TOUR OF ARIZONA (2025)

I had visions of young people living in old railroad cars, squatting in mining shacks, camping on the desert floor.

Tombstone AZ

WINNEMUCCA, NV

I began my winter trip to Arizona by driving from Portland to Winnemucca, NV. I left at dawn and took the back roads route: 500 miles. 9 hours. A brutal drive, really.

But it was fun: buzzing on coffee, pissing on the side of the road. And it was beautiful. The rolling hills covered in snow. Almost no cars. Just me and a few truckers out there in the cold, our breath making clouds in the air.

I got to Winnemucca as the sun was going down. It was a quiet little town. With a quiet little casino. No real signs of life except for a few teenagers gunning their cars down the main strip.

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LAS VEGAS, NV

The next day I drove to Las Vegas where I stayed at a pretty nice hotel for like $60. Hotel deals abound in Las Vegas.

But beyond the strip, the city was a hellscape. Crumbling parking lots. Homeless people. People on drugs. People living in their cars. Yikes!

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PRESCOTT, AZ

The next day I arrived in Prescott, AZ (the official AZ tour begins). Prescott is in the northwestern part of the state. It’s at 5400 ft. so I was a little altitude drunk when I checked in to my hotel. Giggly. Stupid. Losing my keys. Falling dead asleep after a quick shower.

Prescott is a small town (pop. 45k). It’s famous for its rehabs, I learned from a friend who might move there. I went to an AA meeting to see what all the fuss was about. But it seemed like a normal meeting. A nice kid from New Jersey confirmed about the many rehabs. He also mentioned Prescott College, as two of the principal vibe-creators in Prescott. The college is apparently a small, super progressive, private liberal arts college.

Another guy at the meeting worked the night shift at the Circle K convenience store. The Circle K at 2am was a different kind of vibe-setter.

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In Prescott, there were pine trees, forests, trails, lakes. But there wasn’t much to do there except hike. At night, you can hang out at the Goodwill which closes at 9pm. After that you can hang out at the Walmart which closes at 11pm.

Literally, people hang out at Walmart. Teenagers stand in the aisles, talking. People are wandering around. I wandered around. The more social employees gossiped around the check-out stands. The less social employees hid among the shelves, endlessly rearranging the merchandise.