prescott, AZ, he didn't need to twist my arm! The school district where I work was on fall break last week (hallelujah!), so we packed up and headed north for some riding and respite. This was our total loop for our getaway.



All packed up and ready to go. Steve didn't even add a bag to his bike but I chose to add my little Nelson-Rigg bag to my saddlebag space for some "breathing room". (Read "possible shopping adventure")



Day #1: Tucson, Arizona to Prescott, Arizona
Miles for the day: 281



We stopped for gas when we rode through the mining town of Globe but our first "real" stop was for lunch in the town of Payson. We arrived here around 1:00pm for a late-ish lunch.



This place is very typical of small town Arizona bar/restaurant joints. Note the cowboy hats hanging from the ceiling and the bronc and the rider silhouette on the wall.



The ride from Payson to Prescott is beautiful--winding mountain forest roads that regularly open up to beautiful massive views. This is one of our favorite routes. I seem to say that a lot. I guess I have a lot of "favorite" motorcycle routes!

We always stay at the Hassayampa Inn when we stay in Prescott. It's an old, historic hotel (by American standards anyway) with beautiful details and an always wonderful staff.



The lobby



Prescott is built on a town square and our hotel is just one block off the square. There's always lots of fun stuff to do and things to see. And good food to eat!



The county courthouse is smack dab in the middle of the square.



The famous "Whiskey Row" part of the square In the "old days" it was notorious for bar and brothels! Still loads of bars but not so much brothels. At least as far as I know...



Continued in my next post

 

Day #1 continued: Tucson to Prescott

We meandered around the square and some fun side streets to window shop a bit. There's one shop that we love because it has all manner of western wear. Both Steve and I always have fun trying on hats.





Many of the shop windows were filled with Halloween displays.



And some displays were part of the current bar decor!



There are lots of diverse art galleries as well. This giant metal insect caught my eye.



Steve had made reservations for dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in Prescott called Murphy's. We arrived a bit earlier than our reservation but had a mighty hankering for a martini so showed up early and they were happy to seat us.



My seared scallops with crispy spinach and sweet potatoes. You can just see Steve's steak and creamed spinach. Note the nearly already empty martini glass.



My dessert. It was what they called a Brown Sugar Bourbon martini. Those are chocolate swirls. Yum!



With full tummies and happy hearts, we meandered back to the Hassayampa under a full moon. Day #1 was a great start to a few days of respite.



Next up, Day #2: Riding around Prescott

 

Day #2: Riding around Prescott
Miles for the day: 176

Steve and I were both excited for today's ride adventure which would take us on roads we'd never ridden before as well as to the little town of Bagdad where we'd never been before. We'd always wanted to check it out, mostly because we had this picture in our heads from the movie, "Bagdad Cafe". Spoiler alert. The Arizona Bagdad has nothing to do with the Bagdad Cafe Bagdad.

We figured out our route would be over 150 miles so decided to fuel up at a place we noticed yesterday called the Lone Spur Cafe. Good choice. And, like so many places in Prescott, very Western! The name was a giveaway, too.





But it wasn't so Western that they didn't offer avocado toast! Here's mine. I love avocado toast and this was one of the best versions I've tasted yet. This pic's for you, @Mrs Visor!



Before heading back to our hotel to change into our riding gear, we strolled around the town on a nice street off the square called Cortez Street. Both Steve and I noticed that since our last stay in Prescott, a lot of new, cool businesses have sprung up. It's definitely a town we'd live in--but the housing prices have "sprung up" too. And as much as we scheme about moving someplace, we both love Tucson too much (and our Tucson friends) to really truly think about moving.







Now for some riding! In perfect weather, no less.

Our route for the day. We wound up with 176 miles on our odometers.




The last part of the ride from Wilhoit back into Prescott was particularly spectacular. Many, many, many twisties and hairpin turns with 15-20mph posted speed limits. We felt a few sprinkles just before this section but thankfully it stayed dry for us.



Our one stop for the day was Bagdad, Arizona. We rode through a lot of completely desolate (though beautiful) uninhabited land on our way there. There weren't even very many other vehicles on the roads. But when we arrived in Bagdad, it seems that a lot of other riders had the same idea. Overall I think we counted at least a dozen bikes there while we hung out with a soda.



This Bagdad sign is on an old mining truck bed. Turns out Bagdad is a "company town" for Freeport McMorRan Mining. The gal that owns the Diner told us that Freeport-McMoRan owns nearly all of the housing and commercial buildings in Bagdad. Even if business owners own their buildings, the company owns the land. And nearly all the townspeople work for the mine. We also learned that Freeport was the first to start using autonomous trucks. I recall her saying they now have 33 of them. The two materials they mine around Bagdad are copper and molybdenum.



Continued in my next post...

 

Day #2: Riding around Prescott continued

The Diner on Main Street in Bagdad. There were far more motorcycles parked in that parking lot than appear in this photo. Those are Steve's and my bikes parked "RIF" as Steve likes to say--Right in Front!



