We are going to trailer down from Montana in early Dec. to Bullhead city and ride from there.We are looking for a 3 day ride from there. The only destination we want to see for sure is the Grand Canyon after that its all about seeing the best roads and eating at the best out of the way Diners,Drivinns and dives. Any ideas would be greatly appriciated.

 

OK, so watch the weather the GC is at about 6000', Flagstaff near to 8000'

there is snow on the ground now.

eats- anywhere.

The cool thing to do is ride to Kingman, from there pick up route 66 to Seligman, then onto Williams on I 40 ( you can detour through the town of Ash Fork if you want, just a sleepy town where we get our flagstone for patios)

From Williams you go North to the GC- the town of Tusayen is just outside the gates. Best Western is good and has bowling alley in the basement- discount for HOG. Parking right outside room if you ask.

Couple of BBQ/fake steakhouses--- Best Western is better bet for food.

In the Morning, do the GC, that'll take about 3 hours with walking around and many photos...

continue East to Cameron--- from There I'd strongly suggest heading for Monument Valley it is awesome, there are a couple of hotels there at the trading post and "the View"... but I much prefer the san juan inn in Mexican Hat Utah, just the other side.

From there it's drop down South towards winslow, pick up I40 to Williams and back to Bullhead.

OR after Grand Canyon, from Cameron drop South through Flagstaff, pick up 89A through oak creek canyon to Sedona, Cottonwood, Jerome, Prescott ( spend the night there).

In the morning up through Chino Valley to Ash Fork, then back to Kingman on I40 or rt 66 if not in a hurry ( rt 66 is good for 65 MPH).

From Kingman make your way to Bullhead

Mother Road H-D is in Kingman, GC H-D is on I-40 about 30 miles W of Flag.
Prescott and Sedona have Tshirt shops from the Dealer in mayer AZ

For eats/park hours and motels you have to call ahead, not everything is open this late in the year- It kinda seems to wrap up mid October up there

PM me if you need turn by turn directions or rt numbers-- but looking at a map, what I've outlined is pretty easy to figure out
Mike

 

Camron Trading Post has a great Navajo Taco. You better be hungry. The Denny's in Williams is one fun place to hang out. Get them to play "Butt Darts" with you. It is the only Denny's I know of that has a bar.

Don't miss Route 66 from Seligman to Kingman. You should also go from Bullhead to Kingman via Old Rt. 66 through the old mining town of Oatman. Oatman is a fun place to hang out for an hour or so and feed the burros.

Don't know if it still open, but there used to be a grill at the HD shop just outside of Flagstaff where they furnished the food and you cooked it yourself.

Flagstaff to Sedona through Oak Creek Canyon, Rt 89A, is a fabulous ride as is the ride from Sedona to Jerome, to Prescott, to Wickenburg, then back up to I-40.

Arizona is a great motorcycle riding state, but December is not the best time to enjoy it as a lot of the good riding goes from high 7,000+ to low or low to high, and the highs are likely to be cold with snow.

We were in Flagstaff last year at the end of April, and the temps were 28.

Bill

 

Went to Arizona this past June. Woke up in Flagstaff at 40 degrees and rode in Vegas the next day was 110 degrees.

Rode from Flagstaff to the Grand Canyon, Route 66 to Kingman, to the Hoover Dam and into Vegas. Left at 7:00 am and rolled into Vegas about 10:00 pm. Not a lot of miles, but a long day of riding.

Route 66 to Kingman

There is a small bar called Mikes Route 66 outpost. Cold beer, great pulled pork sandwich and cute bartenders (if your timing is right.)




Route 66 Roadhouse Bar and Grill is located next to Grand Canyon HD dealership. Bartender brings out raw meat and you cook it yourself on the indoor grill. Plenty of spices to choose from.


From Flagstaff south through Sedona. Continue past Sedona and go to Jerome. At the top of the hill is a great spot called the Haunted Hamburger. Excellent bloody Mary's.

Send me a message if you want more specific info.

 

If you're going near Mesa/Phoenix, go east to Tortilla Flat. There's only one place to rat there, and the ride is fantastic.

 

Thanks for the ideas it sounds like I maybe should stay to the lower elevations. I think I will bag the grand canyon idea and go south from Bullhead City.I'm trying to get away from the cold.

 

I don't recommend taking this entire route 88 east to Lake Roosevelt as the last 22 miles are unpaved. We did eat at Tortilla Flat. Decent food. Walls were covered with dollar bills and our waitress was "packin heat". Tombstone was surprisingly an interesting destination. Many of the tourist were also in costume. In Tombstone, you need to stay downtown so you can walk around the town. Sedona, Jerome and Oak Tree canyon are wonderful. Need a reservation for lodging. I think that the best time to see Sedona and Oak Tree are early and late for the lighting effects on the landscape.

 

I live in the Phoenix area. During the warmer months (May-October) we ride up north: Prescott, Sedona, Flagstaff, etc. This time of year, we stick to the lower elevations (central/southern AZ) because it does get cold and roads can be icy up north.

There's a lot of riding you can do during the time you'll be here, just avoid the higher elevations. You could ride south along the Colorado River to Quartzsite. It's a booming place during winter. Blythe CA is just 19 miles west on I-10. Palm Springs is another 90 miles west. You could go to Palm Springs, head north to Barstow, then east on I-40 back towards Bullhead City/Lake Havasu.

 

All good suggestions so far. Check out cyclerides.com. Lots of good AZ rides layed out on there.

 

if you're determined to get to the canyon by bike in Dec bring your heated gear. Was in Laughlin last week and on Sat am there was snow on the ground on I40 btwn Kingman and Flagstaff. We only went to Hwy93 before we went south but I had my heat on max most of the way back to Phx. But if you do get a break in the weather I'd go to Oatman first and pick up Rt 66E from there and take it thru Kingman/Hackberry/Peach Springs to Seligman on your way to the canyon. If the weather doesn't cooperate I'd ride towards Searchlight then go west on Hwy 164/I-15W to Hwy127 in Baker CA and head to Death Valley and run Hwy 95 east back thru Vegas and over the new bridge at Hoover Dam back to Bullhead City.