Cara and Chad Visit - January 2017

ATV Tour of the Desert: Keith, Shawna, Cara, Chad

We were excited to host Cara and Chad for a weekend.  They arrived at 5:30 pm on Friday from Denver, so Shawna Ubered to Keith's work so we could go straight to the airport to pick them up.  Jodi and Tim wanted to meet early for dinner (we joked that we would get the senior citizen's special) so we drove straight to Citizen Public House for dinner where Tim and Jodi had arrived just a few minutes before us.  Dinner was delicious - we started with burrata for the table and we split the yellowfin crudo and short ribs for our dinner.  Rather than calling it a night totally early, we walked over to the Kazimierz wine bar which is hidden in an alley with no sign really showing the way.  We had a couple of glasses of wine there while Cara had her second dinner of the evening - cheese fondue!  Shawna regretted this stop the next day when we climbed Camelback.

On top of Camelback

It was early to rise on Saturday as we had a packed day in front of us.  The first stop was Camelback.  The parking lot was full when we arrived so we had to drive to Keith's office, drop off the car, and then get an Uber back to the trail head.  It was only in the 40s as we started the hike but we heated up as we hiked and as the sun came out.  We made the round trip in about 2.5 hours.  As is the new tradition, we then went to the Cornish Pasty Shop for lunch for a beer, salad, and pasty.  It was then a 45 minute drive to Desert Wolf Tours for the ATV ride through the desert.  It is a cool way to see the AZ desert driving along hilly, rocky back roads.  Cara, Chad and Keith all took turns at the wheel but Shawna was too chicken to give it a try.  We drove back to the house for a shower before getting an Uber to Barrio Café for dinner.  We had not eaten there before but it was on our list to try.  They don't take reservations so we had about an hour wait or so - we were able to kill the time easily in the bar over margaritas and beer.  For dinner, we started with the Esquites and Queso Fundido, and then shared the Chiles en Nogada.  The food was delicious - definitely worth the wait.

Who are those bandits?

Sunday morning was a tight schedule but it all worked perfectly.  We left the house at 8am so we could meet Jodi at the Toms Thumb trail head at 8:30.  The walk to the top and back was a perfect 2.5 hours with gorgeous views of huge granite boulders along the way.  On the way back to the house, we grabbed lunch to go at Mad Greens, then back to the house to shower and pack.  The Uber picked us all up at 12:45pm since our flights were at the same time as Cara and Chad's.  Even better - Keith was going to Denver and Shawna arranged it so she was on the same Denver flight as she went on to Hartford.

Tom's Thumb Hike: Keith, Shawna, Jodi, Cara, Chad

Peter Visit - January 2017

Keith and Peter - Pinnacle Peak Hike

Keith's high school friend Peter was the first official guest for the '17 tourist season!  Peter was to arrive late on the Friday night, and with the flight 30 mins late Keith did not get him to the house from the airport until almost midnight.  It was immediately to bed since the weekend was fully booked.

ATV Tour

We were to climb Camelback on Saturday morning but the weather was cold with the chance of a bit of rain (which was terrible since Peter had come to the desert from Texas!).  So we changed the hike to Pinnacle Peak, with just Keith and Peter doing this one so that Shawna could catch up on some work.  After that 1.5 hour hike we returned home for lunch - Shawna had a delicious salad at the ready for us.  Then Keith and Peter headed back out to Desert Wolff Tours - ATVs based on the Israeli Defense Force machines.  The fun part was that these are self-drive cars - so though we were on a tour of 8 cars, we had control over our own.  The starting point was 30 minutes from the house and the tour was 3 hours.  It was then back to the house for a shower and a glass of wine/cheese before we ate dinner at Barrio Queen in Old Town.  The restaurant does not take reservations so we had a drink at the bar as we waited the 45 minutes for the table.  The food was delicious - we started with the Queso Fundido and then had the Cochinita Pibil for our entrée - just fantastic.

Dinner at Barrio Queen

Sunday was a better day so we all hiked Camelback - Shawna had wrapped up her work so was able to join.  The parking lot was full and the cop up front was only letting a car in as one left - but we lucked out that just as we arrived a car was leaving.  We made it up and back in 2:20.  It was certainly easier this time at 50 degrees vs our first time at almost 100 degrees with Kerstin the previous September!  The next stop was the Cornish Pasty Company, which we have decided will be our standard place to go after a trip up Camelback.  The beer was extra good after the hike.  Not wanting to go back to the house immediately, we dropped by McFate Brewing for another beer which was a really cool place.  We all showered before Keith and Peter headed back out - first stopping by Octane Raceway for 3 laps before going to the airport.  

Atop Camelback

It was a great weekend - and we used it to lock in Jordan's visit in March.  With her, Jim and Maryanne already visiting, and Bob and Ginny coming in March, Chez Dodds is becoming Chez Phoenix!

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