After a solid week of excellent adventures based out of Phoenix, it was time to make a pilgrimage to Sedona. You see, we're big into crystals and vortexes. Nope. Sorry. I got that wrong. We're into red rocks and epic views. So easy to confuse. Sorry.
Twas an early morning. So early (or maybe the night before was so late) we had to do a second stop for coffee. When we arrived at the trailhead just north of town I buzzed out of the car while Mr. HOS worked on rousing himself from a nice nap.
The trail we'd chosen wasn't extreme, but did promise some pretty epic views. We started at the Grasshopper Point Swimming and Picnic Area. Don't worry. You won't have to see pictures of either of us swimming.
The trail follows Oak Creek north to Casner Canyon where we'd have to cross Oak Creek. On a bridge? Made of oak? LOL. No. No bridge. We hopped rocks and three of our four feet made it across dry.
An unnamed trail finally had us climbing through scrub along the edge of the cliffs above Oak Creek. Amazing views to the west, but the big prize was due south. Our trail skirted the side of a 6,000 foot mesa.
Of course, a trail on slickrock isn't so much a trail as a set of connected markers. Sometimes. Sometimes there's no indication where the trail was. We'd look for any clue, look at the map, and then make a guess. Luckily, we always found some sign and stayed on track.
It was all worth it when we gained the saddle between that big mesa and The Teapot. It was a wide bench of rock that was a perfect spot to sit in the morning sun. Just remember: It's never too early for Sour Patch Kids.
From the saddle we were again riding the edge of cliffs below The Teapot to Queen Victoria and Pointed Dome. (No. I'm not making up these names.) Along the way, there were some spicy sections as the "trail" followed the contours of the mountain. No worries, though, because the rock was dry and sticky.
Unfortunately, we couldn't stay above the trees the entire day so we dropped down toward Oak Creek. It was getting a little warm for us Northwesterners so getting out of the sun was a relief. Oh, yeah. We had to cross Oak Creek again. Two for four dry feet.
We saw only three people the entire day. Saw no snakes. No birds. Pretty much nothing except red rock and blue skies. And then we got excellent BBQ before the drive back to Phoenix.
