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| 3 Fellows from Australia snapped this |
Betty and I just returned from a all-too-brief two night/3 day stay in Sedona. Less than two hours north of our home, Sedona is a great place for us to visit on a whim and enjoy a satisfying retirement break. The temperatures tend to be only slightly cooler than Scottsdale, so this was probably the last time we felt we could visit before the 100+ degree days started. Many of the tourists are gone, and by avoiding a weekend we managed to not feel overwhelmed by the crowds.
Since Sedona is best known for the incredible rock formations, this post will be mostly photographs. After all, if a picture is worth 1,000 words, I can stop typing about now...............
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| Bell Rock |
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Tlaquepaque Shopping Center
(Ta-lock-a-pock-e) |
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| Typical Sedona Sunset |
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| Broken Arrow Hiking Trail |
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| View from Brown Arrow Hiking Trail |
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| Red Rock Crossing |
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| Red Rock Crossing |
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| Picnic area at Red Rock Crossing |
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| South of Sedona looking north |
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| Sunset on Oak Creek |
Betty took over 800 photos so I was hard-pressed to pick only 13. But, you get the idea. Sedona is a unique spot that is worth your effort to see it at least once during your satisfying retirement.
Very nice! Love those rock formations; need to get out west at some point to see things like this.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean 800 to 13!!! Very hard to do...
You could walk here...that would take care of a big chunk of your 10,000 mile goal before retirement. (see Scott's blog to understand what I am talking about)
DeleteBeautiful. I love all things Arizona....I just haven't experienced the heat yet. Don't have a clue what that is like....Someday I am quite sure I will find out. Love all your photos! Glad you had a nice get away.
ReplyDeleteThe heat takes getting used to. Daytime highs tend to settle at 105 or higher from early May until late September. It is a dry heat, with the average humidity at 10% or less except during the rainy monsoon season of mid July to early September. But, let no one kid you, it is hot. Luckily Flagstaff is only 2 hours away. Summertime highs there are in the low 80's with night dipping into the low 50's or even upper 40's.
DeleteAs I have noted before, I would much rather put up with the heat than bitter cold and snow. I lived in that climate for the first 29 years of my life and could never go back.
My husband went on a business trip to Phoenix once and burnt his hand on a door knob. Yikes!
DeleteIt is very easy to burn your hand on the steering wheel of your car. The temperature inside a closed auto can easily top 150 degrees. You learn to use window shields!
DeleteAfter growing up for several years in the Boston area the heat took some getting used to, but i was sooo ready for 320 days a year of sunshine.
These pictures are amazing and make me want to hop the next flight from West Palm. We haven't visited Nevada since the 90's when we took a trip to Vegas and rented a car for a day drive out to Red Rock Canyon. We hear you have some amazing golf courses and a spa or two. So incredible. Enjoyed your post. Suzanne
ReplyDeleteI have visited Red Rock Canyon in Nevada, but think the rocks in the Sedona area are more dramatic. The Phoenix area has close to 300 golf courses and over a dozen resorts and spas. Now, there are a dozen casinos with full Las Vegas style gambling on the Indian reservations that surround Phoenix. The only thing missing are top flight Vegas-style shows at night.
DeleteOf course, if you haven't been to Vegas in 20 years or so, you probably wouldn't recognize it. The town underwent an explosion in the early 2000's that has to be seen to be believed.
Bob, I must have posted that during cocktail hour. Nevada/Arizona oops! Thanks for not calling me out on it. Red rocks in any location are amazing to a gal from the flat lands of Florida.
DeleteThere is a Red Rock Canyon near Las Vegas so you are actually OK! The exact name of the place we visited is Red Rock Crossing near Sedona.
DeleteLove the photos!
ReplyDeleteIt appears the window to enjoy Sedona before the heat hits, but after the winter snows have cleared out of the roads around Flagstaff, the way we'd drive in, may be narrower than I thought. We'd been planning to do a sweep of the southeast in spring of 2013 or 2014, but perhaps fall would be better?
Flagstaff itself and the roads in and out of town have no snow after February or early March, though the 10,000 foot mountains around town keep some until July. Even in the middle of winter Flagstaff usually has its roads cleared within half a day. Sedona only gets a light dusting and it melts quickly.
DeleteThe best times to visit depend where you want to go. For the high country I would choose from late March through early June or early September through mid November. The Phoenix area and the deserts are best from mid October until Early May.
