The “before and after” I’m referring to is RAIN. Our tour guide told us that the skies were so filled with sand the day before we arrived that you could hardly see the mountains. It was still a little dusty on the day we toured, but it rained that night and the next day was crystal clear. Photos below give you an idea:
Regardless of the dust, we were entranced with the views in Senora. Our hotel was great….named after the city’s namesake, Sedona Arabella Schnebly. Apparently, opening a post office made a city officially a city and when Mr. Schnebly said the city’s name was The Village of Oak Creek, he was told it wouldn’t fit on a postmark. Thus, Sedona. I’m pretty sure the place wouldn’t be nearly as popular if he’d named it Schebly.
Beautiful views on the approach….
And a nice welcome at our hotel….but thunder and lightning just about the time we were going to try the pool! That happened both days of our stay.
The rain not only cleared up the sky. It turned surrounding hills green! Plants here make the most of every bit of water they can get.
I’d rate the tour about a C…maybe C+ but we did see some interesting things. And learned a few things too.
The Catholic church, Chapel of the Holy Cross, sits on a promontory with incredible views. It’s an active parish but I’d guess the church holds fewer than 50 people. A couple of years ago, a new priest suggested holding destination weddings there but the city refused to let him close the church since it’s such a draw for tourists. Our guide told us that it was designed by one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s sons, but when I looked it up credit went to August K. Strotz. Maybe he was a cousin:-).
The view includes a look at a huge house shown in the photo below which (according to our not-necessarily-correct guide) is owned by an Eastern European man who holds the patents for Lasik surgery equipment and employs a full-time staff of gardeners, housekeepers, cooks and security.
Sedona also has a private airport which offers an incredible sunset view but you have to arrive a couple of hours early to get a spot! We passed. We did enjoy the view and a metal sculpture identifies the various formations seen in the distance.
A stop at what was a pretty cheesy museum turned out to be terrific. Cliff found a cool hat with a cardinal on it and the clerk at the gift shop had all sorts of interesting information to share. Originally the home of early settlers in the area, the museum includes displays of children’s toys, saddles and photographs. The gift shop clerk told us that the family included two daughters one of whom wrote that her parents were hoping for a boy….”but they turned their girl into a cowgirl.” Sedona presents an interesting amalgamation of cowboy, native Indian and Mexican cultures. It also has attracted a fair number of new agers who claim the area contains a spiritual vortex. This feature did not emerge for us.
They also had a sign in their garden that they should have made copies of for their gift shop. I would definitely buy one.
Javelina (pronounced have-a-leena) are large (VERY LARGE) rodents that prowl the area. There are also rattlesnakes and scorpions to be on the look out for.
Apple trees were a primary crop for the ranchers. When I asked about where the water came from the gift shop clerk told me that two sons were given pieces of property — one next to the creek and the other away from the creek. Fortunately, the one without water was an engineer and he built a water wheel to bring water from the creek to his trees.
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