Northern Arizona Book Festival 2009

Northern Arizona Book Festival
April 24-26, 2009

My personal pick of Festival events is:

Indefatigable Influence: An Exploration of the Grand Canyons' Influence on the Visual and Literary Artists and Writers Past & Present on Saturday, at 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., April 25, 2009.

Regionalist, Rod Parnell will moderate a discussion panel examining the ways in which environment (specifically the Grand Canyon and Mogollon Rim) have influenced artists from the Ancient inhabitants of the region to present. The panel will consist of an array of painters, photographers, poets, essayist, and historians, including Bruce Aiken, Wayne Ranney, Steve and Lois Hirst.

Orpheum Theater
Flagstaff, Ariz.

Admission: Free – Event sponsored by the Arizona Humanities Council.

Learm more at Northern Arizona Book Festival.

Note: The Orpheum Theater will be closing on April 26, 2009, after the showing of Film: "The American Southwest: Are We Running Dry?".

Williams, Arizona--Small Town 4th of July

Just in from Arizona Travel News:

Residents and tourists will celebrate one hundred years of 4th of July parades this July 4 in Williams, Arizona. A vintage photo shot from the second floor of the historic Grand Canyon Hotel, serving guests since 1891, captured the Main Street parade in 1909 and the community will reenact that same setting this year complete with vintage clothing and horse drawn wagons. The reenactment will occur at high noon as locals and visitors alike are invited to dress in period clothing from 1909 to recreate this historical photo. The reenactment photo will be published in the Williams Grand Canyon News, which celebrates 120 years of publishing this year.

Yesterday’s Main Street became the Mother Road of Route 66 fame and continues to be the focal point of historic downtown Williams. The “Old time 4th of July” events spill out into the community and include a local Rotary BBQ, a traditional ice cream social at the Methodist Church, free Family Swim at the beautiful indoor Williams Aquatic Center, and many more family activities. The 4th of July celebration continues with one of the biggest parades in Northern Arizona starting at 6 pm right down historic Route 66! “Celebrating Small Town Traditions” is the theme for this year’s regionally favorite parade which will feature a special antique war bird fly-over as a kick off for evening Main Street activities.

Spend your 4th of July in the cool pines of Northern Arizona and enjoy the hometown feel of the Small Town 4th of July in Williams Arizona. For more information and a full schedule of 4th of July weekend events visit www.williamschamber.com or call 1-800-863-0546.

Lowell Observatory & Economic Impact of DCT

"Since breaking ground on the Discovery Channel Telescope in 2003, construction of DCT has pumped over $14 million in direct spending into the state of Arizona; about 72% of this in Flagstaff. Arizona’s DCT contractors have provided highly skilled workers and technical services including design and construction of the DCT facility and dome, fabrication of structural components, primary mirror figuring, and mirror support design."

Read the rest of the story on the Lowell Observatory Blog Economic Impact of DCT.

Grand Canyon National Park Announces Parking & Road Construction

Visitors to the Grand Canyon South Rim this summer may see a few traffic delays, but in the end, we'll all benefit from more parking and easier movement around the park.

"The National Park Service (NPS) will begin implementing the first phase of the South Rim Visitor Transportation Plan at Grand Canyon National Park this spring. Parking and roadway improvements will occur adjacent to the Grand Canyon Visitor Center (Visitor Center) at Canyon View Information Plaza (CVIP). Phase I of the construction project is expected to begin in April and be completed by the end of November 2009.

The NPS will implement an array of transportation strategies to promote alternative travel modes to the park and better integrate connections between parking, transit, wayfinding and trip planning.

The South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park hosts almost 4 million visitors a year, yet visitor needs and experiences are considerably underserved by significant parking shortages, resource degradation and safety risks at and around Mather Point due to pedestrian/vehicular conflicts; and by difficulty accessing the Visitor Center." Read more ...

Grand Canyon National Park to Run Shuttle from Tusayan Again

The free shuttle service to and from Tusayan and the Canyon View Information Plaza will be offered again this year. This relieves a bit of the traffic congestion at the Park Entrance and within the South Rim area.

"The National Park Service (NPS) will offer a pilot shuttle bus program between Grand Canyon National Park and the neighboring town of Tusayan again this year. The service will be available from May 16 through September 13 and will run at 15 minute intervals between 8:00 a.m. and 9:30 p.m.

The first bus will leave Tusayan at 8:00 a.m. and at Canyon View Information Plaza at 8:40 a.m. The last buses will leave Tusayan and Canyon View Information Plaza at 9:30 p.m."

Read more . . .