Afternoon: On site Road Scholar program registration from 4:30 - 5:15 PM in the resort meeting room.

Dinner: Dinner will be at the Cottonwoods Resort. Entrees will vary nightly and always include a vegetarian option. Entree examples include chicken w/provencal herbs, stuffed jumbo pasta shells, Creole cornbread catfish fillets; shaved Italian beef w/au jus on sourdough, etc. Entrees come with soup or salad, steamed seasonal veggies, assorted rolls, drink and a light dessert.

Evening: Your Northern Arizona University Road Scholar coordinator will lead a program orientation and group introductions after dinner in the meeting room. Prepare yourself for for the adventure ahead and meet your fellow participants.

Lodging: Scottsdale Cottonwood Resort & Suites

Meals Included: Dinner

Note: Both field trips requiring walking and standing for prolonged amounts of time. Total distance of 1 mile.

Breakfast: Enjoy a continental breakfast buffet at the resort to include on various days: scrambled eggs, croissant sandwich, sliced fruits, whole grain breads, cereal, oatmeal, coffee/tea, juices, etc

Morning: After breakfast, tour the Desert Botanical Garden. Nestled amid the red buttes of Papago Park, the Desert Botanical Garden hosts one of the world’s finest collections of desert plants. One of only 44 botanical gardens accredited by the American Association of Museums, this one-of-a-kind museum showcases 50 acres of beautiful outdoor exhibits. Home to 139 rare, threatened and endangered plant species from around the world, the Garden offers interesting and inspiring experiences to more than 300,000 visitors each year.

Lunch: Enjoy a sandwich lunch on the outdoor terrace at the Desert Botanical Garden.

Afternoon: Travel to central Phoenix to tour the Heard Museum, home of one of the most comprehensive collections of Native American artifacts, arts and crafts in the world. Go on a docent-led tour of the collections and admire the architecture and statuary in the gardens.The mission of the Heard Museum of Native Cultures and Art is to educate the public about the heritage and living cultures and arts of Native peoples, with an emphasis on the peoples of the Southwest.

Dinner: Dinner will be at the on-site restaurant at the Cottonwoods Resort.

Evening: This evening is left unscheduled so participants can enjoy the ambiance of the resort and relax a bit.

Lodging: Scottsdale Cottonwood Resort & Suites

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: Both field trips require walking and standing for expended periods. Less than 1 mile total of walking.

Breakfast: Enjoy a continental breakfast buffet at the resort.

Morning: After checking out of our rooms and loading up the vehicles, We will visit Frank Lloyd Wrights former winter home, Taliesin West. Experience firsthand Wright’s brilliant ability to integrate indoor and outdoor spaces. Visit the Cabaret Theater, Music Pavilion, Kiva and Frank Lloyd Wright’s private office—all linked by dramatic terraces, gardens and walkways overlooking the rugged Sonoran Desert and valley below. Knowledgeable and experienced guides explain how the site relates to the desert and provide a general overview of Wright’s philosophies and theories of design.

Lunch: Lunch in a local Wickenburg restaurant.

Afternoon: After lunch visit the Desert Caballeros Museum for a docent-led tour of their western art collection and their rotating exhibits on western life and art. As one might expect, cowboy culture and cowboy art are well-represented in this little gem. Exquisite works by Albert Bierstadt, Charles Russell, Frederic Remington and other artistic heavyweights will jingle the spurs of even the most citified visitor. Plenty of Western memorabilia accompanies the art, as well as historical dioramas and Native American artifacts.

Following our visit, enjoy a little free time to walk around Wickenburg to visit a few of its many western shops and to enjoy its authenticity.



Dinner: Dinner at a local Wickenburg restaurant.

Evening: Enjoy a presentation on the myth vs. reality of the cowboy lifestyle as depicted in Hollywood.

Lodging: Los Viajeros Inn

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: Less than 1 mile of walking today.

Breakfast: Enjoy a full breakfast at a local Wickenburg restaurant.

Morning: After breakfast we will check out of our rooms, load the vehicles, and depart for Kingman via a remote, lonesome, and scenic highway. If you haven't already, you will soon realize that experiencing Arizona "off-the- beaten-path" is the only way to go! When we arrive into Kingman we will visit the Powerhouse Museum. Located in the heart of the longest remaining stretch of the 2400 miles that was Route 66. This Route 66 Museum depicts the historical evolution of travel along the 35th parallel that became Route 66. Brilliant murals, photos and life-size dioramas capture each of the groups that have traveled the route that has come to be known as the Mother Road

Lunch: Lunch at the Dam Bar and Grill in Kingman.

