A TRIP TO SEDONA

We wanted to go someplace within a days drive from our place in Burbank that we hadn't been to before, and if possible, avoid very congested routes like Interstate 15. Lately, Arizona has been calling us. We had a nice time there on our New Years Trip. So, with the July 4th 2004 holiday weekend fast approaching and no reservations, we decided to go to Sedona, the area of red rocks. I had been there before 20 years ago with my cousins, but I don't remember much of it.

WICKENBURG
We got out of work early on Friday. We decided to try to make it to the old town of Wickenburg, Arizona, a distance of 350 miles from our apartment in Burbank. Since we had no reservations until the next 2 nights in Sedona, we had the flexibility to stay closer or farther from Sedona as conditions dictated. The traffic was heavy but we finally made it to Wickenburg.

We woke up the next day to the familiar sound of dove noises. As we have pigeons on our balcony, that is a very familiar sound. But where was it coming from? Surprisingly, it was coming from the bathroom window. Through the bathroom window you could see a pigeon coop in the hotel's neighbor's backyard! We tried to get a better view but the pigeon coop is not visible from the street and is only visible through the small bathroom window. This is the best shot I could get out of it through the narrow window:

pigeon coop
Wickenburg is an area that Indians lived in for centuries. Across the street from the hotel was a well on the Hassayampa river where an old Spanish legend has it that those who drink from it never tell the truth again.. I drank from it.
In another part of town was the Jail tree, where townspeople used to chain lawbreakers.

TUZIGOOT NATIONAL MONUMENT

We left Wickenburg and stopped at Tuzigoot National Monument, an abandoned Indian village on a hillside. Indians lived there from around 1000 A.D. to 1400 A.D. The monument isn't very large, there is a one mile loop trail that goes around the structures, so probably saw most of it. It was very hot and we were somewhat glad to be back in the air-conditioned car.

OAK CREEK CANYON

We left the heat of Tuzigoot to go past Sedona to Oak Creek Canyon, the beautiful canyon that connects Sedona to Flagstaff. Unfortunately, this being the Independence day weekend, it seemed all of Arizona was there. All the turnoffs were full and we tried to imagine the place on a normal weekend. The only place we could stop was at the Oak Creek vista. Here we got out briefly and I got a picture of the canyon and the road snaking up it. We thought we would return to Oak Creek canyon, but as it turns out, we didn't.

WUPATKI NATIONAL MONUMENT

Away from the maddening crowds of Oak Creek Canyon and just south of those at Grand Canyon, we revisited Wupatki National Monument, the ruins of a beautiful Indian village. The last time we visited, the transmission on the Ford Explorer had gone out and we were just passing time. This time, we got to savor the tranquility of it. We managed to hike a few miles around most of the ruins before deciding to leave, as we wanted to get to our hotel in Sedona before dark.

SEDONA

After fighting the traffic in Oak Creek Canyon, we got to the hotel. The hotel was better than expected. The reservations clerk didn't mention that all rooms have a view of the mountains. The location was great. Being located in the middle of the uptown shopping area, we could ditch the car at the hotel and walk to all the shops and restaurants.

Here is the view from the hotel. I merged 3 pictures. I will try to fix this one later.
SCHNEBLY HILL ROAD

We got up on Sunday morning and drove on Schnebly Hill Road, which is a dirt road that goes through the area and is one of the highlights of the Sedona area. The guidebooks had warned about how rough the road was, but this turned out to be wrong. The road was very smooth by dirt road standards and you could easily take a normal car on it, especially given the extremely dry conditions. Iin fact, we did see some normal cars on it. On the other hand, in Sedona we saw many jeep-tours companies -- there was one next door to our hotel -- and we saw a couple of those jeeps on that road. They charge $150 for a two hour tour. We considered taking one but in the end decided against it. Maybe if we had more time. Anyway, we were eager to see our next distination, which we had passed several times but never stopped...

WALNUT CANYON NATIONAL MONUMENT

We visited Walnut Canyon. Like Tuzigoot and Wuptaki, it was a place the Indians had abandoned. Unlike them, it was cliff dwellings, similar to Mesa Verde. The canyon is relatively small so we hiked the short trail that linked the major dwellings. It was very hot and we didn't see any water in the canyon. Luckily for us, the visitor center sells cold drinks. They said the Indians had to bring water from river at the bottom of the canyon to their dwellings near the top. They must have been in good shape.

SEDONA HIKE

Next we went back to Sedona and went on a short hike of a few miles. The trail ends at a dramatic rock formation, as the pictures atest. Then we did some shopping and eating. It was the Fourth of July but as we were in the middle of a very dry canyon, there were no fireworks. Oh well. It is not the first time we have missed them, being in a place of great natural beauty.

MONTEZUMA'S WELL

After breakfast on Monday, we said farewell to the Sedona area. We stopped at Montezuma's Well, a section of Montezuma's Castle National Monument. The name Montezuma is a misnomer as the Spaniards assumed Montezuma had built the structures, he actually had nothing to do with them. The well is actually more of a pond that the Indians connected to an irrigation system to water their fields. Unexpectedly, the center pictures turned out to be one of my best of the trip. With the digital camera, I don't get surprised that much any more. Must have been the heat...

MONTEZUMA'S CASTLE

After Montezuma's Well, we drove to Montezuma's Castle, a small cliff dwelling similar to Mesa Verde. I had been there before 20 years ago but didn't remember much except the ice cream store nearby. I looked for it, but it was gone. In its place was an Indian casino and encroaching suburbia. The place was much more built up than before. But anyway, the Castle itself was still there, much as I remembered it.

CONCLUSSION

After leaving Montezuma's Castle, then it really was time to head home. As always, I was sad about the end of another wonderful trip. As usual, there were regrets about things we didn't have time to see and do. Because of the crowds, we didn't see much of Oak Creek canyon the way it should be seen -- on foot. Because of the heat, we didn't hike as much as we could have. A jeep tour or a horseback ride would have been a new experience. Yes, my feeling is that we just scratched the surface of this beautiful part of the Southwest. We will be back, for sure.