If you want quiet and less people not far from Phoenix, try the itty bitty nothing town of Congress. A dollar Store, a gas station, laundromat, Post office, pub, small hardware store, and..... ummmmm... a tiny library and a school. Best part is, it's on AZ89, which goes from there all the way North into Utah, through the cool mountain town of Jerome where you can pick up a tee shirt that says JEROME, 158 curves in 12 miles before heading to Sedona, where you can get your Spiritual Energy or Chakra rebalanced, before heading North for more beautiful scenery.
Now granted, shopping in the Congress area, or in nearby Wickenburg stinks, but that's what you pay for, quiet and very nice dark skies at night. It's at 3000 feet, so it's cooler than the valley. Hahahaha, shall I say slightly less blistering than the valley, which runs 5-8 degrees warmer. Like 108° vs 114°F really makes a difference. The nearest dealer is about an hour away. But did I mention it's quiet?
Google Maps the area and check out those twisties on 89! One bunch starts about 10 minutes up the road from where I live. It's where I practiced getting used to the Spyder after switching to one from over 50+ years of riding 2 wheels. Fun fun fun.