Afternoon: Following lunch we will visit the Mohave Museum of History & Arts. Small-town charm infuses the Mohave Museum, which features a rich tapestry of cultures and events, including Native American tribes, Lt. Edward Beale's camel-mounted expedition of 1857, miners, steamboaters, ranchers, the building of Hoover Dam and the training of World War II airmen. Following our museum visits we will travel along some of the best-preserved Route 66 sections on our way to Peach Springs. We will make a few quick stops for that unique Route 66 kitsch, especially that found in historic Hackberry, Arizona.

Dinner: Dinner at the Hualapai Lodge.

Evening: Free evening following our very full day and later dinner.

Lodging: Hualapai Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Note: An optional one mile walk along Diamond Creek to the Colorado River will be offered. This will entail a number of shallow water crossings of Diamond Creek. For those who choose not to do the walk, vans will transport the rest of the group the one mile to the Colorado River. Diamond Creek Road is a dirt road and can be bumpy at times.

Breakfast: Breakfast at Hualapai Lodge.

Morning: Depart after breakfast for a field trip down Peach Springs Canyon on the Diamond Creek Road and Hualapai Reservation to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River. Stops will be made along the way at various points of interest. This is a true "Journey to the Center of the Earth" as the walls of the Grand Canyon rise higher and higher as you drive towards the Colorado River. Pass through hundreds of millions of years of geologic history culminating in the 1.8 billion year old rock of the Granite Gorge.

Lunch: Picnic lunch along the banks of the Colorado River at the bottom of Grand Canyon.

Afternoon: View Diamond Creek Rapids, look for desert bighorn sheep, and watch for river runners on the Colorado River. Interesting history, facts and management issues regarding the Colorado River will be shared with the group. Return in late afternoon to Hualapai Lodge.

Dinner: Enjoy a dinner at the Hualapai Lodge restaurant.

Evening: Evening program on Hualapai tribal issues or Hualapai culture (presented by tribal members) or Arizona ranching life (presented by a local rancher).

Lodging: Hualapai Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Mojave Desert to Grand Canyon West Airport / Helicopter to River and Smooth Water Raft Trip on the Colorado River through Western Grand Canyon.

Note: Getting in and out of rafts requires some agility.

Breakfast: Breakfast at the Hualapai Lodge restaurant.

Morning: After breakfast depart for Quartermaster Point and Grand Canyon West (a Hualapai Nation enterprise). Travel along the Grand Wash Cliffs, the western most edge of the Colorado Plateau and a world class Joshua tree forest en route to Grand Canyon West, and the start of a Colorado River raft trip. Grand Canyon West is an off the beaten path destination and requires total travel time (with scenic stops) of approximately 2.5 hours, much of which is on well maintained dirt roads.

Lunch: Sack lunches on rim or at the Colorado River in the bottom of Grand Canyon (depending on helicopter schedule).

Afternoon: Arrive at the Grand Canyon West heliport, board a helicopter for a short but exhilarating ride into the Grand Canyon to the banks of the mighty Colorado River. Board a large motorized raft for a scenic river trip through the extreme western portion of the Grand Canyon. Hualapai river guides will share their knowledge of the area during this incredible trip. Experience the dramatic “exit” out of the Grand Canyon through the Grand Wash Cliffs. WIND AND SAFETY ADVISORY: Please note the ability to fly helicopters to the Colorado River and the start of the raft trip is dependent on wind conditions on the rim and in the canyon. On extremely windy days, due to safety concerns, helicopters will not be allowed to fly. Although this is always a possibility, it happens very infrequently. Your coordinator will provide an alternative activity in the area if this occurs.

Dinner: Enjoy a well deserved dinner in Kingman at a local restaurant.

Evening: Late arrival back at the Hualapai Lodge.

Lodging: Hualapai Lodge

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the Hualapai Lodge restaurant.

Morning: After breakfast we depart for our return trip to the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and Scottsdale. We will return via different highways with arrival at the airport by 12:30 PM. Those who desire drop offs at our Scottsdale hotel will arrive there by approximately 1:15 PM.

Lunch: Sack lunch for participants will be provided if requested

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch