AZ in November

[STScott]

I am going to be in Tempe AZ on 11/19 to 11/22 to support a buddy who is doing an Ironman Triathlon on the 22nd.

I am thinking of leaving the DFW area on 11/09 and meandering my way out there on the bike and camping as I go...so as I am planning this trip I would appreciate any advice on places to see, roads to take, good camping areas and so on.

Right now I am thinking about spending a few days in the Fort Davis area and then heading to AZ and camping at the South Rim.....but those plans are tentative.

Scott

[WoodButcher]

Plan on the South Rim being cold, but it will be great. Fewer visitors. Sunset Crater NE of Flagstaff is neat also. Indian Ruins around Camp Verde are interesting.

[treybrad]

Definitely plan on it getting cold at elevation in November... If you can work US-191 in Eastern AZ into your route, you'll be glad you did. Wonderful road.

trey

[Texas T]

Definitely plan on it getting cold at elevation in November... If you can work US-191 in Eastern AZ into your route, you'll be glad you did. Wonderful road. Be sure to thoroughly check the weather forecast for the higher elevations if you take this route.

[Wes]

191 or 152 are both highly recommended by people. I have done 152 and I had a blast. Other than that Woodbutcher is very right, pack for cold temps because once the sun goes down it gets pretty darn chilly. (I found this out the hard way :doh:)

[Texas T]

Plan on the South Rim being cold, but it will be great. Temp this morning is 20 and they had snow last week. Avg high in Nov is 52, avg low is 27.

[DFW_Warrior]

Like everyone else said, watch out for snow.

I was up there in 07 during late October and I ended up in a race with Mother Nature to get South. I found out that had I been two days later, I would have had the pleasure of riding through 6-8" of snow in far southern Utah.

Monument Vally is a must do IMO if you are remotely close (within 500'ish miles) to the area. But you have to see it from north to south, not the other way around. Trust me on that one.

[Texas T]

But you have to see it from north to south, not the other way around. Trust me on that one. I've only done it S to N. Why is it better the other way around?

[DFW_Warrior]

I've only done it S to N. Why is it better the other way around?

Well.... long story short..... just trust me.;-)

Edit: Okay, so I'm lousy at keeping a secret.

It's all in how Mother Nature presents it to you. You leave Mexican Hat and know that your are close, but you don't really know just how far. You are in some of the most scenic countryside, and yet you still can't see this massive formation that according to your maps and GPS should be just ahead of you any second now. Then all of a sudden, you rise up out of the valley and Mother Nature pulls the curtains to reveal this......

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/28/54700357_1674831b1a.jpg?v=0

It's all in the presentation and trust me, the views from North to South are awe inspiring.

[ed29]

I would suggest that 191 is also better run north to south. That way the tightest stuff is towards the end, not the beginning. Like a story building to a crescendo.

[DFW_Warrior]

Ditto to that Ed. The vistas that 191 provide while running north to south are awesome. But if you run it in the opposite direction, I'd bet I would have missed most of them.