WILLIAMS — Hidden Treasures Antiques re-opened in its old haunt at 125 W. Railroad Avenue next to Anna’s Grand Canyon Coffee and Cafe. Troy Troutman moved into the location a few years ago before he moved into the mall. He, and partner Susan Pederson, have moved their stock back into this location.
The stock contains old electronics, books, collectibles and much more. If you broke one of the dishes to grandma’s set, you might find a replacement here.
WILLIAMS — Over the Independence weekend, some friends and I went to Old Smokey’s restaurant at 125 on historic Route 66 in Williams under the guise of a birthday party.
(Well, since it was my birthday and Lu Carle invited me. Thanks, Lu)
It was my chance to learn about the new Old Smokey’s from the inside. I have heard ravings about their morning fare of biscuits and gravy. What I was interested in is if 
they were part of the build-a-burger group. I found out that, yes, they are. I went in and built-a-burger myself.
Though I must confess, I didn’t build that. Actually, I ordered what I wanted and the cook actually built it.
The meal was great. I had the burger with jalapeno peppers 
cooked to perfection. The hamburger and came with more than enough fries to satisfy the average diner. TIP: Might want to ask for a few extra napkins.
Lu had the Ruben with fruit and Brenda had the mini-burgers with fries. I actually found myself eying the Ruben, one of my favorite sandwiches. Have to try it next chance I get.
They even brought me birthday cake.
Of course, the big test is the service. Not knowing what an extremely important person I was (to my Mom anyway), I was able to see how they would treat the average Joe off of the street. They were very pleasant. They continually asked if I needed a refill even though I brought my own drink with me. I noticed that they also went around and made sure other customers were attended to, so I knew my birthday disguise was working.
They even waited until my mouth was full before they asked if everything was all right just like every waitress I have ever encountered in the United States. (Do they have some secret school?)
As you can see, I had a little fun with this article. Seriously I have to say that Old Smokey’s is a great place to eat. The restaurant is clean, the staff is courteous, and the food is good. The prices are on par with other restaurants in Williams. Old Smokey’s is a great addition to the storefront of Williams.
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A little history. Old Smokey’s was one of the favorite breakfast and lunch spots in Williams for years. The original Old Smokey’s was located along historic Route 66 across the street from Dairy Queen. In recent times, however, the old restaurant fell into disrepair and the owners moved to their current location. The Old Smokey’s logo in the window is an actual recreation of the original Old Smokey’s logo that was in the window of the original Old Smokey’s, albeit colorized.
Wet historic Route 66 in Downtown Williams.
On Monday, there is a 40% chance of thunderstorms throughout the day and overnight. Tuesday the chance drops to 20% during the day and 10% overnight.
Wednesday sunny skies return and it is expected to stay clear through Friday with highs around 80.
Updated 12:01 am 7/4/15 – Parade at 6:30 p.m.
WILLIAMS — The Williams Independence day weekend has started with the setup of the Kiwanis Route 66 Street Market across from the Memorial Park.
If you need prospecting equipment, camping items, movies, hats, or other general items, check out the Street Market. They usually get more day venders over the weekend.
There is even a bust of the first president under the Constitution on sale.
Tractors continue to arrive for the annual tractor display on Second Street next to the Dara Thai restaurant. The tractors also an annual feature of the Independence Day parade down historic Route 66 at 6:30 p.m tomorrow.
At 11 a.m. there will be a Community Prayer session at the Community Stage followed by the VFW chilli cook-off at noon. The United Methodist Church on Second Street will host their annual Ice Cream Social at 2 p.m on the Fourth.
The Williams Aquatic Center will host a free swim from 12 to 4 p.m.
The forest trails and camping is open thanks to the wet weather we have enjoyed. Hike Benham Trail, Buckskinner trail or any of the other great trails around Williams. Camping is open at Dogtown and White Horse lakes. Fishing is open at Buckskinner and Santa Fe reservoirs as well as Kaibab Lake and the others aforementioned.
Or you can enjoy a guided tour to the Grand Canyon with Marvelous Marv and Magnificent Maggie. Perhaps take the train to the Grand Canyon.
The bear art will be on sale at Bearizona. You might want to even consider taking in the driving and walk-through tour of Bearizona while you are there.
So many things to do and so little time. You might just want to add a couple of days to your visit.
Aspens mix with oaks in fall on Bill Williams Mountain to create an image of stunning beauty.
Missoula, MT — Two trees that give Williams and Flagstaff their most beautiful fall image are the oak and the aspen. The Kaibab aspen lines Perkinsville Road—also known as South Road in Williams—and Forest Road 111 which leads to the top of Bill Williams Mountain. The road to Dogtown lake has a number of aspens and oak.
In the spring and summer, the fully-leaved oaks and aspens provide shade for many of the hiking trails and camping spots. In the fall, the color of the leaves of the aspens mix with the changing color of the oak to create images of beauty.
Last March, Neil Weintraub—Kaibab National Forest Archaeologist—held a field trip to the Keyhole Sink. The trailhead to the Keyhole Sink is across from the Oak Hill Snow Play area along Route 66 east of Williams. There are a few aspens at the Keyhole Sink and during the tour, he brought to light the plight of the endangered Kaibab aspens. The aspens are dying off for a number of reasons.
There are groups, however, attempting to bring the aspens back to life.
National Forest Foundation photo
The National Forest Foundation (NFF) [Facebook] recently expanded its partnership with the Salt River Project (SRP) to restore imperiled aspen forests on the Kaibab National Forest in Northern Arizona. A leading partner of the NFF’s reforestation efforts, SRP has been supporting landscape-scale reforestation in Northern Arizona through their Trees for Change program since 2009. This year, customer contributions collected through SRP’s Trees for Change program will restore aspen stands, a unique and imperiled forest type in Northern Arizona.
