ENJOYING THE BEAUTY OF SEDONA

Friday, February 24 - We woke-up to 25 degrees here in Sedona, AZ, this morning. We are over 4500' above sea level, and it is still winter here in the mountains. Our waterline was frozen this morning so we had to bring in our hose and let it thaw out. Even then we had to wait until the hydrant thawed out before water was flowing again. Guess the lady in the Elks Lodge was wrong yesterday when she said not to worry about freezing water lines. Luckily, we had water in our holding tank and we were able to get ready for our sightseeing day.

Paul has not done well at this altitude with his recent heart problems, so we decided to forego any hiking. Instead, we did a driving tour of the amazing mountain vistas. Everywhere we turned is another beautiful red mountain view. Unfortunately, most of the pulled-outs are packed with visitors. We aren't too thrilled with the congestion. Everything is very crowded.

We stopped at almost every pulled-out for pictures and to walk to the viewing areas. We visited Bell Rock, Castle Rock, Snoopy Rock, Camel Rock, Chimney Rock, and the overlook on Airport Road which is right behind our campground. These are all very beautiful sights but unfortunate the crowds disappointed us.

Bell rock.

Do you see Snoopy?

We really enjoyed the drive out State Route 89 through Oak Creek Canyon towards Flagstaff. This is known as one of the most beautiful drives in America. We drove to the top of the mountain at over 6400 feet. Yep, there was some snow up there but not much. 

Oak Creek Canyon.

The Native Americans For Community Action were selling there wares. The mission of Native Americans for Community Action Inc. is to provide preventive wellness strategies, empower, and advocate for Native peoples and others in need to create a healthy community based on Harmony, Respect, and Indigenous Values. We really enjoyed talking to them about their beautiful work. The temptation was too much for Marsha. She couldn't resist buying a couple gifts for some lucky people.

We then stopped for lunch at the Cowboy Bar. Delicious food. Marsha loved the boot as a beer tap. 

We will let you add the caption to this one.

After lunch we walked around downtown stopping in several of the little shops along with the hundreds of other tourists. Prices are a bit high for us. Paul did find a t-shirt he couldn't live without. 

 Paul was a bit confused about what this guy was saying.

The town is full of sculptures. They are in front of many of the stores. All are very nice.

Birdwoman.

Red Rocks and the Cowboy Artist.

The Dance.

After “shopping,” we returned to the campground to relax for the remainder of the day and to let Bella, our cat, out to enjoy the sun.

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Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

RED ROCK BEAUTY…SEDONA, AZ.

Thursday, February 23 – We set off early this morning heading west on I-10 through Tucson and Phoenix. We then connected with I-17 to travel up the mountains to Sedona, AZ. The Ford F-350 got a nice workout today!

Our first taste of the red rock.

We are staying at the Sedona Elks Lodge. They have seven gravel sites with 30 amp electric and water. The sites are a little off level but are manageable. We have site #7, an end site. Temperatures are suppose to drop into the lower 30's tonight, but the lady in the lodge said not to worry about the water freezing because it is for such a short period of time. Highs for the next couple of days are in the low 50's.

Looking left.

Looking right.

Right across the street.

After we set-up our site, we headed to a nearby Visitor's Center for some maps and information. We then headed downtown to checkout the eclectic shops and restaurants at Tlaquepaque. Not much here for us....pretty ritzy. We did stop for a drink at a local craft brewery, and visited a couple nearby shops.

Sedona is a beautiful place, that's for sure. Red rock cliffs everywhere we look. So amazing, but we can't help feeling like its been spoiled. Way over built. Too bad someone, long ago, didn't have the foresight to make this area a National Park.

We made one stop at The Chapel of the Holy Cross, one of the premier stops and rightfully so. What an amazing Church. Parking is at a premium. Fortunately, they were running golf cart shuttles from the lower parking areas up to the Chapel. It is a Roman Catholic chapel built into the buttes of Sedona. The Chapel has a contemporary look and juts out of two red mounds on a spur of rock that is 200 feet above the ground.

The Chapel is intimate and very simple. Apart from two tapestries on the wall, the only color in the Chapel are the flickering candles.

The Chapel is surrounded by some of the most beautiful red rocks in the area.

We have quite a sightseeing plan for the next couple of days and hope to get in some short hikes so stop back and tour Sedona, AZ with us.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

WHAT A GORGEOUS DAY FOR A HIKE!

Tuesday, February 21 - We returned to Tucson Mountain Park this morning to hike among the Saguaro. It is a very short drive from Justin's Diamond J Campground to the desert full of trails. Actually, we could have walked right out the back of the campground into Tucson Mountain Park but that would have made today's hike way to long.

Thank goodness Paul has a great sense of direction and was able to keep us in the correct general direction. We eventually found Prospector Trail and followed it to the trail head, but it was not at our original starting point.

This is a very rocky trail. Have your boots on.

The terrain changed as we changed elevations.

We decided to cut across country making our own trail. We ended up wandering around the desert until we found a road. We then continued across country keeping the road in sight as a marker. After another mile or so, we stumbled on the truck parked beside a picnic area.

This guy sure has the arms.

If you do this trail, be careful of the fishhook cacti. They are close to the trail.

We decided to eat our snack at a nearby picnic table before returning home. 

It was a good hike of about 4.5 miles, but we would have liked it if the trails were marked. There are so many trails in the area it may be very difficult to keep them all marked.

The birds were enjoying the gorgeous day too.

Our first black cardinal.

After relaxing and cleaning up at the 5th wheel, we headed over to friends Pam and John’s for happy hour. They are staying at the Lazy Day's KOA here in Tucson. Sue and Dave Bank are also staying there and joined us for a couple hours of snacks, beverages and great conversation.

We say good bye to Tucson. Tomorrow, Thursday, we will be in Sedona, AZ. The weather is much colder. We will make the best of it for sure.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!