Driving to Sedona felt a little bit like commuting through Seattle after so many days of driving quite empty highways. We were among a steady stream of cars approaching the red rocks around Sedona. It is quite dramatic as the terrain transitions from the ubiquitous brown hills to sudden red cliffs with green vegetation, and it was quite beautiful. We continued through Sedona itself and were a bit surprised that there did not seem to be a central area to walk around. It seemed very car-centric, but we decided that the thing to do was to come back and find some good hiking.

Sedona scenery

Also near Sedona

We continued to Cottonwood, which was a quaint little town with a nice local artist’s co-op, which we often find to be a good source of quality art. Then on to Tuzigoot, which is a ruin dating back to the mid-fourteenth century. The visitor center, which was built in the 1930’s, featured some beautiful reconstructed pots that were recovered from the original excavation as well as displays on the history of the site.

Pots

We enjoyed walking through the ruins and appreciating the architecture of the site and imagining life at the time. We enjoyed the vistas as it was built on the top of a hill with magnificent views all around. There were very few others visitors and it often felt like we were the only ones there, making photography also much easier. As we were finally taking leave of the ruins, Mike said, “Phew, just in time”. Looking ahead we could see a very large school group climbing up the path to the ruins. Phew is right!

Looking up at the top (Tuzigoot is on a hill)

Inside the room at the top

Look out!

Looking down

Phew – we got out just in time!

From Tuzigoot we could see the old mining settlement of Jerome far up on the mountainside. It was a winding five mile drive up the road to Jerome and we unfortunately got behind an RV that was ridiculously slow, doing 20 mph on a mostly 50 mph road, with multiple pull-outs for slow vehicles. Did they use them? NO! Not until we were within about ½ mile of Jerome and the line of cars behind them was about 15 cars long (Tami was counting), but finally they let us all by and we were in the rejuvenated old town of Jerome.

Mid-renovation

Awaiting renovation

Tami had been through here on a family road trip in the early 1970’s and remembered a near ghost town. It was mostly abandoned in the 50’s, but as a local told us, the hippies discovered it and started bringing it back to life and now it is a thriving tourist attraction. One shopkeeper said that we were lucky it was only Friday because by Saturday it would be insane, and that he had seen a huge increase in just the past two years.

Jerome is built on a very steep hillside and it seems that the buildings are barely holding on. The views are expansive and there are certainly still a number of old buildings awaiting renovation, but it was a fun place to wander and enjoy some of the whimsy of the locals.

Dead whimsy

Political whimsy

We found a delicious lunch in a Mexican restaurant with colorful furniture. Mike had the pork enchiladas and Tami had the chicken mole enchiladas. While they may sound a bit pedestrian, the cilantro rice and black beans/pinto beans that came with them were fantastic and the enchiladas themselves were exceptional. Not a speck of food was left!

Great decor in the restaurant

Somebody wants my lunch