Labor Day Getaway – Prescott

For Labor Day weekend we decided to take a trip to the Southwest. Prescott was the perfect destination.  This is one of Jimmy’s top destinations to eventually settle one day (if that ever happens). It is a great little city for a couple of reasons. It’s beautiful with the forests, full of lush greenery and beautiful rock formations. It’s rich in history when it comes to the Gold Rush era. The housing is not too expensive and the community has a wholesomeness to it. There are plenty of outdoorsy things to do that are only a short distance from downtown.

Camping Spot In Prescott

Our first night we scouted out a spot on a dispersed camping area off the Enchanted Forest road. How charming, the name is so fitting. There are nine spots and we were fortunate to claim one for ourselves. We were a little worried with the holiday weekend that the spots would be taken. We think it helped that we arrived early on Friday rather than in the evening, as we did have several people drive past looking for a spot themselves. The road was a little rough getting in but we saw some people without four wheel drive make it through.

The following morning we decided we would take a hike to Lynx Lake.  We got geared up for the hike and found that a trail was just a few steps from the camping spot we found. During the walk we found all kinds critters and wild life and of course we had to get a look up close. The skies threatened a good rain, but all we got was a little drizzle.

Suzie Taunting Tarantula

The hike was a seven mile loop from our campsite to the lake and back. The trail we took most of the way was 314. Which took us through another campsite at one point and we crossed a few small roads. It was a scenic trail walking through the forest and then walking along the Lynx Lake edge.

That night after such a perfect day we wanted to cap it off by making an awesome dinner. We made steaks, with sautéed mushrooms and onions and white corn on the cob. We decided to use 2 bacon strips for the oil to use to grease the pan for the sautéing. It was a reward after a good hike.

The second morning we got breakfast at an awesome little place called Raven Cafe. A friend (Kevin Coleman) has recommended the spot and it also had good ratings on Yelp. The atmosphere felt like a coffee house and the food was delicious. The $5 breakfast was 2 eggs, 2 bacon slices, toast, and chopped up sweet potato. There is a little bar area where you serve up your own coffee with an assortment of condiments to make your coffee how you like it. We also had to try some of the sweets in the area so we stopped at Treat Center. They make their own ice-cream and pop-corn that has out of this world with flavors like Peanut Butter Chocolate Caramel Popcorn and Mint and Chip ice-cream. We also wanted to mention that when we first got into town we we starving and had a craving for Indian food, so we yelped the nearest restaurant and we found this place had surprisingly really good ratings, Taj Mahal Restaurant. We arrived rather late for lunch and thus the buffet was kind of picked through, but it has great flavor and was reasonably priced.

There happened to be a street fair that went around the court house that sold all kinds of food and other things while we were there. It was fun to walk around and look at everything. We also went for a little drive along Walker Road which is the first road in Prescott. We found the Walker Charcoal Kiln and lots of beautiful custom homes along this road as well as more free dispersed camping. We also made a stop at Watson Lake. It was rather hot and we would have loved to jump in but we found that there was no swimming allowed and for good reason. The water was green and gross looking with algae, but the rounded rocks along the edge of the lake were like a piece of art. There was camping near the lake and we found a fellow FourWheel camper. We had fun “talking shop” about all of the modifications we want to make to the camper and some things that we had already done. Mike’s set up was pretty impressive and we learned a few things. We made fast friends and hope to meet up with our new friends at the FourWheel Camping trip in mid October 2015 in Julian, CA, near San Diego.

WASTON LAKE

Panorama of Watson Lake

The last night we stayed in town so that we could enjoy a dinner at the Palace, which is one of the oldest places in downtown Prescott. There was a notorious fire in the in July of 1900 that burnt several buildings down including the Palace that first opened their doors in 1877. It was rebuilt shortly after the fire and it is still there today. There is a lot of history in Prescott and as we walked down Whiskey Row that night we tried to imagine this bustling city in its early days with piano keys being played and the clanking of beer mugs.

Courthouse in Prescott

Cicada in Prescott

Our last morning in Prescott I finally got my hands on one of the bugs that I had been hearing the whole time we were there, cicadas.  Naturally, I had to get a good look and pick it up. They are rather large and colorful. This guy was still alive when I found him on the ground at the gas station.

After fueling up for our drive we decided to get breakfast at Cracker Barrel. I had never been to a Cracker Barrel but I had heard that their blueberry pancakes are amazing. I can confirm now that they are. I wouldn’t think that I would love blueberry pancakes, because I typically like banana pancakes with macadamia nuts and peanut butter, but these almost top that. They are perfectly sweet and there is a little toasty crunch to them. AMAZING. Which brings us to the end of this adventure but the start of another. Throughout the trip and several weeks prior we had seen Jeeps being trailered behind campers and I’ve been wanting a new car.  Seeing this Jeep outside of Cracker Barrel was the last straw.  I want one!

Blueberry Pancakes

Cracker Barrel and Jeep