Sedona, Arizona
21/02/2025
On the way to Sedona
I had to check out the Wigwam motel on the way out of Holbrook. There are only 3 of these motels left in the USA...two on route 66 and one in Kentucky. It was part of a motel chain built in the 1930's and 1940's and the wigwams are made of concrete. They are technically tipees but I'm not sure why they are called wigwams. I loved the antique cars sitting around. My next stop was what I thought might be a traditional "tourist trap" however, it turns out the Meteor Crater Center was very educational and cool. The crater was formed due to meteorite impact in the Arizona desert over 50,000 years ago. It is about 3,900 feet in diameter and some 560 feet deep. Pictured below is a piece of the actual meteorite that was mined from the crater site. During the 1960s and 1970s, NASA astronauts trained in the crater to prepare for the Apollo missions to the Moon and ongoing field training for astronauts continues to this day. I took a tour along a portion of the rim of the crater and learned more about the crater site history. Pretty interesting stuff.
Courthouse Butte and Bell Rock loop hike
Absolutely stunning sunrise views on this hike. I probably took close to 100 photos but, will spare you the "long vacation slide presentation." I chose a few of my favorites. I intended to hike the full trail loop however, got a bit spooked by the howls of the coyotes in the not so distant area. I opted to re-trace my steps to head back to the trailhead but, still got five miles in before 9 AM (yep, sleepy eyed early morning photo). Did you spot the hot air balloon?
Chapel of the Holy Cross
The chapel is on every must see list when visiting Sedona. It is a gorgeous Catholic chapel nestled in the rocks above. It was a nice to have a moment of prayer and reflection here in this beautiful place of worship.
Rim Run Jeep tour
Fun evening taking a VERY bumpy Jeep ride up Bear Wallow Canyon with overlooks of Sedona and Merry Go Round rock. We had a knowledgeable tour guide who was also into finding vortexes. You may think it's hokey but, at the top of the trail he felt there was a great sense of energy. Our tour group of 10 stood in a circle and created enough energy that we could all feel it in our finger tips! It was pretty wild.
Sedona sunrise (day two)
I set aside today for hiking and lots of ground was covered on the trails (11 miles total). Sunrise photos were taken at the Airport Mesa trail overlook. It was super cold and windy but the surroundings were so peaceful. The hot air balloon launch was an added bonus!
Trail to Devil's Bridge
The Devil's Bridge trail was my favorite in Sedona. It's a 4.2 mile round trip trail with some rock scramble at the top (trail photo below). Along the way, I saw some interesting things to share. The first plant is an agave plant with the nickname "Cowboy Killer" partly due to the high level of poisonous milk in the plant as well as if you were to fall onto the plant the spikes are solid and not forgiving. The second plant is a yucca plant. The curly strings are called "cords" and came in handy for the Indians as they used them for dental floss, sewing thread, etc. The dog is just plain cool.
Devil's Bridge
To get a photo on Devil's Bridge has been on my bucket list for quite some time. Achieved! It is the largest natural sandstone arch in the Sedona area. As you can imagine, it is also one of the most popular trails and photo ops in the area as well. I hiked early and really enjoyed conversing with the few people in line ahead of me at the top that were also waiting to get their photo. The gorgeous views from the top were just an added bonus. Other images were taken along the trail.
A great way to end a great trip...
You can imagine my excitement when I realized Amy Grant was on tour and she just so happened to be in Phoenix the same night I was. It was just too good to be true so I had to get a concert ticket! The venue was the infamous Celebrity Theatre which I knew nothing about but it quickly became one of my favorite concert venues. It was built in 1963 and has hosted numerous famous recording artists including Amy Grant several times over the years since the 1980's. Directly from their website description: "For 60 years, the historic venue has provided patrons with the ultimate in entertainment viewing featuring an extremely rare revolving stage and no seat is more than 70 feet away from your favorite artist!" I had excellent seats for concert and was able to attend the soundcheck in the afternoon. This concert ranked in the top five favorite shows I have attended for her. I loved that she sang so many older songs from the past and some I had never heard her perform live before. What a treat and a great way to end my Arizona trip to see Amy perform on my last night. To wrap up the Sedona section, I will say how much I fell in love with this town! I rarely say in my travels that I would like to return to an area as there are so many places to explore. However, I would love to visit Sedona again and it ranks in the top 10 of my favorite towns I've visited. Thank you for following along on this trip to Arizona! Trip stats: Miles driven in rental car: 926 Gallons of gas used: 16! (my rental car was a 2024 Prius!) Miles hiked/walked: 40 miles Flights of stairs climbed: 260 Number of hot chai tea consumed: 3 cups Number of collectible thimbles purchased: 3 Pounds I gained during trip: yeah, right...I'm not telling!
