Southwest travel advice

Good day fellow RVators,
A friend and I are planning a flying trip to some of the southwestern states in mid-September. We are planning to visit Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. Does anyone have any suggestions of sights to see, airports and FBO's, restaurants, and places to stay. On our docket so far is the Grand Canyon, the aircraft bone yard, Lake Powel & Mead, and Monument Valley. Just looking for someone to point us in the right direction. Thanks.
John Van Lieshout
Toronto, Ontario

rv6ehguy said:

Good day fellow RVators,
A friend and I are planning a flying trip to some of the southwestern states in mid-September. We are planning to visit Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. Does anyone have any suggestions of sights to see, airports and FBO's, restaurants, and places to stay. On our docket so far is the Grand Canyon, the aircraft bone yard, Lake Powel & Mead, and Monument Valley. Just looking for someone to point us in the right direction.

Click to expand...

Hi John,

Hi John,

You almost can't go wrong in the southwest! The most important thing is an open attitude. I've known a lot of guys that fly thru and think it is the most barren/boring thing they have ever seen - they are expecting trees and greenery, there is very little of that (as compared to the east). A little history about the area often goes a long ways to make it more interesting. Altitude is another enemy - seeing the sights from 12,500' is downright boring (in my opinion). If it is still warm, plan your flying early and be done by noon-ish. In the summer/hot months, it is generally very rough in the afternoon.

Sedona, AZ (SEZ) - Beautiful. Good restaurant as well.

Canyonlands, UT south of CNY and Moab. A spectacular flight is down the Colorado River for 30 miles or so starting at Caveman Ranch. To find Caveman, follow the river south out of Moab about 5 miles. If your into backcountry strips, swing by Caveman Ranch and Mineral Canyon while in this area (about 18 nm southwest of CNY along the Green River).

Bryce Canyon, UT (BCE). The national park just south of town is very pretty.

The Las Vegas, NV (LAS) area is very rugged but very pretty. Following the river south to Lake Havasu City (HII) is also very neat.

East of Phoenix, AZ (PHX - northeast of Tucson) is all very pretty. There is a range that kind of extends from Flagstaff, AZ to Silver City, NM (SVC) which is all very pretty (including the Gila Wilderness Area north of SVC).
I have a couple blog posts with a few driving photos of this area here and here (click on them for a bigger version). It's really hard to go wrong in western New Mexico and nearly all of AZ. Northern AZ is a little bland and then this huge, 1 mile deep trench (Grand Canyon) opens up. Of course, with all the restrictions in place, it is a little difficult to get a good view of it from the air.

If you are interested in some old Indian ruins, let me know and I'll get you some coordinates (in New Mexico). Pueblo Bonito in the Chaco Canyon National Park is an example (52 nm 039 degrees from Gallup, NM (GUP)).

Hth!

A few places in AZ

John,
I also give a big thumbs up for a SEDONA visit. Stay up top at the Sky Ranch hotel. It?s w/in walking distance of where you will park your plane.
If you go over to Vegas you might want to consider Boulder city. (KBVU) you can get a hanger there for less than you will pay for an overnight outside at North Vegas. I did so just last month. Enterprise rental cars also available. FBO is BFE. Keeps you outside of the ?B? airspace talk requirements. Watch out for the helicopter ops. They are everywhere. Most around the Hover Dam.
In Phoenix I know that at least three of the airfields (Class D) have chow on the field.
If you make it down to Old El Paso ?I recommend T27 for your over night ? cheapER gas. There is no more? cheap? gas around these parts Amigo.
BTW ? at or below 9K I have been able to SKYPE on my I-phone throughout most of Southern / Central and Northern AZ.
Cheers
SHEP

If you go thru the texas panhandle...

don't miss bailey's flying service at Dalhart, Texas. unless the good publicity has them all filled up, they'll put you in a hangar for free, sell you self-service avgas for a very reasonable price, loan you the newest crew car you've ever seen and might even give you a free HAT to fend off the fierce texas sun. they are on the NW side of the field, call them first to verify all is as it was in June. (PS they presumably do this because there is virtually NOTHING else in Dalhart to draw a visitor!)

we were in Granby, CO in june and if you want to cross some high ground and visit and hike Rocky Mountain National Park near there you won't regret it. also, the scenery near the four corners area, the NE quadrant of where you seem to plan to go, say cortez/durango/shiprock/mesa verde areas, is spectacular.

KTCC Fuel Stop

My brother and I flew the -10 to Scottsdale to see some spring training baseball back in April. We stopped for fuel in Tucumcari, NM and I would recommend it as a fuel stop or even an overnight if that fits your schedule. The fuel was priced low when we were there but it looks like it is expensive right now. The attendant will fuel your airplane at the self-serve price. The crew car to go in to town for lunch is an old city police cruiser. The main drag is old Route 66. We had been told to check out the Blue Swallow Motel and I would definitely spend the night there. http://blueswallowmotel.com/
Old Route 66 motel that has been completely updated and everything is very nice. Nice couple running the place. Each room comes with a garage. Very cool!

Bullhead City, AZ/Laughlin, NV(KIFP) is a great place to fly in for breakfast.

You land in AZ, take the river ferry across the Colorado River to Laughlin. It's just south of the Hoover Dam. Take in the breakfast buffet or a little gaming. If it's really hot, you can take a dip in the river. If I remember correctly, I had to taxi downhill to the ramp, which made it very interesting