SmithFly In Arizona

We spent a nice couple of days in Arizona this past week. It was our first time in the area and we certainly want to head back and spend more time. It is an amazing place with so much to see and do. We took a quick side trip to the grand Canyon. Though we weren't fishing I used the Darby Creek Sling as a day pack / man purse. Super awesome pack for that.

We stayed at the Point Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort. The above photo was the view from the balcony of our room. Not a bad view to wake up to.

After a long day trip to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon we took in a Dodgers v. Indians night game on Thursday at GoodYear BP. We couldn't have planned this months in advance, but we were fortunate to see the great Clayton Kershaw start the game. Our seats were so close we could hear the ball hiss in to the plate. The Indians look good and really put the wood to the Dodger pitching staff once Kershaw was out. The game ended tied 5 to 5.

The following day we took in day game between the Reds and Rockies.

The weather was great, if not slightly on the hot side the next day, and the reds looked ok. They had a majority of their starters actually playing. Like last year the pitching looked like it could use some help. Raisel Iglesias, who looks to be the go-to starter for the Reds on opening day, mailed in a lack luster performance in true spring training style. Don't hurt yourself boys.

That evening we headed to the top of the mountain at Tapatio Cliffs for an amazing dinner at Different Point of View. There are not enough superlatives to describe the place. For someone from flat land Ohio, the views of the valley and surrounding peaks was truly a treat that we will savor for a long time. The service and food were top quality, although they don't have any beers on tap, which is sort of a bummer but one can be dealt with. Nevertheless, it was quite a memorable experience to take in the sunset and eat some tasty food in that mountain top setting. I wouldn't hesitate to head back there next time we are in the area.

The devils food cake was aesthetically pleasing but the peanut butter salted carmel mouse thing was actually better in the flavor category. Both pretty tasty though.

As a business person I'm constantly trying to find ways to maximize my return on investment with vacation time and balance the needs of the business AND family life. It's been years since we took a trip that wasn't focused on some kind of fishing or that tied in some way back to the business. So for once, It was nice to get away from stuff and just have a couple days to not think about fishing, take in a couple baseball games and enjoy the dry healing air of the southwest. Now back to fishing stuff.