Sedona, Arizona

On our way back down from Kingman, we drove through Willams because I forgot my Kindle at the hotel. Luckily the hotel found it, and we made a slight detour. Since we rerouted our plans, after a quick stop in Williams, we decided that instead of taking the highway down to Phoenix, we would take a detour, and drive the scenic route down 89A to Sedona to check out their famous Red Rocks.

We drove through Slide Rock State Park, it was one of the best views I've ever seen.

If you’ve heard of Sedona, then you know that it’s considered a sacred place, one revered by New Age thinkers and lambasted by skeptics. I may not have had any earth-shattering realizations or resolved latent emotional issues, but Sedona did make an impression on me.

One of the most popular things to do is to take a jeep tour. We were told to take a Pink Jeep Tour, You’ll see these pink jeeps all over town. Pink Jeep Tours hosts off-road expeditions through the Red Rock region (and other Southwestern cities), and if you’re OK with a very bumpy ride, you must sign up for one of their tours. When we finally made it back, we went with A Day in the West, because they had a great deal on Groupon and Pink Jeep wasn't in our budget.  But don't let that get you down, there are so many FREE things to check out in Sedona, if anything walking around the city looking at the pretty red rocks will make you feel better.

Things to do in Sedona:

Hiking Trails: Devils Bridge (most popular), other popular trails Bell Rock, Cathedral Rock

Take a tour Jeep Tours: A day in the West

Red Rock State Park

Oak Creek Canyon

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A day in the West, Sedona, AZ

Back in July I took another trip to Arizona. Drew and I both fell in love with Sedona and really wanted to take another trip there. So for our 5th anniversary, I flew back out to Arizona so we could spend some time together! I knew that while visiting Sedona we would have to take a Jeep tour, it's THE thing to do while visiting. I researched so many places, before we settled on A day in the West.

To be honest, we chose to go with this company because they had a Groupon, going around, and I love a good deal! It worked out great because the Diamondback Jeep tour, is the same path that most of the other tour groups go on as well. The Diamonback Jeep tour is rugged 4 x 4 trail that is sure to get your heart racing, as it climbs through the back country of Sedona's western canyons.

We chose to do the sunset tour, because if you've ever been to Arizona in July, you know that the average temperatures are over a 100 degrees! (**If you take this tour make sure to take a jacket, by the time we got back the sun had set and I was freezing!)

There were a total of 7 of us including our guide, it was us and another family of 4. The bumpiest seat are the back ones. Our guide was great, he told us all the interesting facts about Sedona and the red rocks. He pointed out some cool little spots to take, and even told us where to go for our hike up to the Devil's Bridge the next day. Our driver was so knowledgeable as pointed out natural landmarks around the area and fondly told us about them. I learned later that it was a family run company that has been around since the 40's! How cool is that?

If you have a heart condition, not a fan of bumpy roads, I wouldn't suggest this. But if you're a fan of adventure, want the "Sedona experience" you have to take a jeep tour, and you can't beat the price with A day in the West. Besides, the views while on the tour are the absolute best in the city!

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Sabino Canyon, AZ

My wonderful husband, Drew is in Arizona for the summer, he's been exploring this beautiful state and was willing to guest post for me. Best husband ever! In this post he's going to share his experience in Southern Arizona hiking to the Seven Falls near Tucson.

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The Seven Falls hike is one of the most popular hikes in Southern Arizona, and when the water level is right it is definitely one of the best for taking a dip.

When I heard about the Seven Falls hike, I couldn’t wait to go myself. Once I started tell people about my plans to hike the Seven Falls Trail, more and more people became interested in making the hike as well. By the time the weekend came around, 4 other people agreed to make the 8.2 mile-roundtrip hike. From what I heard, it is best to try and get started on the hike first thing in the morning, especially since Southern Arizona can get VERY hot, very quickly. Since there is no parking for Bear Canyon, the start of the Seven Falls hike begins at the Sabino Canyon Visitor Center. From the Sabino Canyon parking lot, hikers just have to follow the signs for “Seven Falls”. There is also a tram that you can hop on at the visitor center that will take you a little over a mile up the road.

