Flagstaff, Arizona: A Natural Wonder

A NATURAL WONDER
Lava fields, Indian ruins and meteor craters. To our bunch, words like these are the siren song that lures us to parts unknown. We've driven miles out of our way to see natural oddities like Spouting Horn (an awesome plume of water) and Barking Sands (turned out to be a military base.)

Flagstaff, Arizona, we happily discovered, has a mother lode of natural wonders, tucked in and around a stunning landscape of mountain peaks and ponderosa pines. Look up, and you'll see the sugar-sprinkled tops of the San Francisco Peaks. These are Arizona's highest mountains, and are considered sacred by the Navajo and Hopi peoples. Look down, and you'll peer into Walnut Canyon, where about 800 years ago families lived in snug limestone dwellings. It seems only fitting that the kids made kaleidoscopes here, at the Museum of Northern Arizona; Flagstaff is interesting from every angle.

WHO KNEW? That a giant meteor, weighing several hundred thousand tons, rammed into earth about 50,000 years ago at 40,000 miles per hour and hit...Flagstaff! Visit the gaping Meteor Crater left behind, some 550 feet deep and 4,000 feet in diameter. Apollo astronauts practiced moon walking here. Admission is $12 for adults, $5 for kids ages 6 to 17; call 928-289-5898.

DON'T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT... your walking shoes. This is an area you'll want to explore on foot, from the licorice-hued lava rock at Sunset Crater Volcano (928-526-0502) to the ancient Anasazi Indian ruins at Wupatki National Monument (928-679-2365), home of a mysterious blow hole. Admission is $3 for both attractions for adults, free for kids ages 17 and under. Visit Walnut Canyon National Monument to see how the native Sinagua people lived in an otherworldly environment. Admission is $3 for adults, free for kids ages 17 and under; call 928-526-3367.

DON'T LEAVE TOWN WITHOUT... taking in Flagstaff's loftiest views. Peer inside the telescope at the Lowell Observatory, where the planet Pluto was discovered in 1930. Admission is $5 for adults, $2 for kids ages 5 to 17; call 928-774-2096. At Arizona Snowbowl, ride the chairlift to the top of Agassiz Peak (11,500 feet) and see if you can spot the Grand Canyon, 80 miles away. Admission is $9 for adults, $5 for kids ages 6 to 12; call 928-779-1951.

CLEAN-PLATE CLUB Choo-choo-choo your food at the Crown Restaurant & Railroad Cafe East; this family restaurant houses northern Arizona's largest electric train display. Call 928-522-9237.

HOTTEST TICKET IN TOWN The hands-on children's programs at the Museum of Northern Arizona. This small but fascinating museum celebrates the native peoples and natural sciences of the region. Our faves: the dinosaur bones and kachina dolls. Admission is $5 for adults, $2 for kids ages 7 to 17; call 928-774-5213.

BEST LOCAL COLOR No contest: it's the Museum Club, a log roadhouse built in 1931 to house preserved animals and Native American artifacts. Now a country-western nightclub, the Zoo, as it's called, is pure honky-tonk, but, hey, there are trees growing out of the floor, mounted wildlife, even ghosts. Pop in for a quick look-see at this Route 66 landmark. Call 928-526-9434.

BEST SOUVENIR Anything Route 66, naturally. "America's Main Street" runs right through Flagstaff's historic downtown, and local merchants offer Route 66-logoed everything.

F.Y.I. Call 800-842-7293 or click here.

Travel writers Diane Bair and Pamela Wright are regular contributors to FAMILYFUN and the authors of 18 guidebooks and numerous magazine articles.

Please keep in mind that phone numbers, addresses, and prices are subject to change. Updated June 2005.