From Sedona into the Canyonlands

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Sedona, South Rim of the Grand Canyon, and Monument Valley

Mon Jun 23 to June 27

Sedona

The drive from Flagstaff to Sedona through Oak Creek Canyon and onward to Cottonwood, (where Rollie’s friend and old Twin Oaks compatriot, Vince, lives), was one of the most scenic of the trip to date. Red rock canyon, narrow rushing river, lush vegetation despite the river’s current low state - it was lovely. We had dinner at a Thai restaurant while we waited for Vince to get home from a meditation group. His house, decorated with beautiful crystals and his kids’ art work, was a welcome respite from hot, dusty camping, and his front yard, a rock and cactus/flower garden was a pretty sight in the morning.

As only a local host can be, Vince was in-the-know about hiking in Oak Creek Canyon, and sent us off with details about where to park for free, how to get down into the river without paying a trailhead entrance fee, and one of the loveliest walks of our trip thus far. Wearing our river shoes, we walked in the cool water (which, given that the temperatures in the sun were in the high 90’s and possibly over 100, was the best type of recreation we could have had for the day), collecting stones, observing wildflowers and birds, enjoying the formations of the canyon and its overhanging walls. Max was in rock-collector heaven, of course, and all of us enjoyed the walk. But at a certain point, after lunch, after walking some more in the heat of the day, it was time to turn back……or was it?

Going Upriver

One of the things I began to learn on this walk was that if there’s a river - and it isn’t possible to reach its actual origin, or there isn’t some incredible sight or “destination” as a finale for the hike, Rollie will want to keep walking. There could be something more beautiful just around the bend, something more secluded and far from the madding crowd, that he will want to see. Just a little farther.

So we have to negotiate his trekking onward, and for how long, and so on. Sometimes Max wants to go too, the possibility of more exciting rocks and whether it is too hot being the primary factors. This is not so hard when there’s a great river slide area for dipping, as in this case—Max collected more rocks. Miles swam. I paddled and drafted a poem on the back of an envelope, and Rollie explored up-canyon. But in other instances, especially when it isn’t a river but a trail in 100 degree baking heat, or we haven’t got enough food or water or stamina for the desired adventure, factoring in the Rollie “explorador” drive can be tricky. Once in Canyonlands he wanted to take another trail back rather than return the way we had come (out and back again trails are not good for the Dr. Livingstone mentality), and ended up on a much longer walk than he had intended, with no water, no food, and us waiting in the heat - ah and then there was the bicycle adventure at Monument Valley that left us waiting about an hour in the heat and dust……………but I’m getting ahead of myself.

A Resort Town

Afternoon in Sedona. We had good frozen lattes on a patio overlooking the gorge, and got the story of how the various peaks are named (the Snoopy Rock) from the friendly barista - who declared he is one of the only people actually born in Sedona that he knows! Max and Miles explored in the rock shops, and Miles bought me a laughing Buddha statue made of Labradorite. Also I got a few postcards (which I think I not have mailed yet!!) and - key item - a windcatcher tchotchke to hang from the visor on my side of the car.

Then it was time to go in search of the vortices. Many people seem to believe in these spots of high energy, and a whole tourist industry has grown up around taking people to visit them. For $$, of course. We drove into a State Park and approached Cathedral Rock from the river - got some good pictures, walked upriver and noticed that a lot of people had built cairns, altars, peace symbols and other quasi-spiritual structures out of the plentiful rounded river rocks. But you couldn’t actually get to the rock from the park, it turned out. Once out of the park and driving up toward the rock, kind of guessing the way, we found what might have been a legal way in, but it was one of those trails that closes at dark - and there was a gate - so with the expensive Chaco petroglyphs in mind, we took a few more photos, content to have received our dose of vortex power from nearby rather than on the rock. If you believe in such things, the most truly powerful energy areas are not in those much-publicized spots, (though definitely in the Sedona area) but on privately-held land, we are told.

That night I worked while Rollie and Vince and Vince’s girlfriend put together a Thai dinner and the boys enjoyed watching TV. I also received a consult about my iron supplements, and decided to stop taking them. I felt much better as the trip went on, paying more attention to getting iron from food sources (raisins, prunes, apricots, greens). The next morning we had a leisurely breakfast, including apricots from Vince’s tree, and then headed out north toward the Grand Canyon, bearing a few sacks of apricots for the road ahead (they lasted about a week and a half, ripening at different rates and giving us fresh fruit each day!)

