Driving Across the United States: Day One London Bridge Arizona
This is part of our series of driving across the United States. For our 2019 trip our first day started in San Diego and ended in Williams, Arizona. Along the way we stopped at Joshua Tree and London Bridge in Arizona.
For our first day we decided to take some back roads through California. We left San Diego and headed north on Interstate 15 to route 60 and Interstate 10. Interstate 10 will take you all the way to Jacksonville, Florida. However, we only stayed on it for about 30 miles.
When we got to the Coachella Valley near Palm Springs we got off on Route 62. This road takes you from the Low Desert area around Palm Springs up into the High Desert. Joshua Tree National Park straddles the High and Low Desert.
We stopped for lunch right outside Joshua Tree National Park at one of our favorite hole-in-the-wall places, JT’s Country Kitchen.
We had eaten at JT’s in 2017 and noted pictures of the late Anthony Bourdain and Queens of the Stone Age lead Josh Homme. JT’s was featured on his show and we found out we sat in exactly the same seat that they had.
After a big lunch at JT’s we hit the visitor center and drove into Joshua Tree National Park. We decided to do a short hike around Cap Rock. Cap Rock is noted as the place where rock legend Gram Parson’s body was burned after his overdose at a motel by the park entrance (across the street from our lunch spot at JT’s).
The Cap Rock Trail is a short one-mile walk around the large rock formations. Sometimes there are memorials setup to Gram Parsons. However, I think the ranger service takes them down right away. We have never found any memorial.
One spooky thing was a Gram Parsons song came on the radio as we were leaving the area. After our short walk at Cap Rock, we drove towards the northeastern exit of Joshua Tree, making a quick stop at Skull Rock.
Continuing along the 62, we headed across the California Desert until we hit the Colorado River at route 95. This is the start of Arizona as the 95 follows the Colorado River north on the Arizona side of the river.
By late afternoon we hit Lake Havasu City. This is a popular recreation area and retirement community. It is also home to a great desert attraction, the London Bridge.
The London Bridge was brought over from London in the late 1960s. Overlooking the bridge is the London Bridge Resort. There are a bunch of British themed restaurants and gift shops lining the walkway by the bridge.
Lake Havasu was more impressive than I thought it would be. This is a place on our list to come back to when we have more time.
From Lake Havasu we headed north on route 95 to Interstate 40. The 40 is the major cross-country route we are taking this trip.
For the end of our first day we stopped in Williams, Arizona, near the middle of the state. Williams is a nice little tourist town best known as the gateway to the Grand Canyon, tomorrow’s stop.
This was a budget trip, so we stayed at the Rodeway Inn which we got for $57 (see our guide to finding low cost hotels). Nothing fancy by any means but it did the trick.
Williams is a tourist town that was also located on the historic Route 66. There are all kinds of places to eat. We did our research and settled on the South Rims Wine and Beer Garage. This was a cool place with Arizona draft beers and a 1967 Pontiac GTO in the center of the restaurant.
Tomorrow we are taking a major detour to the Grand Canyon and the 4 corners area of New Mexico.
For tomorrow’s trip to the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley go here.
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