The Sonoran Desert
We stopped at Hadley Fruit Orchards, Cabazon, for a comfort break, which also allowed us to buy some fresh fruit and a few supplies to nibble on the rest of the journey. Hadley Fruit Orchards was founded by Paul and Peggy Hadley in 1931 in Banning, California. Their neighbors were the Morongo Band of Mission Indians. According to members of the Morongo tribe, Paul Hadley often provided tribal members with fruit and dates, fostering a rapport with Hadley Fruit Orchards that remains to this day. You can read more about Hadley Fruit Orchards here.
Finally we reached Scottsdale, which boasts sunshine more than 300 days of sunshine a year.
Scottsdale was just an overnight stop but we made the most of it opting to join the optional excursion to Rustler's Rooste, a western style steakhouse located 15 minutes from downtown Phoenix and 20 minutes from Scottsdale, for a cowboy style dinner and entertainment.
The legend goes that the original site, atop a butte in the foothills of South Mountain, was a hideout for cattle rustlers. The first sight to greet us was Old Horny
and the views
We were given a choice on entering the restaurant to either use the door into the dining room or enter via the slide
we chose the door, though some of the younger members of our party did use the slide. There was a band playing some great Country & Western music
and after a fantastic feast of salad, corn, steak, vegetables, beans, bread and a whole lot more, all washed down with either (or all) beer, red and white wine and jugs of Tequilla, which was included in the price, we even managed to do a little line dancing.
We had a fantastic night, but by 10 p.m. we were 'plumb tuckered out' (to coin Allen's phrase) and ready to head back to the hotel for a good night's sleep. Just time for a quick photo before we left.
Join me next time for Wonders Of The Golden West Part 3.
