Sedona...America's Most Beautiful City

That's their words, not mine.  However, it is an amazingly beautiful place.  It is about a 30 minute drive down from Flagstaff to Sedona.  You can take the interstate but the real views are down 89A through Oak Creek Canyon.  To be honest, after seeing the Grand Canyon...this is a bit of a letdown...

It was even a little hard for the boys to get excited about the drive down...

The rock down this canyon is of the red variety.  Bunches and bunches of red colored rock.

Sedona was a neat town (city?) with bunches of little shops everywhere.  They did a very nice job (I'm sure through local ordainances) to keep the architecture consistent.  I will say that there is a view out of every shop, house, road, etc.  It's almost like it is in a little hole with red sheer cliffs all around.  We did a bit of shopping (against the wishes of a few gentlemen - at least for a while) and discovered some local Indians doing some traditional songs and dance.  It was fascinating.

The guys got more excited when we went to a shop (Sedona Sunset) that had a dulcimer the owner allowed customers to play.  Suddenly, all was right with the shopping experience!  They also had some Indian flutes for sale and a way to let the customers try them out.  It was a good stop because Nathan came out with one of the flutes.  Another instrument in the Barrick household...oh my!

The boys enjoyed playing with the cactus...

This last picture is in honor of Kim Winemiller.  She'll have to tell us what it looks like...I already happen to know the answer but I'm sure she'll pick it out very quickly!

After the time in Sedona, it was up the road to Holbrook.  We stayed at a hotel that had an indoor pool and got there a little earlier than we had been so there was time to 'chill', do some laundry, get 're-organized', etc.  We really needed it by this point!  Next day was the Petrified Forest!

We didn't get a picture but we ate supper at one of the places off 'Historic Route 66' called Ranchero...or something like that.  The discussion was how red Brandon Phagan's face would be if he had some of their salsa ;)  It was a bit spicy!

Until the next report...

Grand Canyon...Day2...The Ride Back.

We caught the bus back to the 'Grand Canyon Village' to grab some lunch (hot dogs) and wait to take the train back.  We did go over and check out the Bright Angel Trail.  Met a couple who had hiked down the South Kaibab Trail, spend two nights down at the bottom, hiked up to Indian Gardens (a campsite/ranger station about half way down the Bright Angel Trail), watched the sunset from Plateau Point, and hiked out Friday.  Sounds like a very nice week to me.  It took them about 3 hours to hike the last 5 miles.

We visited the Hopi House...

The El Tovar...

Ask me about the mistake on that building some time...

Then it was back on the train...

From the world famous Grand Canyon Depot...

We went through a little wash area where you could see both ends of the train at the same time.  That is always neat...

What!?...could those be train robbers out there?  The train didn't slow down to let them on did it?

Yes, they did and now they're on the train!

The train ride was a fun way to get to the Grand Canyon.  They took care of everything for us.  My only observation is they put the 'GRATUITY NOT INCLUDED'' on the tickets for a reason!  It was a very unique and enjoyable way to see the Grand Canyon.  There were comments made that in the next few years they are going to place restrictions on private auto/RV traffic going into the Grand Canyon.  The reason given was pollution control but I'm sure it will also benefit the Railway as a method to get to the park.  All-in-all, we thoroughly enjoyed riding the train.

Grand Canyon...Day 2...Will Melinda Make It?

Another beautiful morning.  The weather this whole trip could not have been better.  One thing about the Grand Canyon, everything starts early.  This is due to the heat in the summer (105+ down in the canyon itself).  Our hike down the South Kaibab Trail was scheduled to begin at 8:00 AM.  Somehow, we all made it...

The Canyon shortly after sunrise...still stunning.

Our hike was 1.5 miles down to Cedar Ridge.  Doesn't sound like much until you hear it is over 1,200 feet below the rim. Yikes.  Melinda is still saying...'I don't think I can do this!'.  Have I mentioned lately that the elevation is around 6,800 feet above sea level at the rim?

