Flagstaff Revisited

When we were in Flagstaff before we went to the Grand Canyon, we did not get to see much of the town and do the main thing we wanted to do, which was go to the historic Lowell Observatory. So, off we went back down to Flagstaff via the South Entrance of the Canyon rather than back out the East gate.  Boy, are we glad we went the other route!  It was a beautiful drive back down to Flagstaff.  Enjoy this short blog update!

This is just one of the awesome views South bound, along Hwy 180 into Flagstaff from the Grand Canyon.  We exited the South Entrance of the canyon onto Hwy 64 then onto 180 and were greeted with an awesome drive.  More reminders of the wonders of God's creations.

Our "home" in Flagstaff.  We camped at a different campground this time around.  We chose this one because of it's proximity to the Lowell Observatory. This campground was very quiet and we practically had the entire place to ourselves.  We took advantage of this and did some serious "road schooling" to catch up from a week of Grand Canyon field tripping!  We had some nice "down time" here.  We chose to give the girls a "break" from each other so, Stacey took Heidi to a movie and Hailey and I hung out at the campground, went hiking and had dinner at the campground Rte 66 four-table diner!  Later in the week,  in the evening, we went into Flagstaff for dinner, met a nice couple from Maine doing what we were doing with their family, and then went to the historic Lowell Observatory.  What a great field trip!  A real treat was we got to go into the old observatory and view both Mars and Saturn through the original 1896; 32 foot high telescope!  Awesome!  We saw the rings of Saturn and four of it's moons.  Before we embarked on our "world-tour" trip, I bought a nice telescope.  However, I could not get it sighted in properly.  So, I brought it along to the Lowell Observatory in the hopes that some one on the staff could help me get it sighted in.  Sure enough! Ian, a student at Northern Arizona University, graciously and patiently helped me sight in my telescope.  On the grounds of the Observatory, I viewed Saturn thru my own telescope.  Just like in the 1896 telescope, I could clearly see the rings of Saturn, only the view finder was significantly smaller! Thanks, Ian and best of luck in your studies and future! Along with getting to see through the 1896 telescope, we got the pleasure of attending a planetarium lecture and going to the observatory inter-active exhibits.  The scale of the solar system, galaxy and the universe are mind-boggling and impossible to grasp.  We found it interesting that among all the hypothesis, theories and "guesses" tossed out in the lectures...not one mentioned the possibility of an intelligent designer.  I was very proud of Heidi for engaging the speaker in the planetarium and offering a Christian perspective and I found it interesting that our 12 year old debated the graduate student into admitting the possibility of a divine creator.  Way to go, Heidi!  I was particularly proud of her because she was highly respectful and honored our speaker, while speaking what we believe to be an incontrovertible Truth...an immense, unknowable universe must have been created by an even more immense, unknowable God!  You can read more about the Lowell Observatory at this link: The Lowell Observatory
Flagstaff was a great place and we had a great time!  Our next stop is the Hoover Dam!  So, we shoved off down the road headed towards Lake Mead and Hoover Dam near Boulder City, Nevada.

It was back out into the desert for Team Breitmann!  Of course, we had to take the "road less traveled" and took historic Rte. 66 from Seligman, AZ to Kingman, AZ.  I thought about my Dad, who in the early 1960's drove the original Rte 66 all the way from California to Ohio in his 1956 Porsche Speedster.  What a trip that must had been!  He always tells me that he kicks himself for not hanging on to that car, as it is worth a small mint nowadays.  However, back then he sold it for a mere pittance.  Ah, such is life. Anyway, we could not resist stopping in Seligman for lunch when we saw this roadside cafe with the dubious name; "The Road Kill Cafe"!  It was a hoot!  Although, Hailey did not appreciate the decor inside...it was adorned with many stuffed "dead animals"!

Here is a page from the menu!  Did I mention that there is a lot of desert in the United States?!  Well, until the next update...see ya in Boulder City, Nevada!