Heading out next week for several days to hike and poke around the area. Staying in Flagstaff. I've done this trip before and usually end up hiking in the red rock canyons around Sedona.

My wife is going along this trip so I'm planning getting her out on some of the trails. Any special events or things to consider this time?

Thanks in advance.

Barry

Well, the grand canyon is only 90 minutes away. If you want to avoid the crowds, I'd recommend going up highway 89 to Cameron and then going into the East entrance. Lipan point is usually pretty un-crowded and a great place to watch the sunset.

For something closer, there's the Walnut canyon ruins and the Wupatki national monument. The crater trail is as close as you can come to walking on the moon. Both of these can be done in an afternoon.

Sedona is nice if it's cool out - we hop down there to go hiking all the time in the winter.

If you have something specific you want to do, let me know - I'll try to point you in the right direction.

Everyone always seems to say take a jeep trip around Sedona, but I've never done it. The airport is a great place to watch the sunset. And if you are into this type of thing, take a 30 minute drive to Jerome and visit a very interesting and unusual old mining town.

Thanks for the input JerryFF & FlyinMike.

I'm into photography ( all of Arizona obviously qualifies in that regard ) and I love to simply get out and grab shots of what ever strikes me as we plug along.

I see that Jerome is in the direction of Cottonwood. What sort of things do Jerome & environs have to see and what other stops might there be along the way? We'd be coming down from Flagstaff and could do some sort of a loop drive for the day. Looking at the map it looks like we'd come down 89A ending up in Jerome at some point in time. Is it best to continue to Prescott, or turn north from Jerome in the direction of Williams and then Flagstaff?

I make it out here a couple of times a year, so I'm not necessarily out to cover huge chunks of territory as much as I am to bite off pieces of things and to come back again to explore some more. So we're flexible folks who can spend time as required in a place knowing that we'll be back again.

Walnut Canyon & Wupatki have also been on my list of things not yet gotten to. I guess that temperatures might be one factor in deciding which direction to go this trip.

I do want to get a couple of hikes in Sedona since my wife has not been here before. We've got four full days as well as our arrival day in PHX ( getting in @ 9AM ). I plan I stopping in Sedona that afternoon and just poking around the town. I've always eschewed the tourist section and headed out to the trails. But this could be the day to kick back and do just that before heading up to Flagstaff and our hotel.

Any restaurant suggestions for Sedona or Flagstaff? We both want a nice Mexican place to eat. We could avoid that usual hamburger stop on the drive up from PHX and do lunch in Sedona.

Looks like the weather is a bit unsettled the next day or two and the rest of the week will be fine. Also, I know that AZ does not move its clock, but what's the AZ time difference relative to the east this time of year?

We're getting psyched!

Barry

Its not close by But a great day trip is Canyon de Chelly and Petrified Forrest is not far from there either. I stayed in Holbrook overnight when I did them both. PT wasnt so great but CdC was really nice and theres a couple of places where one can walk down into the Canyon w/o having to be with a Licensed Guide.

Its about 100+ miles east of Flag, CdC is then a bit North of I-40

If you haven't done it before also consider a day trip to the Meteorite crater just past Winslow.

Jersey,
As for the time, we're currently the same as West coast. It's 3 hours behind NJ time. There's only a 2 hour difference in the winter.

I'm not too hip on what good Mexican places are in Sedona, but I can recommend a few in Flag. Salsa Brava on E Rt. 66 is pretty good. Las Mananitas downtown (Beaver and Birch) is pretty good too. Casa Bonita on Milton is not bad - and has good margaritas. If you don't care about ambiance, and would like to grab a quick bite, IMHO, Burritos Fiesta has the best Tacos in town. Bring cash - they don't take plastic. In Sedona, the airport is a nice place to eat. We don't go down there to each to much - just for the hiking in the winter time. I'd avoid the tourist trap at the North end of highway 89 in town though.

Other good places to eat in Flag: Brandy's, Mrs Zips (local diner), Busters, Little Thai Kitchen (really good Thai, but tiny place), Dara Thai, Jackson's Grill, and Beaver Street Brewery has some tasty beers and good food to go with it. Mama Luisa has good Italian - there's also a couple of Italian places on heritage square, but they seem a bit spendy for what you get. If you want a really nice meal, the Cottage Place is the nicest restaurant in town. The food and service are always impeccable, but the price will reflect that fact.

Jerome is a nice little diversion, but there's not a whole lot there. You can do it in a few hours. Prescott is a neat little town as well and may be worth visiting. You could loop around and come back to Flag thru Chino Valley and Ashfork. There's not much to see in either of those places, but you will come back thru Williams if you go that way. Prescott is right around 100 miles from Flag.

If it's warm enough - which it might be by the end of the week, you might want to check out the Hart Prairie and Schultz Pass areas on the mountain. Fall is the best time to see Hart Parade though since it's full of aspens.

Right now and for the summer in general we are on Pacific time. I second the reccomendation for beaver street brewery

I have kicked this topic around a few times here with Flying Mike and others, most recently in December. Here's my view.

I prefer to drive myself. Yes, the Pink Jeep drivers know the area well. But you also give up the comfort of your own vehicle with a/c as well as the right to stop whenever you want for photography, etc.

Last year, while on Schnebbly Hill Road, I passed a number of Pink Jeeps that carried pax some of whom looked like they were holding on for dear life and/or about to lose their lunch.

On my last trip to Sedona, I rented a Hummer H3 from Avis and took it to Broken Arrow. My girlfriend made a very memorable video of us driving.