There was a nice covered patio on one end of the diner, just the place to sip our sodas and take in the town.



I got a bit curious about the Freeport mining company after our conversation with the diner owner. Here's the gist of what I found.

Thanks, Mr. Google AI
Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) operates numerous mines for copper, gold, and molybdenum across North America, South America, and Indonesia. Key North American operations include open-pit copper mines like Morenci, Bagdad, and Safford in Arizona, and Chino and Tyrone in New Mexico, plus two molybdenum mines in Colorado: Henderson and Climax. In South America, it runs copper mines Cerro Verde in Peru and El Abra in Chile. The company also manages the Grasberg mining district in Indonesia, one of the world's largest copper and gold deposits.

I also learned this from Mr. Wiki
Freeport-McMoRan Inc., often called Freeport, is an American mining company based in the Freeport-McMoRan Center, in Phoenix, Arizona. The company is the world's largest producer of molybdenum, a major copper producer and operates the world's largest gold mine, the Grasberg mine in Papua, Indonesia. During 2018 Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold along with 90 additional Fortune 500 companies "paid an effective federal tax rate of 0% or less" as a result of Donald Trump´s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. (The frowny face was my addition.)

After our delightful big Prescott loop ride we decided to check out a cool toy store we'd seen the day before. Through the window it had looked tiny. But it was H-U-G-E and absolutely amazing. One could spend all day checking out the unbelievable assortment of toys both old and new. I just looked at all the pics I took and I can't resist posting a bunch for you all!















Finally, this little window display in the toy store is one of the things that caught our eye the day before. Gotta love stuffed animals playing poker!



Continued in my next post (more Prescott, not more toys...)

 

Day #2 in Prescott continued

The other cool place we'd noticed on Cortez Street the previous day was a book store. I'm a sucker for book stores as I love books and love to read. I was actually the general manager for a coffee house/bookstore long ago in San Diego, California for several years.

When we entered the book store which, like the toy store, looked tiny from the street was, also like then book store, huge when you walked in! What we figured out is that the older buildings in Prescott all seem to be narrow and long making them much larger than originally meets the eye. That window at the very far end of this photo looks out on Cortez Street.



After checking out the toy and book stores, we retired to our hotel room for a little nap. When we woke up we did a bit of research on a restaurant we'd not seen before in Prescott called The Raven Cafe. We decided to give it a try and off we went. It was a great choice!

From their website



This was the downstairs seating area. They also have rooftop seating and it was a gorgeous evening so we opted for that.





In the very background with the sunset behind it you can see Granite Mountain, the highest spot around. We'd ridden along the southern side of it earlier in the day without realizing it until we did a bit of research. Here's another closer view from The Raven Cafe's rooftop patio. I love the sunsets in Arizona.



Wikipedia
Granite Mountain (Yavapai: ʼWi:kvte:wa) is a 7,628-foot (2,325 m) mountain located in Yavapai County, Arizona that covers roughly 12 square miles (31 km2). It was once known as Mount Gurley, for the first governor of the Arizona Territory, John A. Gurley. Its southwest face has a sheer granite cliff approximately 500 feet (150 m) high that is one of the best locations for rock climbing in the state of Arizona. It is located in the Granite Mountain Wilderness, which is managed as a part of the Prescott National Forest. The mountain stands at the northern end of the Sierra Prietas, and borders Skull Valley on the west, on the northwest by the Santa Maria Mountains, and east by the Williamson Valley.

Two things of note: The Hassayampa is on Gurley Street. And most of the day's riding was through Prescott National Forest.

Happy Steve



Happy Sandi Brisket on a polenta cake with roasted seasonal local vegetables accompanied by a Stone "Delicious" (aptly named) IPA draft beer.




Seen on our stroll back to our hotel--well, our stroll to The Glass Bar, the Hassayampa's cocktail bar, for "dessert".



A close up of the car's antennae. Very creative!



Continued in my next post

 

Day #2 continued

There was live music at The Glass Bar this evening, a gentleman playing great songs most of which were actually from our generation.



Steve and I ordered "matching" Manhattans.



The bar at The Glass Bar. It's a very small, intimate space. A fave over the years of both Steve and me.



Talking guitars



And the hotel stairs from the bar and restaurant up to the lobby and on up to our room on the third floor. Sweet dreams. I'll be back for Day #3 and our return home.

 

@Mrs Visor, not much shopping was conducted other than getting a great tee-shirt for our dog sitter, Marilyn. On the front of the shirt was an old fashioned photo of about 10 women lined up in the Old West and underneath was the saying "Well-behaved women rarely make history".

 

We'd love to adopt you, @learningtofly! Or at least make you an honorary member of our MC "club". Our home (and garage!) is always open to you, my friend. Just bring wristwatches.