Aspen forests currently comprise less than one percent of forests on the southern half of the Kaibab National forest. Aspens provide particularly high ecological value and diversity, but these important biodiversity hotspots have declined in recent years due to competition from ponderosa pine, browsing damage from elk and deer, and fire exclusion. To improve the health of these important ecosystems, the NFF and the Kaibab National Forest have partnered on an ambitious two-year long, comprehensive aspen restoration project across 200 acres of the Kaibab National Forest.
With funding from SRP, the NFF and the Kaibab National Forest are constructing temporary fencing to exclude elk and deer, which allows aspen forests to regenerate. Additionally, the partners are planting young aspen seedlings to expedite aspen stand restoration. The project, now halfway completed, is expected to regenerate approximately 200,000 young aspen seedlings.
“Last year, the Forest Service on the Williams Ranger District was successful in reforesting thousands of aspens with the Salt River Project’s contributions. The funding that SRP and the NFF provided was put towards work that would have taken many years to get completed with the regular budget,” said Richard Gonzalez of the Kaibab National Forest.
Since 2009, SRP has been a leading tree planting partner of the NFF, expanding the Forest Service’s capacity to accomplish critical reforestation projects following wildfire. To date, SRP has planted nearly one million trees on the Kaibab, Coconino and Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests in Northern Arizona. Native seedlings planted through this unique partnership help re-establish wildlife habitat, sequester carbon dioxide and stabilize watersheds after wildfires.
“As a long-term partner of ours, the Salt River Project’s commitment to support important reforestation projects is helping restore Treasured Landscapes in Northern Arizona. We are proud to partner with SRP and admire their commitment to improving Northern Arizona’s National Forests through innovative partnerships,” said Bill Possiel, President of the National Forest Foundation.
Across the country, the forested headwaters of our National Forests and Grasslands provide water for 123 million Americans in more than 3,400 communities. The Phoenix metropolitan area is no exception, relying on water that is captured by National Forests in the Salt and Verde River watersheds. Recognizing the importance of these forested headwaters, SRP has invested in critical restoration projects on these National Forests. In addition to the Trees for Change program, SRP and the NFF developed the Northern Arizona Forest Fund. Dollars contributed through the Northern Arizona Forest Fund are invested in other important forest health projects on National Forests in the Salt and Verde River watersheds.
“Thanks to the generosity of our customers and their commitment to reforestation efforts, we are proud to support the efforts of the National Forest Foundation,” said Lori Singleton, Director of Emerging Customer Programs.
WILLIAMS — Williams received a heavy dose of rain overnight and into the morning which cleared up mostly by about 9 a.m. Clouds continued to roll over through about 1 p.m leaving only trace rains in their wake. Currently it is partly cloudy.
The long range forecast shows:
This Afternoon: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 71. Southwest wind 11 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph.
Tonight: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 50. South wind 5 to 13 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.
Thursday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 11am. Mostly sunny, with a high near 74. Light south wind becoming southwest 8 to 13 mph in the morning. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph.
Thursday Night: A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 47. West southwest wind 9 to 14 mph becoming light and variable after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Friday: A slight chance of showers, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 11am. Partly sunny, with a high near 75. Calm wind becoming west southwest 5 to 9 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Friday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms before 11pm, then a slight chance of showers. Partly cloudy, with a low around 50. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Saturday: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 11am. Partly sunny, with a high near 77.
Saturday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49.
Flagstaff enjoys about the same weather pattern with a 10% higher chance of rain throughout the reported period.
WILLIAMS — Addicted to Route 66 Deals in Williams has added new stock just in time for Honor America Days and Independence Day.
Today they just received some beautiful hat pins and maganets honoring all services. Along with the service pins, they have pins and maganets for Vietnam veterans and honoring POWs. They still carry US made American flags which benefits the Sons of the American Legion youth programs.
Addicted to Route 66 Deals is still the center for Route 66 memoriablia. CDs with your favorite music from the 50s through the 70s, R&B, Country, Rock and more. Route 66 T-Shirts, hats, videos and too much to list.
And, of course, they still have the largest Route 66 sign on the Mother Road.
WILLIAMS — The Williams Summer Recreation program begins tomorrow. Please drive with care around the area of the Recreation Center and Circle-K on Railroad Avenue. Let’s make this another successful event with no injuries.
SANTA MONICA — Tennessee Pastor Walter “Chick” McGill passed through Williams on a blistery February day this year carrying the flag. His goal was to carry the flag from Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina to Santa Monica pier. The 69 year-old Vietnam veteran completed the 3,200-mile journey on April 29.
Pastor McGill was greeted by supporters and social media contacts. Los Angeles-based ABC Eyewitness News 7 documented his arrival at the Pier.
Pastor McGill hand-carried his large American flag the full distance from coast to coast and saluted every passing motorist on the walk route as a gesture of honor and respect for his fellow Americans. He received a “Day of Recognition” certificate from Tennessee Governor Haslam’s office in Nashville, and numerous cities along the 14-state route demonstrated recognition by giving the veteran city lapel pins, keys to their cities, city memorial coins, and certificates of appreciation. McGill received police escorts through towns in Georgia and Tennessee and was published at Wikipedia online as one who had successfully walked across America.
McGill’s “TransAmerican Crosswalk 2014,” billed as a national prayer-walk, promoted “’a new birth of freedom’ and integrity in America,” while calling attention to the Ten Commandments, the Golden Rule, and the nation’s founding documents.
You may visit www.walkingcoast2coast.com to read about this historic cross-country adventure.