"Well I'm standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona, and it's such a fine site to see/ It's a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford, slowing down to take a look at me." ("Take It Easy" by The Eagles)
Winslow, Arizona isn't a big town, but it's a town with a significant place in the annals of rock music. In 1972, the band The Eagles released their iconic single, "Take It Easy," and it included a reference to the town of roughly 10,000 people that sits on historic U.S. Route 66. Located in the high desert plains of east central Arizona, the town of Winslow erected a life-sized bronze statue of a guitar-toting musician backed by a trompe l'oeil mural featuring a blond woman driving a red Ford pickup. Situated at the corner of West Second Street and North Kinsely Avenue, "Standin' on the Corner Park" pays homage to the second verse of "Take It Easy" that effectively put Winslow on the map.
If you're moving to Winslow and looking for rental housing, you'll be in the minority
"Well I'm standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona, and it's such a fine site to see/ It's a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford, slowing down to take a look at me." ("Take It Easy" by The Eagles)
Winslow, Arizona isn't a big town, but it's a town with a significant place in the annals of rock music. In 1972, the band The Eagles released their iconic single, "Take It Easy," and it included a reference to the town of roughly 10,000 people that sits on historic U.S. Route 66. Located in the high desert plains of east central Arizona, the town of Winslow erected a life-sized bronze statue of a guitar-toting musician backed by a trompe l'oeil mural featuring a blond woman driving a red Ford pickup. Situated at the corner of West Second Street and North Kinsely Avenue, "Standin' on the Corner Park" pays homage to the second verse of "Take It Easy" that effectively put Winslow on the map.
If you're moving to Winslow and looking for rental housing, you'll be in the minority. Most people here own their homes -- nearly 64 percent. Even so, there are numerous rental condos and apartment complexes available in all areas of town. Just make sure you have your papers ready (you know the drill: credit checks, first and last month's rent, security deposit, etc.) and you should still have a fairly easy time.
Winslow is small, but can be roughly divided into four basic sections. The city center and downtown is on the western edge of town, Bushman Acres is in the center, Joseph City is to the south and Dilkon/Indian Wells is to the north. While rental prices in Winslow are lower than most other locations in Arizona, it's a little cheaper to live in the Dilkon/Indian Wells area where you'll find anything from a studio, two bedroom apartments or three-bedroom single family home. Vacancy rates in this area of town are also fairly high at around 30 percent.
Winslow prides itself on being "The City of 10,000 Friendly Faces." Residents enjoy a laid-back, relaxed lifestyle in the high desert. But while Winslow is arid and dry much of the year, the city has been named among the country's 10 best cities for weather by the "Farmer's Almanac." The average temperature is 72 and the area receives about seven inches of rain of year. However, you should note that there are temperature extremes, especially in the summer and winter. Sand storms can also occasionally limit visibility and make driving hazardous.
Transportation
You can get around Winslow by car or on a pedestrian or bike path. It's small, so getting across town doesn't take much longer than five minutes. Winslow has a public airport, but it doesn't offer commercial flights. Residents have to drive 60 miles west to Flagstaff to catch a flight on an airline. Fortunately, Interstate 40 runs just north of town and offers a quick way to get around the state. Rail travel is also an option. BNSF's Southern Transcon route -- which connects Los Angeles to Chicago -- regularly stops in Winslow where crews switch out. Amtrak also offers two daily stops in Winslow.
Education
One school system serves Winslow and operates three elementary schools, a middle school and a high school. There is also a community college in town.
Culinary Delights
Because of its location on U.S. Route 66 and its proximity to Arizona's favorite sight-seeing destinations, Winslow is city that's visited frequently by tourists. Because of this, small Winslow offers more varied culinary fare than you might expect. The Turquoise Room at the town's La Posada Hotel offers adventurous diners traditional European dishes like hummus and cassoulet and infused with local Native American flavors.
Natural Wonders
The area surrounding Winslow is filled with beautiful, fascinating and historic sites. Barringer Crater, formed by a meteor impact some 50,000 years ago and is one of the world's best preserved such sites, is located 20 miles to the west. The Painted Desert and Petrified Forest are an hour's drive east. And just north of town is the Little Painted Desert, a unique canyon that offers a pretty backdrop for sunset pictures.
South of town is McHood Park, a spot that provides free campsites, fishing spots on Clear Creek and canoe access to Clear Creek Canyon, a magnificent deep rock canyon. Also nearby is Rock Art Canyon Ranch where you can see everything from well-preserved Anasazi petroglyphs to artifacts left when the ranch belonged to the Hashknife Gang, a band of rogue cowboy gunslingers who roamed the area in the 1880s.