 

Day #3: Prescott to Tucson and home
Miles on the day: 229

We decided to ride back via the quickest route today for a couple of reasons. One, the weather wasn't looking great. Evidently a tropical storm was brewing and rain was predicted to be on the way. Second (and more importantly), Steve suggested we ride through the Phoenix area so we could stop in at Harley-Davidson of Scottsdale. I'll go to that dealership any day, any time.

But one needs sustenance to ride, so first--breakfast! This morning we opted to eat at the Hassayampa Inn's restaurant which is called The Peacock Room. It's pretty snazzy for dinner but way more casual for breakfast. That's Steve over by the window in his usual white tee-shirt.



And with his Eggs Benedict breakfast and mug o' coffee.



Packing up in the hotel parking lot with the hotel in the background. I thought it was going to be cold but just packing the bike heated me up enough to take off the hoodie I had on under my leather jacket.



A fair amount of the ride to Phoenix from Prescott is on Interstate 17. I've mentioned on this forum multiple times that we always try to avoid freeways in lieu of backroads. But I-17 is actually quite beautiful with some big sweeping vistas as well as curves on the part we rode today. We stayed dry all the way to Scottsdale Harley...but that wouldn't last.



Scottsdale Harley is (physically) the biggest Harley-Davidson dealership in the world at 150,000 square feet. It has a tattoo studio, barber shop, stage area for music and grills for outdoor parties, and a movie theatre below ground. It's owned by Bob Parsons as part of the larger GoAZ Motorcycle group. Parsons founded GoDaddy, and is known for his philanthropy and donations to charitable causes.

Uh oh, photo load glitch. I'm going to post what I have so far and be back in a bit......

 

Ok, let's try this again.

This is the "front" of Scottsdale but everything that's happenin' is happening in the back where the grills and parking and stage are. They park the pre-owned (formerly known as "used") bikes out here.



This was a cool display. Anyone remember Mert Lawwill from On Any Sunday? Mert, Malcolm Smith, and Steve McQueen. I suspect most on this forum have seen it. But it not, it's a must see!

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067527/



There were several of Harley's LiveWire electric bikes sprinkled throughout the dealership. I liked this one the best. That said, it's NOT for me. Though some of you may remember the thread I posted about getting to test ride the LiveWire a few years back at Superstition H-D in Phoenix with my riding buddy, Russell. W-a-y fun! But still not for me. Unless I win the lottery maybe.



A lineup of H-D Pan American adventure bikes.



Each of these touring bikes is painted and modified to represent a branch of the U.S. Military. I like the old photo on the wall in the background--the original Moto Co "gang".



And for those wanting four wheels instead of two or three......



My 20-something Harley-riding nephews from Minnesota would love this Audio Room! They spent the bulk of their hard-earned money on big loud audio systems for their Harleys. Their auntie likes to spend hers on engine upgrades and listen to music in her helmet compliments of Sena and Apple.



While we were hanging out in the Harley dealership it began sprinkling. Well, it actually started to sprinkle when we pulled up but we parked and hoped for the best. That hope didn't work as it continued to sprinkle and that turned into a steady drizzle that lasted for about the next 70-80 miles most of which was through the Phoenix metro area. But it didn't rain hard enough that we pulled over to don rain gear. Plus it was still fairly hot and we'd have been roasting in our rain togs. The rain pretty much served to muck up our bikes which we washed shortly after we got home. I don't usually do that but I knew I'd lose steam if I put it off. And no leaks to the Sena comm units, @Eldon.

As we were nearing Tucson, my loving hubby suggested through our Senas that I choose one of three Mexican restaurants he suggested to go to lunch. And to, as he put it, extend my vacation. I love that man! He knows how much my new job has been stressing me out and how this vacation had served to take my mind off my work worries. So one more great vaca meal! This one was only five miles from our house at a great little place called Victoria's.

Here's Steve with a very unique dish. It's a pickled egg dish called Huevos Gallaneos that was created by the restaurant owner and chef in honor a pickled egg dish in the movie, The Gentleman. The owner said that a few people had been brave enough to try it and that was enough for Steve to say, "I'll be brave and try it!" Lots of roasted red chiles and garlic and vinegar. And, yes, that brown thing that looks suspiciously like a potato is actually a pickled hard boiled egg. And yes, I was brave enough to try it, too. Actually, it was pretty good. That said, I liked my delicious Enchiladas Salsa Verde (chicken) and black beans much better.





And speaking of delicious, this little three-day two-nighter trip was delicious as was each of the 686 miles we traveled together. It was definitely a moto-therapy getaway that provided not only terrific riding but also a much needed respite from the work day world.

 

It's definitely time to be looking at my options, Tony. And I'm doing just that. Steve and I have had and continue to have lots of conversations, too. At this point I'm very hopeful that I'll be able to manage to retire after this school year. Perhaps we can PM to chat a bit. I always appreciate additional perspectives, experiences, and advice. Thanks.