Here's a picture for Pappy...yes, we're seeing your comments ;).  A few of the world famous Grand Canyon mules...

The ranger shows up and we're off.  After the standard, be careful, leave everything as you find it, don't feed the squirrels, stay on the wall side and the people coming up have the right-of-way, etc, etc, etc.  Down we went.

And yes, it was steep...that's the boys on one of the switchbacks...with some new friends.

Around every corner was a new, different, spectacular view of the same place...

 

We made it down to Cedar Point in about 1.5 hours.  The ranger gave some talks on the way down so it really could have taken less time but the talks were very interesting.  I would recommend taking the ranger led hike for the first time.  At least for novice hikers (like us).  Cedar Ridge is out in the canyon.  You can go out on a point away from the rim walls.  It feels like you are in the middle of the Grand Canyon.  Here are some pictures from the ridge.

And the trail we came down...

Now, to get back out!  Slow and steady...the ranger's advice.  We started out a little to fast but Melinda found a pace she could handle.  The boys went on ahead (where else could they go but up to the top?)

Here's my beautiful wife saying...'This isn't a big deal!'...I don't see any huffing a puffing at this point.

The top has some pretty steep grades...yep, those are people coming up and down the trail.  Makes you wonder where they are walking.

We made it!!!!!!  It took about an hour to hike back out.  No pictures...we were tuckered out!

If you get a chance to hike down into the canyon, I strongly recommend it.  The ranger said 95% of the visitors never go below the rim.  Do yourself a favor (if your physically able) and take a hike down into the canyon.  It is well worth the time and effort.  The views are amazing and there is something special about being down in the 'big hole'.  The boys already want to come back and hike all the way down, spend the night (or two), and hike back out.  Guess I need to start saving now!  Overall, it really wasn't that difficult and an absolute blast!

Next up, the train ride back.

Grand Canyon...Day 1

The big day!  Woke up to a beautiful, if chilly, morning.  After a marvelous breakfast, it was off to the depot to catch our train...

Ok, I admit, this wasn't our train.  This is a display.  They do actually run steam powered trains in the summer but not in the 'off-season'. 
Being frugal gets you a basic diesel engine.  Still a fun ride...

Prior to the train ride they have a little cowboy skit.  One of the cowboys said, 'Hey Carolina...come pet the horse!...Now!'  We tried but something about having a stranger tell Samuel to get his picture by the horse had the desired effect!

The horse was named Spot.  Anyway, there was entertainment on the way to the Grand Canyon.  This guy was pretty funny.

The hostess in our car was very informative and knowledgeable.  Hate to admit that we never took her picture.  I'll still make a shout out to Morgan from the Grand Canyon Railway.  She did an awesome job.  Before we knew it...we were there!

I want to start with this picture of a plaque outside the Lookout Studio.  We didn't see this until the second day but I think it sums up what we were about to see.

And at our first stop on the bus tour...WOW!

I can tell you now.  No picture, commentary, exaggeration, nothing, can capture the grandeur of the Grand Canyon.  It is immense.  Someone said before we went that you can't describe it or capture it with a picture.  They were right.  What an awesome creation God has made.

We have gobs of pictures.  I'm sorry, they just don't do it justice.  But here are a few anyway.

One more picture...This is Plateau Point.  A mere 5-6 mile hike down the Bright Angel Trail.

That is the most zoom our camera has.  If you enlarge the picture, you might be able to make out the mule train coming back.  They would be the black dots single file on the trail.

Ok, one more.  Here is a picture of part of the trail we would be hiking on Friday.  We didn't go down this far into the canyon but it was just like this at the top of the trail too.  Intimidating...by this time Melinda is saying, 'I don't think I can do that'.

 

Another shout out to Joe our bus driver.  What a help he was.  Once again, we didn't get a picture of him but he pointed us in the right direction all the way.

After a little 'hike' (thanks to my amazing directional abilities! Ok, so we got into a little pine forest we probably shouldn't have been in), we made it over to the rim for sunset.  Stunning doesn't even come close.

