Today we had a full schedule. Despite the packed agenda, we had a perfectly lazy morning, with the noted exception of our early wake up call courtesy of the little guy. 6am came way too early! The hotel had a fabulous spread for breakfast, so the kids enjoyed fresh muffins, fresh fruit, waffles and the like. We filled up at Costco and then fought rush hour (???) traffic at 11:15am. We have no idea what all the traffic was from, but there sure was a lot of it.
Fortunately, the scenery was interesting and we discussed arid regions versus semi arid regions (do you know the difference?), and the type of vegetation that grow in those areas. We passed countless Saguaro (saw-WAH-row) cacti, which is similar to the Organ Pipe cacti in that it is columnar. However, the Saguaro is the cactus you would typically associate with a “southwestern” theme with the arms branching in the middle or near the top, whereas the Organ Pipe cactus branches from the base. We also saw my least favorite cactus in the whole wide world…the Jumping Chollas. Trust me when I tell you these things are vicious. They are mean, they do jump and they don’t let go.
Our first stop was at Montezuma Castle National Monument. We had lunch (peanut butter and jelly) and then set off to see what we could see. This was a nice stop with a good trail that led to the bottom of a cliff dwelling along the banks of Beaver Creek. We stopped for a bit at the Visitor’s Center and then went off to see the dwellings. It was an area that was home to more than 100 Sinagua (sin agua ~ without water) Indians until roughly the 1400’s when it is assumed that they moved north and joined the Hopi Indians on the mesas.
Once we finished at Montezuma Castle, we headed off toward Red Rock State Park. As we drove and encountered more traffic due to construction, we decided to just drive through Sedona, AZ and continue north on the Oak Creek scenic highway to Flagstaff. Wow, was that ever worth our time! As soon as we were off the interstate, we saw some of the most amazing red cliffs and geological formations I’ve ever seen. It was simply incredible. There is just no way to adequately describe the majesty and magnificence of the area around Sedona. I think it is just one of those things you have to experience for yourself. Kind of like the Grand Canyon…pictures in books just don’t do it justice.
As we left Sedona and wound our way up Oak Creek, we rapidly transitioned from the bleakness of the scrub brush and cactus region up to the forests that surround Flagstaff, AZ. The change in altitude and temperature in such a short time was amazing! Our next stop was at the Walnut Canyon National Monument where we were once again able to view the remains of many more cliff dwellings. This area wasn’t nearly as accessible as the Montezuma Castle remains, but it was still fascinating nonetheless. The remains were down in a steep canyon. Unfortunately, the trail closed at 4pm, but we were still able to view a good many of the dwellings from the observation deck at the Visitor’s Center.
Today has just been a beautiful day with lots of interesting things to see and do. We’re all pretty tired though. Last night was a pretty late night, and it took the kids awhile to settle down to go to sleep. It was 10pm before we got the kids in bed…way too late! Tonight will be a much earlier night since we are already nearly to our destination. I’m writing my blog in the car while Mike is driving. Gotta love the perks of being the passenger!
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