Taking the Scenic Route to the Grand Canyon

by Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger

01 Apr 2008 11:00 PM

My dad was never one for taking the scenic route. (I suppose traveling in a car with four young children and a wife who had the world's smallest bladder had something to do with it.) Needless to say, whenever our family ventured out on a road trip my father chose to get from point A to point B the fastest way he knew how.

For example, if we were flying into Phoenix, Arizona to visit the Grand Canyon (located 4 hours away) my dad would opt to take the straight shot involving three stark freeways, which provided little or nothing to look at. I highly doubt that he would willingly choose to take the alternate scenic route being proposed by Arizona officials that would offer travelers the chance to drive through some of the area's most beautiful towns and cities en route to the popular tourist spot.

City officials in Surprise, Arizona (located about 25 miles west of Phoenix) are trying to devise a plan to lure more tourists to their backyard. Their proposal: design a route to the Grand Canyon that starts in their city and runs northwest through Wickenburg, Prescott, Jerome and Sedona. The proposed scenic route would use existing roads, thereby saving money that could be used for promotion and branding instead.

Officials in other cities are also trying to get in on the action brainstorming possible routes through their areas and listing possible attractions to be highlighted in yet-to-be-created promotional material.

If the idea were to be given final approval (officials vote on the measure later this year) the new trail would be similar to the existing Salsa Trail in southern Arizona. The 240-mile route along the Scenic Old West Highway includes a dozen Mexican restaurants, a tortilla factory, and a chile farm at stops in Safford, Pima, Thatcher, Solomon, Clifton, Duncan, Willcox and York.

Would you use the new scenic route?

Related Articles:

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National Park Tour

Visiting California's Yosemite National Park

State Natural Areas--An Adventure in Nature

Learn more about Michele Cheplic

Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism.

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