SultanOfSwing

Right turn on red is the dog's bollocks. When I'm driving back in NI, I have to watch myself on left turns

As far as I remember, mini roundabouts are used to note that the junction is priority to the right (as with a full sized rounabout), rather than the left as a normal T junction or crossroad would be. The design is such that when there is no traffic, it is safe to drive over the circle, rather than having to go around it.

Nutek

Yep.

malch

Typically, I'd guess the temperature reaches 100 (or close to) on 5-10 days each year. It's not a huge problem. My daughter is currently in Phoenix where it's rarely under 100 degrees.

But you'd better get used to the lack of rain. It rarely rains all summer long and the chances are you'll have to wait a few months before you see any rain at all. A light sprinkle at most!

Steerpike

Minor clarification ... I've been in Scottsdale (suburb of Phoenix) for 2 weeks now and it has been as high as 115 F, and we haven't had a day where the daytime high has been below 100F. However, it drops below 100 every night - typically 70s or 80s by 5am. Last night we had a major, major tropical storm and two of my windows revealed never-before seen leaks. The rainstorms in the desert in summer are something to behold!

Steerpike

My issue with mini roundabouts is ... the rule is stated as "give priority to traffic approaching from your right...". For a normal (full sized) roundabout, I would interpret this as meaning 'traffic to the right, already on the roundabout', but what about cars 'approaching' the roundabout, not yet in the roundabout itself?. If there is a fast moving steady stream of traffic flowing 'through' the roundabout, and you are stopped on a relatively minor road (joined to the main road by the mini-roundabout), how do you 'break in' to that stream if you are to give priority to those 'approaching'. "Approaching" is a fairly loose concept - how far back, etc?

Giantaxe

Intellicast - Pleasanton Historic Weather Averages in California (94588)

It probably won't rain until mid-October.

malch

Yes, you are of course correct about the night time temps.

I understand the storms are really something. My daughter is currently up at Tonto National Forest reporting on the tragedy caused by the flash floods there yesterday.

I really like Phoenix and Scottsdale in particular (some good friends live there) but it's a tad warm for us to move there. I'd love to explore Flagstaff sometime where things are a little cooler.

malch

Think of it just like merging onto a freeway from the ramp. Vehicles already on the freeway have priority but it's not that hard to merge in.

And cars have to slow down entering the roundabout and then accelerate out of it. That tends to open up some gaps into which you can slot in.

SultanOfSwing

I don't know what happens in mainland UK, but in NI, these mini roundabouts were never placed at junctions busy enough for this to be a concern. It was always on what were previously junctions with 'Give Way' signs on residential streets. So in those cases it was much like how a 4-way stop works here, just without the stopping - in that whoever gets there first goes through first, but in the event of a tie, priority goes to the right.

Minor roads joined to busier roads would be better served with full sized roundabouts or traffic lights.

Steerpike

Well that may be a very good analogy; I think cars on a busy freeway have every expectation of being slowed down somewhat by traffic merging into the freeway flow, but do they expect to be slowed down by traffic on a mini roundabout ...? I tend to be somewhat aggressive about 'joining' a flow, in that, I'm willing to accelerate quickly into a gap, and I don't care if I cause other cars to have to slow down ... but they often don't seem to see it that way

Steerpike

Flagstaff is surprisingly cold! Highs in the 70s right now, lows in the 50s. Average low for July is 51F - Intellicast - Flagstaff Historic Weather Averages in Arizona (86001) . In winter, average low in Dec/Jan is 17F, and the average low is below 32F 6-7 months of the year. It's much, much colder than the Bay Area.

Giantaxe

I hiked in the Flagstaff area a couple of Thanksgivings ago, and it was sunny but unbelievably cold!

SultanOfSwing

Is that normal for Flagstaff in summer, 70s/50s? That sounds just about bloody perfect. That'll be due to the elevation though, right? Kind of like how everyone in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are running round Albuquerque in light jackets even though it's in the middle of the desert

Coastal NorCal and the high Southwest sound like the ideal climates for me.

malch

Yeah, it's probably a bit too cold for us in winter. The Sedona/Cottonwood area looks like a great balance climate-wise, but they're a bit remote.

I'm flying to Phoenix in a couple of weeks but have to drive back to the Bay Area with my daughter the next day. It's a shame because I'd love to explore Phoenix to Flagstaff. But she has to move to Manhattan a couple of days after that.

Steerpike

The drive from PHX to Bay Area can be gorgeous, if you have the time to spread it out. The drive up 17 to Sedona is quite pretty, and the drive from Sedona to Flagstaff, on the 'back road' called Oak Creek Canyon is spectacular - Oak Creek Canyon Scenic Drive | Sedona Arizona . The drive out of PHX on 60 / 93 through 'Wikieup' is also spectacular in parts, ending up in less-than-spectacular Kingman. The drive from Kingman to Vegas is another fantastic drive; I've taken both 93 and 95 and they both have their amazing sections. From Vegas, you can pass through Death Valley which is absolutely worth it, and then you go up US 395 (one of the best drives in the country, IMO), and cut over either through Yosemite or Tahoe. I've done that drive dozens of times by now, and still love it. Last several times, though, I've done the less glamorous I-10 / I-5 drive, stopping in Pasadena for fun.