The hike starts out as a wide dirt trail, but meets up with a paved road after about a half mile. If your go on a particularly hot day like I did (it was 96 degrees when we started the hike), there is a dirt trail that runs parallel to the hard ball road and meets back up with the road at the start of the Bear Canyon trail head. It will offer you some relief from the extreme heat coming up off the asphalt road.

Once on the Seven Falls trail you will cross the Bear Creek seven times before getting to the falls. There are not very many signs directing you where to go once you get on the trail head, but the path is pretty well traveled so it isn’t difficult to find your way. For the most part, the trail follows the creek, so if you are unsure which way to go, just follow the path in the direction of the creek. Depending on the water levels the crossings over the creek can range from easy to mildly difficult, so be careful. After the seventh crossing, the trail climbs up the east side of Bear Canyon through a series of switchbacks with a moderate incline until wrapping around the back side of Bear Canyon to Seven Falls, which can be seen clearly from the trail.

Once you make it to the falls, there is a couple small lakes that you can swim in, or just cool off in. If you want to make your way up to the top of the falls, be aware that it will require you to climb some steep rocks, and will require moderate skill from the time you reach the halfway point to the top. But the view from the top is amazing.

The trip back seemed much easier than the trip to the falls, and since it was almost entirely downhill, it took far less time to get back to the Sabino Canyon Visitor Center than to get to Seven Falls. The total round trip should take approximately 3 hours, but it would be best to give yourself extra time.

The trail is dog-friendly.

Some helpful hints:

+ Bring lots of water! The trail offers little shade.

+ Opt for hiking boots over running shoes, most of the trail is over rocky terrain

+ Wear fast-drying clothes or bring a towel, you’re going to want to spend time in the water once you reach the falls

+ The base of the falls is a great place to break for lunch or a picnic.

+ Be sure to bring plenty of water and snacks

Address:

Sabino Canyon - Bear Creek

Tucson, AZ 85750

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Devil's Bridge, AZ

Sedona is known for its many hiking trails and outdoor activities. So naturally, when planning our trip, I knew we had to do some type of hike through the red rocks. But the lazy girl in me knew that I wouldn't want to hike for very long, so after some research I found the Devil's Bridge. The Devil’s Bridge is the largest natural sandstone arch (54 feet tall) in the Sedona area. After showing Drew a picture, I knew this was the hike we were going to take.

The Devil's Bridge is one of the most popular hikes in the area, throughout my research I knew that we needed to wake up first thing in the morning and make the hike. Not only because it's Arizona in July, but because it was also a holiday weekend. We had everything planned to wake up at 6am, but when we woke up, it was pouring and it wasn't going to stop until 8am.

Thankfully the rain eventually stopped as we headed into Sedona. There are 3 different ways to get to the Devil's Bridge depending on the type of vehicle you have.

Depending on your vehicle capabilities, you can go on a short hike or a longer trail to the arch. To get to the closest parking area, you need to have a 4WD vehicle, since the last bit of the road is very washed out with a couple of potholes. Since, we only had a little compact rental, it's safe to say we made the right choice to park and hike.

First option is to park in the lot right before the 4WD trail starts and walk alongside the road, or follow the trail (we ended up following the trail then linking up to the road, then walking along the road on the way back) it's about a 3.6 miles RT.

Second option, is to park at the Chuckwagon Trail head, and hike through the connecting trail to the Devil's Bridge. This trail eventually links up near the parking lot and bumpy road, this trail appeared to be a much more scenic route for those looking for a hike. Round trip, you are looking at around 6 miles of hiking if you opt for this path.

In my opinion the first option is the best, you do have to get there as early as possible, when we arrived, there were about 3 other cars in the parking lot. But by the time we left the parking lot was full, and cars were lined up on Dry Creek Road. But if you love to sleep in, take option 2.

