Montezuma's Well is a deep-water spring-fed pond where we found some unusual and antique graffiti painted on a rock wall.
The views from the highways around Sedona are breathtaking.
Another stunning view from the highways around Sedona.
the day. What a unique sensation it was to stand in this expansive sea of red rocks, utterly bereft of people, and imagine what Sedona was like a mere 75 years ago when the town was just a smattering of small homes. Many Hollywood movies were shot where strip malls now stand. During our stay we watched the 1946 John Wayne movie Angel and the Bad Man and had to smile when we recognized Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte behind the actors. What a shock it was, though, to realize that the cameraman, with his wide-angle views of the pristine landscape before him, had been standing where we had parked our truck to get a cup of joe. There are so many trails and so many views that it is hard to choose which ones to do, and the "top 10" lists don't all agree. We stopped at Rollie's Camera Shop and asked the shopkeeper, a longtime resident and photographer, which one he liked best. He sent us a little way north of town on SR-89 to the West Fork Trail which gave us a completely different kind of immersion in nature. While many hikes offer breathtaking views highlighting red rock peaks, this trail follows the West Fork of Oak Creek and took us deep into deciduous woods where glassy water reflected the shady canopy of leafy trees. Early in the hike we passed the site of historic Mayhew Lodge. Originally a ranch house, it became a guest house in the 1920s and hosted well-heeled visitors until the 1960s
when the US Forest Service purchased the property. Lost to a fire shortly afterwards, the lodge had once housed such esteemed guests as President Hoover, Jimmy Stewart, and Walt Disney. Today, all that remains is the ruins of the brick hearth that once dominated the interior of the home. The West Fork Trail is just one of a surprising number of watery destinations that dot Sedona's desert landscape of red rock, gravel, and cactus. A popular swimming hole lies at the end of Bell Trail (not to be confused with the Bell Rock Pathway) and is called The Crack at Wet Beaver Creek. Starting on the south side of I-17 south of the Village of Oak Creek, the 7-mile out-and-back hike took us through open grasslands and into a red rock canyon where the trail clung to the edges of hillsides and followed a zig-zag pattern through gorgeous scenery. Soon we heard the sound of rushing water ahead of us, and then wide stair-stepping shelves of boulders appeared before us. We walked down these stairs to a sheer cliff's edge and peered down at a pool of glassy water. A group of teenagers lay sunbathing on towels nearby, and one by one they jumped into the water to cool off. One of the most popular excursions in Sedona is a 4x4 drive up or down Schnebly Hill Road. The route up this
RED ROCK BEAUTY
COAST TO COAST SPRING MAGAZINE 2020
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