SkyWatch Friday: Flight

A Southwest Airliner landing at Phoenix's Sky Harbor Airport.

See more SkyWatch Friday photos here.
(Note: According to SkyWatch Friday, it's "National Joe Day," and coincidentally my middle name is "Jo" - spelled a bit differently, but I think it works!)

Verde Canyon Railroad

During our recent trip to Arizona, we finally took the Verde Canyon Railroad trip.  It features a 4-hour trip: 2 hours into the canyon and 2 hours back, with no shortage of beautiful, rugged scenery. The image above shows the front of the train winding along the Verde River Valley.  The photo below shows the train entering a tunnel along the way.

You can learn more about the railway and the area here.

Antique Teenager

This amusing decal was on the back window of the truck parked next to us in the long term parking lot at Milwaukee's Mitchell Field Airport. From the various poker-related paraphernalia on his dashboard, I'm guessing he went to Vegas!

Flag Day

To commemorate Flag Day, I'm posting this image of the oldest (?) operating saloon and restaurant in Arizona, The Palace. There was lots of red, white and blue displayed on the day we walked by. Located on Prescott's "Whiskey Row," the inside has an airy feel with tall, tin-lined ceilings, dark wood, a long, old-fashioned bar, and great local art work. We did not have a chance to eat there... perhaps next time.

Arizona Flowering Shrub

This lovely delicate bloom was one of many on a vine-like flowering shrub outside our Sedona hotel. The red and gold colors really gave them a southwestern flair. I don't know their name, but they seemed to be very common in the landscape.