We decided to follow the trail instead of walking along the road. It's a bit longer, but the views are absolutely beautiful. I wish Rylie was able to join us on this trip. She would've had so much fun running around.

The trail itself is pretty easy, basically follow the trail until you have to start climbing a rock staircase that leads up the rocks to the arch. At one point, there is a portion of rocks that require you to practically climb up, it looked pretty scary, but it’s not very challenging. In this case, looks can be deceiving!

Once we finally made it to the bridge Drew went running across without a second thought. He scared the crap out of me, from the angle I was standing it looked it he was at the edge! He sure knows how to keep me on my toes! But when I finally made it over I realized that it was much safer than I thought.  Although it looks terrifying to cross the bridge, it is actually about 5 feet across and 45 feet long.

We ended up spending more time at the bridge than we had planned. There was a crowd of people, but everyone was so great about not being on the bridge to let other get their picture.

The hike back down was much quicker than expected. It was about 10:30a once we started making our way down. The sun was high in the sky and the Arizona heat hit us hard. I know one thing, even though our morning didn't start off as planned, I'm glad we started as early as we did!

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Tuzigoot National Monument

If you were following along while we were living in Germany, you know that I absolutely love castle ruins. Thankfully, in Europe there is not shortage of ruins. Since the USA is such a young country and we tend to destroy things rather than preserve them, I was pleasantly surprised to find that there are ruins here in the USA! To be fair, Tuzigoot isn't actually castle ruins, they are ruins, but from a distance they look like castle ruins.

After our visit to Montezuma Castle, while browsing the gift shop, we came across a picture of Tuzigoot. It looked just like a ruin and both Drew and I agreed that if it was nearby we would go and see it. We asked a Ranger where it was located and she told us it was about 30 minutes away in Clarkdale. Turns out the ruins, were about 10 mins away from our hotel (what are the odds?)

Tuzigoot National Monument preserves a 2- to 3-story pueblo ruin on the summit of a limestone and sandstone ridge just east of Clarkdale, Arizona, 120 feet above the Verde River floodplain.

Tuzigoot is the largest and best-preserved of the many Sinagua pueblo ruins in the Verde Valley. The ruins at Tuzigoot incorporate very few doors. Instead they use trapdoor type openings in the roofs, and use ladders to enter each room.

At this site, remains of pithouses can be seen as well as petroglyphs, although the petroglyphs can only be viewed on certain days of the week.

We arrived to Tuzigoot a little after 3:30p, although we have the NPS pass, they stop charging an entrance fee at 3:30 (for those who want a save a few dollars). If you're looking to save some money, check it out at after 3:30. You can walk up to the ruins and see everything in less than 30 minutes. A self-guided, 1/3-mile loop trail leads you around and through an incredible 110 room pueblo. The trail also offers outstanding views of the Verde River and Tavasci Marsh. Follow the road another 1/2 mile round trip, it will take you to a beautiful constructed overlook of Tavasci Marsh. (Much better than the 4km one way to check out ruins!)

Tuzigoot is an elongated complex of stone masonry rooms that were built along the spine of a natural outcrop in the Verde Valley. The central rooms stand higher than the others and they appear to have served public functions. Tuzigoot is Apache for "crooked water", from nearby Pecks Lake, a cutoff meander of the Verde River. Historically, the pueblo was built by the Sinagua people between 1125 and 1400 CE.

This was such an interesting site to see. Unfortunately mother nature wasn't cooperating with us, so we didn't get to stay quite as long as we would've like. But if you're in the area, it is a must see!

Additional Info:

GPS: 25 Tuzigoot Rd, Clarkdale, AZ 86324

Cost: Adults $10 // Children (15 & Under:) Free

National Parks Services Pass: Free

Hours: 8a-4p Daily // Christmas Day: Closed

Pet Friendly

Stroller Friendly

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