Waking up in the Hyatt of Downtown Phoenix was quite a different view than we had been accustomed to. All four of us were well rested and ready to do some exploring of new places we had not been to. Our goal today was to go to Montezumas castle National Monument, then continue to Sedona and Slide Rock State Park. This is about two hours from Phoenix, thus we stayed in Phoenix that night as well. At this point in time, None of us had ever been to Sedona before.
There were three interesting hikes plus a recreation area I wanted to explore but after having a little trouble starting the day due to organization, we headed north to hike Sedona. With four people in a little Corolla, with the gear to hike, it becomes quite a hassle to fit comfortably, thus once we organized it was time to hit the road.
On the way up we stopped at a quick site called Montezuma’s castle, which is very similar to Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico. It features Indian dwellings that has been carved into a series of cliffs. As you can see below the architecture to accomplish this was astounding, considering they used extremely primitive tools to create it.
This was worth the visit, but time was vital this trip, so after a short hike to see the site, we headed back to the car to continue 45 minutes north to Sedona.
We tried to find a late breakfast when we arrived but had to settle for pizza, since it was closer to lunch. For some reason, everything seemed to be closed for some unknown reason. Our first site of the day was to go to the cathedral that overlooked the land of Sedona. This is a Catholic Church is known as the Chapel of the Holy Cross and is a very small building perched up on a rock that makes for a very iconic site, having a dramatic backdrop. There are many amazing houses around there and there’s many places to park. It’s free to enter the church, but arrive early as the crowds were quite large to enter. The features have minimal architecture but a lot of intricate stained glass, and beautiful flowers. It has a spectacular view of the red rocks behind it.
When we left we decided to load up on water before heading to Cathedral Rock to do a quick hike to the top.
It takes us about an hour to get to the top take a few photos, talk to some people, and enjoy the cool breeze and views. This hike is no doubt one of the most popular in Sedona, and you can see many people, tourists or residents, who enjoy hiking. The top features a wonderful view of the landscape, but also is slightly dangerous if one is afraid of heights. Once we completed this, we headed back which took us about 45 minutes.
It was time to head to the Devils Bridge (Arch) hike. This is a 3.1 mile hike in and back. HIking this was less exciting than the previous Cathedral Rock, but the final destination made it worth the tough sand traversing we were doing. This sand made it very difficult on foot to move quick, and seemed to make our legs more sore. One thing to note on this trail is the amount of 4×4 vehicles.
On this hike there are 4 x 4 vehicular trails, so often times you can see a group of people driving by in tour groups. Devil’s arch at the end of the trail featured a natural bridge, that we could walk out to and overlook all of the Sedona Valley. It was quite spectacular and worth the effort, as the background scenic views made for an impressive photo OP.
It was time to attempt to get to one last trail. We rushed back as I thought we could get to the last hike before dark, but we decided to go to the recreation area, as we only had about two hours of light.
The last destination was called Slide Rock State Park. It cost $20 for one to get in by car, and is charged per vehicle. The feature of this park is a running river that has carved very smooth natural rock that acts as a slide, if one were to sit at the top of the Waterfall.. Once seated properly, it will naturally drag you down the slide for over 100 yards in complete free fall. Now it sounds fun. however during dusk, once the shade starts setting, the water gets very cold and becomes almost undoable. Yet, I was the one who braved the cold of the water. I did one slide and that was enough for me to say I did it!
It was at this point, we called an end to the day and headed back to Phoenix to find dinner. We decide to go to this local place called Rusconi’s American Diner, as it was rated highest on trip advisor. In fact, it was rated number one in all of Phoenix. Now, I would say there are so many restaurants that are better but as an overall rating I was very happy with the experience. Me and Ashley had a steak dinner which consisted of 2 small filets, Truffle Mac and Cheese, and a vegetable Medley, and of course followed it up with an incredible bread pudding! I recommend getting this for dinner, as it was a great value for two people! The Chef came over to our table and asked how things were, and after telling him our stories and being cordial with each other, it made the overall experience exceptional. From there we headed back to the hotel , and decided to get ready for the next day. It was going to be an early and long drive to Vegas to pick up my friends the next day, attempting to arrive at nine in the morning. Fortunately we gained an hour crossing state lines so that helped our timeframe out. We spent the rest of the night packing, planning, and getting rest which much needed!
June 15th Expenses
102.66 cleaning fee at Tamaron Durango
2.37 starbucks
13.46 lunch sedona
17.50 snack gas station
10 slide rock state park
18.01 gas
70 dinner
Total – 234
UTD – 2080.94
gas 397.35
MILES DRIVEN -282
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