Today's Highlights:-
20 miles to the west of Winslow is the immense
Meteor Crater. Formed in the desert 50,000 years ago by a 50 metre meteorite,
this a mile wide, 600 foot deep scar, the best preserved impact site on
earth. The immediately adjacent plain has been lifted to almost 200 feet,
and huge boulders are strewn for miles in all directions. An $8 entry fee
gets you access to the visitor centre, which is full of interesting displays
and artifacts from mans stay on earth, and explorations into space. The
site was actually used by NASA during training for the astronauts who were
eventually to walk upon the moon. It was once believed that the site contained
large amounts of minerals and rare metals, and some early attempts were
made at mining. However, as nothing substantial was found, this was abandoned,
and some of the original mining equipment stands in the bottom of the crater
to this day, as does a life size replica of an astronaut. From the viewpoints
on the rim, it is difficult to identify these items.
Visit The Crater
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A few miles north of Flagstaff lies Sunset Crater and Wupatki national park. Sunset Crater is the name of the most prominent volcanic cinder cone within
the park, so named because of its red/orange sulphur content, which contrasts
against the surrounding black ash and lava flows. The Volcano erupted around
1050AD, and is therefore comparatively young. $4 will gain entry to the
park, which includes 30 miles of good quality road, with many lay-by's
(turnouts) from where the area can be explored on foot. It is quite fascinating
to walk through the loose ash, and examine the strange and inspiring flows
of solidified lava.
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Although
Sunset Crater is closed to the public, it is possible to walk to the peak
of several smaller cones. Walking is quite hard going, not only because
of the loose ash, but also the altitude which is around 7000 feet above
sea level.
The initial eruption must have been a tragedy for the
primitive tribes who inhabited the area but the following years brought
lush vegetation to the area, even though the volcano continued to cast
its spell over the area for a further 200 years or so. Today, many trees
and plants grow in the area, some looking somewhat out of place amongst
the lava flows.
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The vegetation which followed the volcano brought many primitive tribes into
the area, and in Wupatki national park, the remains of many hundreds of
settlements have been found and preserved.
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Sunset Crater Official Home Page
Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff.
Lowell Observatory was one of the many surprises of my adventure. I previously
knew of the establishment for its discovery of Pluto, but I had not connected
it with Flagstaff. It was only by chance I turned a corner as I drove through
Flagstaff and saw a sign for the observatory. From the hustle and bustle
of the town, the observatory road wriggles to the summit of Mars Hill.
For an entry fee of $3.50, you get
an hour long guided tour, including the chance to explore the visitor centre.
The tour takes you round many of the observatories telescopes, including
the original one, installed in 1876 by Percival Lowell.
Percival Lowell is known for calculating the orbital position of Pluto, the ninth
planet, and, when the planet was found by one of his assistants, 20 years
later, it was only 6 degrees from where it was predicted. You can view
sample manuscripts of his calculations, which took over 10 years to complete.
Also on display are numerous hand crafted scientific instruments and mechanical
calculators, all manufactured by observatory staff and used on site.
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Lowell Observatory is also where the theory
of red shift (ie doppler shift of the light emitted by distant galaxies)
was first postulated from which the expanding universe and the Big Bang
theories were developed. And again, many of the artifacts of this work
are are public display.
Although modern telescopes project their images onto solid stated Charge-Couple Devices (CCD's) for computerised
analysis, the observatory is open overnights for members of the public to use the optical telescopes for heavenly viewing. Finally, there is an
excellent gift shop, with many fascinating book, etc.
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Visit the Lowell Observatory Website
Finally, it was back onto Interstate 40 following the course of Route 66 for the 25 miles or so to
Williams, Gateway to the Grand Canyon.
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Williams, much like Winslow, is a single
road town, with one main intersection, from which Grand Canyon Boulevard
departs in a northerly direction. The similarities with Winslow do not
end there. Williams is also full of Motels, Hotels, Restaurants, gift and
souveneir shops, making much of the Grand Canyon and its historical Route
66 heritage. However, whereas Winslow has the railroad as a source of
employment, Williams does not seem to have any industry, except for tourism.
My destination for the evening was the El Rancho Motel, hosted ex-pat Brits.
A little bit of Britain in the heart of the wild west.
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Visit Williams Today