We're back from a very wonderful trip to Flagstaff and Sedona environs. What is there to say about driving to northern AZ except that it's a fantastic destination. Perhaps one should add that there's never enough time to do everything that you want to do. Thought I'd outline our trip and add some additional thoughts/comments.

• Smooth, on-time flight on US Air. That by itself is something given the FUBARS of the new PHX management.
• Easy airport transition to the new PHX car rental center. Get on the road quickly headed in the right direction on I-17 this time
• Arrive in Sedona shortly past noon after a picturesque drive up I-17. Make our 1st stop ever in the tourist section of town ( I wanted to buy a 1 year Red Rocks pass ). Realize that I've not missed anything not stopping here on previous trips.
• Take a biplane ride over the canyons. Gives my wife her 1st look at Sedona & the canyons we'll be hiking in. The heat causes turbulance & both of us are a bit queasy by landing, but absolutely glad we did it ( I'd eat the enchilada after the plane ride next time ). Staying in Flagstaff, so we get to drive Oak Canyon every day. ^
• Hike Secret Canyon trail Thursday. Even with temps at 90 + there's enough shade & breeze running up the canyon to keep your cool. Wifey is pooped out as it's over 10 miles RT. Not a lot of hikers, so we've got great solitude.
• Hike West Fork trail on Friday. Another 90 + day, but the shade & water in the stream make for a great day. Absolutely spectacular at trail's end where the stream continues on between narrow canyon walls. Take my shoes off & wade up the canyon in total solitude -- well, I do bump into a snake swimming by me. Lots of people on the trail, but few trek all the way in.
• Hike Fay Arch trail. Yes it's 92 on the trail & almost no one on the trail. Bypass going to the arch & head straight up the rock slide & along the sandstone ledge where we scoot up the 60 degree slope & spend the entire day relaxing on a ledge wrapped in shade & a vista view of the canyon while the air conditioning ( the wind ) keeps us cool & cozy. I was a little leary of snakes on the rocks, especially on the rock slide.
• On our last day, we head to Humphrys Peak & hike Kachina trail. Temp here is about 69 to 72. A great trail with Aspen & pine forests and great views as you work your way to the S-SE. My wife feels a little altitude effect as her NJ flatlander lungs are not quite up to a 9000 foot ordeal, but she still loves it.
• I shoot some 800 plus photos over 5 days. Don't let the numbers mislead you. With digital, you shoot lots of shots and exposures & sort them out in Photoshop when you get home, leaving you a managable batch of nice photos.

So we work in quite a bit of hiking in a few days ( I estimate almost 30 miles ). But there's so many things we want to see and do but we run out of time. Canyon de Chelly, Petrified Forrest, Jerome, Prescott, Shultz Pass & all sorts of other places are now on our to-do list for future trips.

The Marriott Residence Inn is a great place to stay, & folks at the hotel & elsewhere give us some great brochures & ideas for some of the above places as well as all sorts of other Indian sites.

We get into Flagstaff & get a better feel for the town. One night, folks are all packed into the town plaza watching Snow White where the movie is projected onto a wall like the old drive ins. It takes some getting used to the less luminous street lights and store signs when you're looking for street names, but we loved Flagstaff at night.

I check out FlyinMike's dining list using the phone book. Try to find Las Mananitas but it seems the place is gone ( replaced by the Matterhorn?). We have an OK meal at San Fellipes, but love the cantina feel ( and the cheap drinks -- though my wife learns the effect of altitude & alcohol ). Also dine at Mama Luisa's. A nice meal with a botella de vino at a decent price. Got an eyeball on Salsa Brava, Miz Zip's, Cottage Place, & Jacksons Grill for future visits. We're also getting adept at navigating Flagstaff from the Marriott via the back way to 180 instead of via 66. We also do lunch in Sedona the first day at Oaxcas, decent Mexican, no more no less.

Bump into some ladies who hike the area regularly. They reccomend a couple of hiking guide books by the Mangums, a local couple who have written about Sedona and Flagstaff hikes as well as some excellent topo maps by Emmit Banks Cartography for these areas. We find them at an outdoors outfitter on San Francisco street in Flagstaff.

So once again thanks to all for their suggestions. We're looking forward to our next visit in the fall.

Barry

Sorry I missed this earlier, glad you enjoyed the trip. I'm surprised nobody suggested the Lowell Observatory, it's an excellent way to spend a few hours in the evening. The drive out on Lake Mary Rd. towards Mormon Lake is also really pretty, lots of stars at night. I'd skip Meteor Crater, the Grand Canyon is a better trip no matter how many times you've been. My favorite dining in Flagstaff is at Crystal Creek Sandwich Co. and at Stromboli's, both of which are great bargain meals. I've only made it back once since I moved away in '00 but it was a great town. Granny's Closet is also a decent place to get some wings. Right across the street from San Felipe's is Uptown Billiards, and they have a nice assortment of draft beer and 9' pool tables.

They've started up movies on the square already? Man - I'm still in April mode here - guess I'd better get with the program! Summer's comin!

The dark lighting is part of the 'dark sky city' program which reduces light pollution. I live about 5 miles N of the Mall on 89 and we can see the milky way while sitting on our back patio. There's something I never get sick of.

Glad you guys had lots of fun. Looks like you got plenty of good hiking in. BTW: We live here and still get really winded when we're hiking up on the peaks. You're around 9000 feet there - so don't be too hard on yourselves.