Bring that new RV and have a blast.
Except it regularly snows on graduation day in Flagstaff :>) The road from Flagstaff to Sedona is often icy well into March. The road does not get much sun and the highway department uses cinders, not ice melt for the roads. If you are coming in from Phoenix - there are few problems with the roads by March.
DeleteEarly fall is actually my favorite season. The Sycamore trees turn and the canyon takes on a hue of its own. The campers are gone by late August and the camp grounds are often open through September or October. It is a wonderful time to go to the Grand Canyon as well- before the snow begins to fall.
You are correct, Janette. The road that goes north from Sedona through Oak Creek Canyon and then up a very steep hill to get to Flagstaff may very well have some patches on it. But, I-17 is snow free usually no later than sometime in February.
DeleteGreat photos! I'm planning a trip up to Arizona in October. I'm hoping it will cool down by then.
ReplyDeleteThe temperatures in the Phoenix area usually drop below 100 degrees by the end of September or early October. To us desert rats, the first few days below the century mark signal the start of our outdoor season.
DeleteCome on up from Mexico and have fun.
You are making me sooo homesick! the smell of the sycamores and the creek were my Lamaze visions of calm when delivering my babies. Don't forget the blackberries at the last camping ground before you go up to Flagstaff in July. YUM!
ReplyDeleteDon't forget the unmistakable smell of a creosote bush after a rainstorm!
DeleteLooks like a beautiful place to visit! I couldn't take the heat out there. 105 is 105, dry or not! Great photos!
ReplyDeleteb
Come in the winter and enjoy 70 degree days. Avoid the summer except for great discounts on the rates at the resorts when room prices are often up to 50% off.
DeleteOver the last several years those rates have resulted in almost full hotels in the summer and several major business meetings in Scottsdale and Phoenix during the hottest time of the year. Folks will do almost anything to save!
So beautiful. And so different from the lush green of the scenery in this part of the country. Not much red here. There is so much more color in the desert and the high desert than we think of. Especially in those sunsets!
ReplyDeleteThat difference is one of the reasons desert dwellers escape to the Pacific Northwest and so many folks from Oregon and Washington are spotted on Arizona highways. Anything, regardless of how pretty or dramatic it may be, becomes too familiar after awhile. Retraining the eyes with a totally different experience = a good vacation.
DeleteLooks like rattlesnake territory, Bob! Just sayin...
ReplyDeleteCould be! Plus scorpions and wild mountain bikers.
DeleteLovely photos! Brings back memories of my trip to Arizona back in 2006. I don't remember my exact itinerary, but I drove from Dallas to Sedona, where I spent a few hours and then drove through Oak Creek Canyon to Flagstaff. From there I went to Williams, where I had a package deal to spend the night, ride the train to the Grand Canyon, spend the night there then take the train back the next day. Beautiful country, and so different from North Texas! I'd love to go back and spend some more time.
ReplyDeleteWilliams has an interesting past: it was the last town on old Route 66 to be bypassed by the new Interstate highway. That almost destroyed the town but it has really built on the Route 66 mystique with gift shops and Mother Road themed restaurants. The addition of the train to the Grand Canyon has given the town a tremendous boost.
DeleteWhat a great get-away Bob! The pics are gorgeous!!
ReplyDeleteQuite different from Virgina, right?
DeleteWe will be heading east next year for an extended vacation through the mid Atlantic states. We miss dark green, streams that flow year round, and as Betty calls them, real trees.
Sedona is so beautiful! I haven't been there in over 10 years, but fell in love with it my first time. I took an open biplane ride and to this day, that is one of the most thrilling experiences of my entire life. Suprisingly, it's the smoothest airplane ride I've ever had - and the view of the Red Rocks and canyons from the air was breathtaking.
ReplyDeleteI'm heading back there in mid April 2013, treating my mother to a 6 day trip. No biplane rides this time, but some nice hikes and sight seeing will be in order!
I advise that if you are planning a trip anywhere between March and early May, book early! Even 1 year out, I had a heck of a time finding an available hotel room. Sedona really books up in advance!
Thanks for Sharing, that was fun! Beautiful pics.
Betty and I saw the red biplane overhead a lot. Once you get over the fear of falling out, I bet the views are incredible ! You can probably see all the way to Flagstaff and beyond.
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