It has been a number of years since we have been to Sedona, AZ but I guess I had forgotten how gorgeous it is and the stunning vistas that are visible from everywhere both in town and outside of it. The reddest rocks and the bluest skies I think I have ever seen. The weather was pretty cooperative with reasonably warm temperatures in the 60s and low 70s (by Rochester standards-the natives thought it was pretty chilly) and only one day of showers. In contrast to some of our other campgrounds, Rancho Sedona was within walking distance to town which allowed us to get to our favorite bar for happy hour without having to drive ! Coincidentally, we met a native Rochestarian, at “our” bar who bought us some drinks but in the conversation, realized that not only was he from Rochester but went to the same elementary, middle and high school in Pittsford that my kids all went to. It’s been pretty unusual to run into a fellow New Yorker in Arizona. In our southwest travels so far we’ve met a lot of people who came from New York or the Northeast, but very few that actually live there. After the winter everyone in the NE has had, it not difficult to see why.
The Sedona area has both a national forest (Coconino National Forest) and a state park (Red Rock State Park) which literally have hundreds of miles of fantastic hiking trails. As we did in Tucson, we went hiking almost every day and did not begin to touch upon the many, many trails that are available. The hikes were so fun and interesting with so many spectacular views and varied terrains. I can’t recall taking so many pictures as it is so “picturesque” at every bend in the trail! It is also pretty family-friendly as we encountered a number of families on the weekend and many toddlers in backpacks. The kids were a riot to watch as they jumped from rock to rock like a bunch of mountain goats…don’t I wish that I had that agility back again. Sigh!
Our dear friend, Lisa, flew out from Pittsburgh, joined us for 5 days and stayed with us in our RV. It worked out pretty well as we were able to pick her up in Phoenix which is actually a lovely drive from Sedona. We spent a portion of every day outside so did not feel cooped up in too small of a space. It helps that we have 2 bathrooms and can close doors in the RV to create 2 separate sleeping areas for privacy.
In addition to hiking, while she was visiting, we took the opportunity to visit Jerome, a small town up in the hills that in it’s former life was a mining town and now is an artist colony with a lot of very cool shops. We had a great lunch with Bloody Mary’s out on a patio with a magnificent view (of course!) of the surrounding countryside. On the way back from Jerome, we took a detour to Tuzigoot, one of several national monuments in the area. This interesting pueblo was built by the Sinagua people between 1000 and 1400 AD. The museum in the visitor center had some cool artifacts discovered in the area.
On another day, we took a brief drive to see the Chapel of the Holy Cross that was built into the mountainside in the 1950’s and is a pretty sensational sight. We rounded out our visit with Lisa with a first class dinner at one of the many really excellent restaurants in Sedona, Dahl and DiLuca. What a meal…so delish! After Lisa left, (we were so sad to see her go) Bill and I stopped at another national monument on our way back from Phoenix, Montezumza’s Castle, where we spent a couple of hours walking the trail and in their small museum.
We did cancel our planned trip to the Grand Canyon as it was pretty cold and snow was predicted but we loved Sedona so much that we are planning a longer stay next year. We’ve already made or reservations for next year and put it on our calendar!
SEB
We are very tempted to join you out West next year… we will look at the Beamish adventure schedule !