Arizona is a relatively diverse state and has a lot to offer in terms day trips and excursions. I’ve made it a goal to consistently explore all of the reaches of this the land of the Grand Canyon. We will often consult with local guides and recommendations from websites to ensure that we cover all of our bases.
We had an open Saturday and excitedly decided to follow a recommendation from the city of Mesa website. We embarked on the scenic loop that would take us through the Superstition Mountains to the historic Roosevelt Lake and then through Globe. This route would take us through the legendary saguaro covered foothills that define Arizona and then to the world’s largest Masonry dam and area that Teddy Roosevelt once called among the most beautiful on earth. We were excited and left fairly early.
We were absolutely captivated by the beauty of the Superstition foothills; rolling, red mountains covered with Saguaro, Cholla, and Prickly Pear. This is the vision of Arizona that I had as a kid watching and reading westerns. Things took a slight turn when we ran out of paved road 30 miles into the excursion.
The travel guide that we were following made no mention of dirt roads and weren’t expecting to take the Passat “off roading”. But your options are limited when you are in a remote desert and one direction to go. We pushed forward and covered some very remote and beautiful country. Unfortunately my camera battery died just as we were getting to the real pretty country. For being a published scenic route we encountered very few people. That was actually a good thing as the road was very narrow and we had a few dicey switch backs just south of the dam.
We eventually made it to the fabled dam and found the visitors center so that we could charge the battery. While there we learned about how cool the dam is and how Phoenix wouldn’t exist without it. We also struck up some small talk with the local park ranger. I was getting hungry and wanted to probe for a good local place that was an authentic representation of the community. We left with a charged camera, a renewed hunger, and a hearty recommendation for “Ma’s” just a few miles a way.
Eating at the local “dive” is definitely a high-risk, high reward proposition. If you don’t take the gamble on local spots you might miss out on some great experiences in dining. At the same time you might just get some bad recommendation made by some schmuck whose brother runs the kitchen of the restaurant.
Well our experience was more of the later. Jodi’s grilled cheese was akin to something a mom makes her kid on a rainy day. My chicken fried steak was heavy on the fry but light on the flavor. Not even the tub of gravy that accompanied it could help out. A few things you can always count on in these local diners.
- ¾ of the menu will consist of fried items
- The lettuce will always be iceberg
- There will be a picture of the owner holding a prize fish on the wall.
- Next to the picture will be a plethora of business cards advertising every MLM scheme available.
- You will know the first name of the waitress by the end of the stay
- Regardless of the meal you will always be glad you came. These local diners are truly the barometer of these little towns.
After our lunch we were pretty much tired. The treacherous dirt road dampened our enthusiasm. We skipped the desert museum and an archaeological site so that we could get home for a nap. Arizona is full of nice little day trips and hopefully the coming weeks will be filled with several more.
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