Something with a Ball

This post is for Donna. She requested something with a ball.

This was Daughter's 7th visit to AZ during our winter stays of eight seasons (winters to you, another summer to us). It was her first ASU football game. She has been to basketball and baseball games on the ASU campus and an Insight Bowl game. She especially timed this October visit to coincide with the Oregon Ducks playing the Sun Devils. I was invited to go along to the game. Now, those of you who know me well, know I don't care one way or the other if I go to a game. If it is a social event (more than 2 people) and involves eating out (which it did-more on that in another post) I am willing to go along. On Tuesday of game day week there was an article in the AZ Republic "Marshall brothers to battle it out when ASU hosts Oregon". That caught my eye. I hardly ever read or look at the sports section, but the article had a leader on the front page. After reading the article and sharing it with hubby & daughter I was rather excited about my football game invitation.

Camreron Marshall is a senior running back. He has rushed for 262 yards and 5 touchdowns prior to the Thursday evening game. (He needs just 10 more touchdowns this season to break ASU's school record of 43.)

Bryon Marshall is a true freshman running back. He has rushed for 285 yards and has 3 touchdowns on his record at Oregon. (He ran a 125 yd. touchdown against Tennessee Tech.) [Yes. 125 yds. according to the newspaper. Hubby reminded me a football field is 100 yds. long. With the end zone 110. I don't know how the touchdown was 125 yds. I just took the info from the AZ Republic. Blame them!]

This would be the first time the brothers played against each other. Hubby said Bryon would not be playing much unless the Ducks were well in the lead. WRONG! Both boys were on the field early & often.

The Marshalls are from San Jose CA. The newspaper article said the parents split football game visits. Father follows Bryon one week while mother follows Cameron. The next week, they switch. They were excited to be at the same game to watch both sons.

This was the score one minute and twelve seconds into the game. ASU scored first on a recovered fumble second play of the game, but would not see another touchdown until the fourth quarter. First quarter score: ASU 7, Ducks 22. Halftime score: ASU 7, Ducks 43. We left before the end of the third quarter. Final score: ASU 14, Ducks 43. The Ducks had 6 consecutive touchdowns in 17 minutes of play. Bryon Marshall had 44 yards rushing (freshman, Duck); Cameron Marshall had 30 yards rushing (senior, Sun Devil). I wonder what the family conversation was after the game?

Other highlights of the evening were...

Blackout at Sun Devil Stadium

71,000 + fans, I don't think so, but a good crowd

 Another fan sporting the 'correct' black

Pyrotechnic Hill, one of two on each side of the stadium

Good thing I had my camera on for that first surprise 

ASU touchdown 

I got some of the not too frequent fireworks

The clouds provided a pink and coral sunset

Prior game time activities will be in another post sometime in the future,

probably during one of the more boring weeks with few interesting happenings.

Williams AZ, Historic Stop #4

In 1987 our family of four made a 21 day trip from SD through WY, UT, NV, CA, AZ, NM, CO, NE and back home in an Econo van pulling a pop-up/out camper. Daughter was fourteen and son was six. By the time we got to the Grand Canyon we were tired of crowds and lines of people and tired of traveling and togetherness. We spent two nights at the KOA campground in Williams on that trip.

Our stay in Williams, Historic Stop #4, was in the comfort of a hotel and a much different experience.

I 40 on the outskirts of Williams had opened in 1984. I don't think we ventured into the little community south of the campground and interstate. Today about 3,000 people call Williams home. It is also home to Amtrak, the Grand Canyon Railway, Route 66 and is the Gateway to the Grand Canyon. It is a town dependent on tourism. The shops stay open after 6 o'clock. Locals have their hangouts and 'put up' with the tourists invading their spaces.

We went online to find a local establishment with good food and adult beverages. Our search found

which had seating for 15. We made reservations. The size of the place is about the size of our winter casa (400 sq. ft.). However, it is connected to a larger adult beverage building which is happy to accommodate the overflow. The Singing Pig has been open about a year and does have very good BBQ.

I wanted to share their menu. Please read the appetizer and dessert choices.

We did not order any pig balls, burn your ass sauce, or deep fried dessert. We did enjoy the real smoked combo and the ambience of the 100 year old Sultana Saloon. Oh, and we helped the economy of Williams when we stopped at the Addicted to Route 66 store.

If you go to Williams, both places are worth visiting.

Sunset Crater Volcano National Park

Historic Stop #3 on Friday's marathon driving see-all-you-can-see adventure was at the Sunset Crater Volcano National Park, nine miles north of Flagstaff.

 Sunset Crater erupted sometime between 1040 and 1100 and is the most recent volcanic activity in the Flagstaff area. The eruption shaped more than 600 hills and mountains in the San Francisco volcanic field.

View of the San Francisco Peaks to the west of the volcanic preserve

The one peak has some snow on its north sunless side

These mountain peaks are also volcanos

This area has seen volcanic activity for six-million years

One of the 600 volcanic hills in the park preserve

The 1000 foot crater can no longer be climbed. The traffic of humans was affecting the plant and animal life that has been returning to the area. With the founding of Flagstaff (1876) settlers and visitors explored the lava flows taking rocks for souveniers. Filmmakers (in 1928) wanting to create a landslide in the area helped forced its protection. It became a national park in 1930, closing the volcano to thousands of climbers. The cone is slowly recovering. Plant and animal life are slowly returning.

