Our trip to Phoenix, Arizona was pretty spontaneous. We had a companion fare that needed to be used and we had three free nights at a nice hotel--if we could survive a time share presentation--which we barely did! But that's a story in and of itself.
We arrived in Phoenix and went to a city park, Papago Park, that evening to "see what we could see". There's so much to see in Arizona and even Phoenix and we had so little time! Here Roland is enjoying the water at Papago Park.
Here's a view from Papago Park--in the evening.
In Phoenix, we saw our first saguaro cacti. We had no idea how unique these cacti were, but we, nonetheless, were very impressed with the size and beauty. They are native to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, the Mexican State of Sonora and the Whipple Mountains and Imperial County areas of California.
This saguaro was near the restrooms in the park--growing like a maple might in other parts of the country! Saguaros have a long lifespan, often exceeding 150 years. They can grow their first arm any time from 75-100 years of age, but some never grow any arms. I never realized these cacti were so big! They are linked to our view of desert life in the West, but seeing them in real life was surprising!
Roland is standing Hole in the Rock. This rock was used as a calendar by the ancient inhabitants of this country. They could tell when to plant their crops, and other things by where the shadows were cast.
My turn to stand in the Hole in the Rock.
The sun is setting over the city now. This picture doesn't do it justice, but the sky was so beautiful and it was such a pleasant evening!
Day Two was rainy and we spent the whole day listening to the time share folks. If we would have "stuck to our guns",we wouldn't have spent the whole day. But we ended up purchasing a timeshare! Then regretting it that sleepless night and getting out of it. That wasn't such a fun time for us. But we made up for it on Day Three when we headed down to Apache Junction. We drove to Tonto National Forest and hiked Peralta Trail. It's elevation increased quickly, and the views were spectacular. Whoever thought of a forest of saguaros and other types of cacti! How can there be a forest of cacti??That was amusing to me!
Enjoy the views!
Love this huge prickly pear!
Look how tall it grows!
A whole forest of saguaros, with a very young one in the foreground.
You gotta go see them for yourself!
A little oasis on our way up the trail.
This is a picture of a bird of paradise flower that I saw in a little art shop in Apache Junction. I asked the shop owner, who happened to be the artist who painted this painting if bird of paradise were native to Arizona. She replied that they were, however, not in bloom in January. They come out in the spring. I had always thought of them as a tropical flower!
In the evening we went to a show in Apache Junction, which is a community for lots of snowbirds. So we sat at a table with people who lived here in the winter, but their homes were in Canada. What a cultural experience to share the evening with retirees who were snowbirds! They were very sociable. I was really tired from the day's activities, but Roland was as sociable as any of those Canadians. And the variety show was lots of fun.
On Day Four we left our comfortable hotel in Phoenix with its wonderful breakfast buffet and headed on the scenic route up to Sedona. The picture above shows the route we traveled. There was a lot of copper mining in these hills. In fact, Thomas Edison was one of the landowners of this country that had so much copper and used it in his electricity projects.
After checking in to our home for the next two nights, we headed out to see some of the nearby sights. This picture shows a Roman Catholic chapel built into the buttes. It was completed in 1957. The architect, Marguerite Brunswig, was a local rancher and inspired by the Empire State Building to build such a church. She was planning on building in Hungary, but couldn't because the of the outbreak of World War II, so she decided to build it in her native region.
This is an inspirational view from the Chapel of the Holy Cross.
On Day Four, we also drove out to see a ruin named Montezuma's Castle and Petroglyphs, but were disappointed since it was closed because of the government shutdown. However, while traveling on the gravel roads, we were fortunate and got see our first and only roadrunner ever! It was running across the road--just as it should be!
Day Five we rose early and headed out to the Bell Trail. The parking lot was empty, as was the trail. It was so beautiful and peaceful! It was relatively flat and it was good to enjoy a quiet walk together. Sedona is famous for its spiritual vortexes. This hike is definitely one in which to find the vortex. The peace and vastness of the scenery pull you in in to experience the "sublime".
Look at the two huge plants I'm standing between. Doesn't it seem like another planet?!
Love the grain in this tree.
The sublime.
The beauty in the details.
Prickly pear--all in a row!
More sublime!
More beauty!
More sublime! Love the skies here!
More sublime! Look at the sky!
Roland is the beauty--the scenery is the sublime!
Can't get enough sublime!
These prickly pears look as though they are a planted on this terrace! But that's just how they grow! They are growing over the terrace--the conditions must be perfect for them to grow this way.
Sublime . . .
Sublime . . .
Sublime!
After taking a break for lunch and some souvenir shopping, we headed over to Airport Mesa. I assumed it was called Airport Mesa because it was a mesa that was large and flat. But it turns out that it was called Airport Mesa because it was near the airport. We didn't realize that we would get another little hike, and it was a muddy one, but we enjoyed it. Here I am enjoying a yoga pose atop the rock.
And here Roland is atop the same rock.
We decided to stay near Airport Mesa to watch the sunset. While the sunset was a little disappointing since the sky is so clear and there's little humidity, we weren't disappointed in exploring the place. Here Roland stands beside a huge plant. How could this grow so big??!
Day Six found us driving back to the airport in Phoenix. What a great time! Our only regret is that it wasn't enough time! This is a place we'd really like to revisit!