On to the Kaibab Plateau

The road to the Grand Canyon took us through Oak Creek Canyon again, and then through pretty scenery, with the elevation rising slowly toward the south rim. It took us a while to find our reserved lodgings at Yavapai, but once settled we headed out on the shuttle to some of the rim stops, watching the sun set from one of these, and then Rollie took the boys to “Star Party.” This event brings in hundreds of amateur astronomers from around the region. They bring their fancy telescopes and set them up so that visitors can go from scope to scope seeing various planets, stars and other features, such as star clusters (M38?), and a ring nebula. These aren’t just your average backyard telescopes, but things they bring in on huge trailers. My reporters tell me that they also had laser pointers to point our constellations. I got in some work while they were star gazing, and Rollie and I attempted to get to bed early (and hound Max into stopping reading relatively early) so we could get going early for a hike down into the rim, hoping to beat the heat.

We picked the South Kaibab Trail, hiking about 2 miles down to…Devil’s Knob (I think that’s the spot). When we began, it was still comparatively early, and there was shade on the trail and the heat was not too bad. We were probably turning around to return to the rim at about 11 or 11:30 after having lunch, so it was heating up and there was less shade.

Although it was only part way down the canyon, it was difficult enough, and so gave me a feel for how deep the canyon truly is and also how serious the warnings are about trying to hike down to the bottom and back in one day. At the rim, one is so far away from the river - I’m not sure the boys were that impressed and even for myself, I see that it may be hard to get a feel for the grandeur of the canyon without being on the river. Later in the trip our river guide for our trip on the American River in California showed me her photos of a multi-day rafting/camping trip on the Colorado through the canyon, and that has whet my appetite to do that someday.

The boys were done with hiking and rim overlooks, so they stayed in the room while Rollie and I headed out for Shoshone Point - a short walk recommended by the guide book of day hikes Maggie loaned us. True to what the book suggested, as it was a weekend, there was a family reunion going on at the picnic area just before the point, but it must have begun much earlier, as only a few people actually came on out to the point to see the view, and then they headed back and we had the entire spot to ourselves to watch the sunset. It was a lovely place and we got a feeling of solitude that I think is rare at the South Rim, especially in peak season!

Next morning Rollie and I got up before sunrise to go watch the sun come up over Yavapai Point. We then walked along the rim trail for a way to enjoy the crisp morning before turning back to go rouse the boys. After packing up, we drove out along the rim drive toward the eastern entrance, stopping at a few overlooks and at the Desert View area, where the Watchtower built by architect Mary Colter as a viewing station, was very impressive. It takes into account the Native American architecture of the region, and the fact of the Canyon as a spiritual place for these tribes. The shape of an Ancestral Puebloan or contemporary kiva is echoed, complete with wooden ladders in places, and replicas of petroglyphs and other symbolism from Native Americans in that area form the interior decor; it seemed not only a tower from which to view the canyon, but also a celebration of its essence. It also happened to hold a trading post with authentic Native American works, and I bought two small artist-signed Zuni fetishes, a bison for Rollie (carved in obsidian) and a snake for me, carved in reddish pipestone with turquoise dots. Traditionally these were carved in association with daily activities - a bison to encourage a bountiful hunt, or a snake (whose zig zag shape symbolizes the lightning that can accompany rain) to call up the rain required for a good harvest.

After leaving the South Rim we began to drive through the desert earnest. Although we did not have time on this trip to see Betatakin or Keet Seel (nor did I think the boys would take to more Ancestral Puebloan ruins), we did go through Monument Valley - which is on Navajo land, and most of which, other than the mittens formations, is invisible from the highway. It is a truly impressive landscape.
Next blog: Canyonlands, Manti La Salle, Moab and Arches.

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Comments

[Alyssa]

Breathtaking!
Your pictures are amazing! Great job keeping up with the travel log Amelia. I always look forward to reading the Great American Roadtrip updates. Call me when you get a chance. Much love to all!