Prescott
The following day, Ernest came down with a cold and I wanted to look
around this fascinating place. We stayed an extra day and settled for
a Motel 6, which offered hot showers and clean rooms. The luxury of
a motel room was even more so after tenting a few nights in dreadful
weather.
The day was whiled away by drinking at the Palace Saloon – a famous
bar on Whiskey Row. The story goes that on 14 July 1900, a fire
raged through Whiskey Row. Quick-thinking locals managed to save
the 24ft Brunswick Bar. After lugging the solid oak bar across the
street, these resourceful citizens resumed the party while the fire
raged. Hahaha, I can see it in my mind’s eye. The Palace Saloon was
rebuilt in 1901 and is still in use.
Winter storm Q moved in, and we decided to hunker down and wait
out the weather. There wasn’t much to do but visit museums in
conditions like that. During the night, it started snowing, and in the
morning, the town was transformed into a snowy wonderland. Albeit
lovely, I needed to get out of there in a hurry. The sub-zero
temperatures weren’t conducive to cycle touring, and I wondered how
to move on from there.