 One of many lava beds

 Interesting lines on the lava flow

The leaves of the Aspen tree add color to the rather drab landscape

Interesting vertical & horizontal lines

 The walking path meandered at the base of the volcano and

along some of the volcanic hills

 A crevice created by the lava 

 Ponderosa Pine 

Some of the color variations 

Some of the cinders, large and small

The eruption may have lasted from 6 months to a year

Falling ash covered 800 sq. miles in northern AZ

Thousands of native farmers (Wupatki) were forced from the area

 A red volcanic hill

Other than iron deposits, I don't know why it is

red and all the others black

Scarlet gilia or skyrocket growing in a lava bed

Other nearby volcanoes, which are not in the park are mined 

for pumice and cinders or used for off-road recreation. 

And still others closer to Flagstaff are destroyed as developers make way for homes.

Thank goodness for the foresight of some to create a national park system

to preserve the work of nature before it was/is destroyed by man.

I would like to go back to this area because there were two national sites 

we did not visit on that Friday. Walnut Canyon and Wupatki are two 

Native American preserved areas that would be worth visiting in

the Flagstaff area. Next time.

Onto historic stop #4...

Meteor Crater

Meteor Crater is considered a National Landmark, under the protection of the Dept. of the Interior. It is 'owned' and governed by a private group of people including area land owners and the family of the man responsible for researching the area, Daniel Barringer. Mr. Barringer was not the first person to investigate or mine the area.

50,000 years ago a meteor fell to the earth creating 

this hole between Winslow and Flagstaff AZ.

Scientists have estimated the meteor traveled at a speed 

of 26,000 mph as it came crashing to the earth.

The crash created a hole over 4,000' in diameter, 550 feet deep, 

and 2.4 miles in circumference. Twenty football games could 

be played on the crater floor, simultaneously, while more than 

two million observers lined the slopes...THAT IS BIG!

NASA has used the crater for training Apollo astronauts because it is

 the closest thing on earth to resemble the surface of the moon. 

It is still used by NASA today as a training and research facility.

The center of the crater is filled with 700–800 ft of rubble 

lying above crater bedrock. One of the interesting features 

of the crater is its squared-off outline, believed to be caused by 

pre-existing regionaljointing (cracks) in the strata at the impact site.  

(Wikipedia)

The eastern slope

The western wall

The large boulder on the left is said to be as large as a house.

Some close-ups of the nearby rock

 Interesting patterns in the rock

Correctly identified: sandstone

Daniel Barringer, a mining engineer from Philadelphia,

 believed a large meteor was buried beneath the crater floor. 

He came to this area initially to mine for iron and was the first to label

the hole as a meteor impact sight, not a volcano as was first believed.

Many shafts have been drilled below the surface. There is no meteor buried.

There have been and still are minute pieces of meteor in the crater and the area.

View of the landscape to the north of the crater.

The winding, curvy line in the center was the paved road

(6 miles) we traveled from Interstate. 

This is a research and training site as much as a tourist attraction.

The view to the east

Maybe one of the rancher land owners????

Flat, flat area because it is a mesa.

Cows to the northeast

Barren, barren land

It was interesting to learn that MOST meteor impact sights on

earth have been leveled by erosion. Thus the importance of the

Barringer Crater or Canyon Diablo Crater.

A viewing window in the north wall

Not sure of the mountain range

This little machine was in the parking lot when we were ready to leave.

Too unique not to take a photo!

Then it was onto stop #3 of the day...Sunset Crater National Park.

Take It Easy by the Eagles

Standing on the Corner in Winslow Arizona...

We began our little road trip from Gold Canyon to the Grand Canyon by way of four historic stops. The first was Winslow AZ. Hubby and I have been to the community twice before, but did not take the time to stop or look at the historic district of the little town. We did just that on Friday. It was our first stop after climbing (driving) up the mountains and driving along the mesa(s) of northern AZ. We had an elevation gain of almost 6000' Friday morning. Lot of ear popping going on in the van!

Winslow was made famous because of Take it Easy recorded by the Eagles, a 1972 hit song AND because Winslow was a town along historic Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica. The town has taken advantage of these two historic events to boost its notoriety. It was a fun stop as it had something for each of us.

The quaint street lights and flags caught our eye.

 #1 daughter and I had our cameras ready. 

A Catholic Church is one of the few active buildings along main street.

 One of the stained glass windows in the church

Another of the windows

The colored brick design of this bank building is one of the 

businesses that has succumbed to modernization. 

The well-kept building is on the corner across from

the Standing on the Corner display.

Even the park benches taut the Mother Road.

We found some interesting things in this corner souvenir shop.

 This is the photo op corner in Winslow.

Notice the pick-up truck in the window? 1972?

The life-like painted windows caught my eye. 

 I wonder why there is an eagle? DUH!!!

 Until I walked down the street on the other side to photograph

the bank and theater, I did not realize the corner display was

basically a 'fake' wall of a building. It probably was a building

at one time but now it is a wall between a park and the street.

Pretty cool.

Somebody worked hard to preserve the history of their community.

 The theater like other downtown businesses in many 

US small towns is only history.

A mural of a bustling community of days gone by.

After lunch in a locally owned Mexican restaraunt

we headed west along Interstate 40 to our next stop,

The Meteor Crater.