Well, in the past I have usually set out for the Ozarks to again use the boat, but in the last couple of years have gotten away from that simply due to how the holiday fell. This year travel prices helped me come to the decision to make that a more permanent resolution - to stay closer to home for the July 4th week's vacation plans. It has been nice, albeit hot, here but nothing we are not used to by now. I got to see some fireworks on the nights of both Jul 3 and 4, so that really set the holiday weekend off in style.
A nice surprise was that my buddy Brian, another KC transplant to Vegas, called and said he was headed down to one of our regional lakes for a day or two. I took the opportunity to head out to Lake Pleasant and see him for a few hours on Friday. As one of his friends had their pontoon in the water, we went and coved out for some sun, swimming, and a few adult libations. Even the wild burros made an appearance in our cove!
Saturday held a couple of get together with friends: a pool party and then a trip to a nearby wine bar for some evening wine & conversation. On Sunday, Caryl and I took up some friends on an offer to meet them at a local indoor karting track. I figured it to be fun, but it was even better than I had hoped for! We ended up doing 3 separate heats, and in the final one I even got fast lap time! Driving around their short track for ~ 15 minutes increments gave a much greater appreciation for what professional racers go through, as they are strapped in for 2 -4 hours in a Nomex suit. Quite grueling to say the least......
A nice surprise was that my buddy Brian, another KC transplant to Vegas, called and said he was headed down to one of our regional lakes for a day or two. I took the opportunity to head out to Lake Pleasant and see him for a few hours on Friday. As one of his friends had their pontoon in the water, we went and coved out for some sun, swimming, and a few adult libations. Even the wild burros made an appearance in our cove!
Saturday held a couple of get together with friends: a pool party and then a trip to a nearby wine bar for some evening wine & conversation. On Sunday, Caryl and I took up some friends on an offer to meet them at a local indoor karting track. I figured it to be fun, but it was even better than I had hoped for! We ended up doing 3 separate heats, and in the final one I even got fast lap time! Driving around their short track for ~ 15 minutes increments gave a much greater appreciation for what professional racers go through, as they are strapped in for 2 -4 hours in a Nomex suit. Quite grueling to say the least......
The rest of the week was mainly spent up in Arizona's high country (I was at about 5000 ft) relaxing away from the heat of the monsoon season. I stayed at a rustic lodge outside of Payson AZ, called Kohl's Ranch. This is on the banks of Tonto Creek, and the weather was just perfect! Caryl was able to sneak away from work for the first 2 days, and we went to explore Tonto Natural Bridge state park. This is the world's biggest natural travertine bridge, and you can hike and crawl right through it. The remainder of my time was spent hiking a few of Arizona's many beautiful trails. I got in hikes on the Tonto Creek, Box Canyon, and See Canyon springs trails. As there is always a good chance of rain in the afternoon, I did most of these late morning through lunch time. Then it was time to head back to the resort, hit the pool, and relax in the cool mountain air with a bourbon and a cigar. Not a bad way to spend a few days! It finally rained the last evening I was there, and made for an enjoyable finale to my mountain getaway.
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