I wise I was eloquent enough to capture some of my thoughts in words.  If you ever get a chance to see the Grand Canyon...do it!

Walnut Canyon - Indian Cliff Dwellers

After our hike up Red Mountain, we went over to Walnut Canyon National Monument.  This is where a group of Native Americans (the Sinagua) made there home in the canyon...

Little tidbit here..240 steps down to the level that has the trail...more exercise.  And here is your home...I'm guessing they were pretty careful stepping out the front door!

It was amazing to me that anyone lived here.  It was sheer cliffs everywhere.  Based on the info at the visitor's center, it looked like they used ropes and ladders to navigate the different levels in the canyon.

Inside, the walls were still blackened from the smoke.  It was a pretty ingenious method.  They would leave a little hole above and the door.  The draft would pull the smoke from the fire right out the hole above the door.  We're not sure how many people lived in each room but I think the quarters were probably pretty cramped...

The doors were really small and they would cover them with animal skins except for the small hole at the bottom.  Seth could have zipped right in and out of there...me, not so easily.

All in all, pretty impressive.  How they found the location, made it inhabitable, survived for many years, amazing.

The First Hike...Red Mountain

First things first...I posted the wrong picture on the last post of the Native American village...it was supposed to be this one...picturesque, don't you think?

Here's where we were going to try out our hiking legs and adjustment to altitude.  The area in which we were staying is between 6000-7000 feet above sea level.  Yes, that is higher than the Mile High city of Denver!  Doesn't look too bad does it?  It was supposed to be a half hour hike.  Red Mountain is an extinct volcano...pumice stone everywhere.  All the mountains around Flagstaff come from volcanic eruptions.  They use the cinders from these mountains for the roads, railroad tracks, etc. just like we use gravel.

The young men right before the hike...

The common sense people right before the hike...

Monkeys were found in the trees...

This is part of the cinder cone on the front side of the mountain...more about the views from here in a minute.  It was like walking on little pebbles...and it wasn't exactly a 'slight incline'.  We were only about 50 feet above Melinda when she took this picture.

The rock is full of erosion holes.  We noticed several of these holes were used for bird nests.

I climbed up the back of the mountain and this was the view...

We setup the automatic timer to get a shot with the red walls in the background.  Other than another group of 3 people, we had the whole mountain to ourselves.

The other group told us about a slot canyon that we hiked up into...well not everyone made it all the way into the slot...this was the view out.

Melinda wanted everyone to know that she made it up this little log into the next section!  That was as far as she made it.  The next sheer portion had another log but the last three feet was just some indentations in the rock.  I'm still proud that she made it past this little obstacle.

Due to the fact that we weren't huffing and puffing enough we decided to climb the cinder cone portion...what a view!  If you look way off in the distance, that is the North Rim of the Grand Canyon in the distance.  They were doing a bunch of prescribed burns (they set the forest on fire purposely) in the area and I think that's why it was so hazy.

Seth kept wanting to take some of the prickly parts off the cactus...this particular area only has the smaller variety.  Could be that nice quality ground on which it's growing!

Here is a view of the mountain from the cinder cone.  Looks completely different from this angle.

Melinda decided she wanted to climb up the cinder cone too...It's nice that she has some gentlemen to pull her up!

Another family picture this time from the cinder cone.  Those are additional cinder cone peaks in the background.  That should also be the north rim in the background.  The little Ponderosa Pine tree made a suitable - but difficult - tripod.

David my boy, this last one is for you.  Mule deer everywhere!  No buck in this particular group but I did see some on the train ride.  Start planning your trip now!

My first impression of Northern Arizona was that this doesn't look like desert to me.  I guess technically it's not.  More of the grassy plateau environment.  Wildlife were in abundance everywhere.  It is beautiful country right around Flagstaff and Williams.  As you move east, it gets a little more like the desert and considerably flatter but there are still white faced Arizona buffalo in the fields (those would be the local definition of a cow).