A funny thing about travel, is that you can see the same place on two different days and love it or loath it depending on your mood.
Oak Creek Canyon between Flagstaff and Sedona.
When we first pulled into Flagstaff we were in the latter category, as we had a rash of bad drivers around us on the road and a hard time finding good groceries. Hungry Parks are grumpy Parks. Then we were confused Parks (sorry, that should be the last third person sort of reference), as we tackled some hiking trails in Sedona.
I think northwest hiking could be in the 'hiking for dummies' category, as given the landscape you can't help but stay on the trail. (Hint, if you're standing in the ferns you're off of the trail.) In the southwest, it seems to be more criss-crossing and meandering, with no markers. We'd take a trail only to see it end around a corner, then double-back and try again on another fork. Great hiking for short attention spans, but not particularly rewarding otherwise. We had a decently paced two-hour hike, but probably went no more than a couple of miles into the canyon.
Checking out some fish along a slow spot in a side stream.
We did have an awesome, or, well, bad, parenting moment (depending on your perspective). Coming to a point where we needed to cross a large creek, Kevin and I were debating crossing points along the bank. His back was to the water as he's telling me that there's no place here for the kids to cross safely, and then I look up and start laughing.
"What?! No, really, these rocks are too far apart for them!"
"Yeah, just look on the other side of the creek."
There they are, already across and checking out the rest of the trail. Ugh. This isn't the best/worst part. We're going across and both of us get stuck, where we're not sure we can navigate across without falling in. Our oldest nimbly comes out and takes our backpacks, so we can balance better, and easily crosses with them. Meanwhile, I'm still perched on the edge of a rock like a toddler on a diving board for the first time, psyching myself up that my wee legs can make the leap. Their earnest encouragement and congratulations after we crossed were both endearing and embarrassing.
Our next day was so much better, as we met friends for lunch in Flagstaff. We'd walked by that same restaurant the day before, but it didn't catch our eye. It was, however, amazing! Custom order salads, and yummy soups and sandwiches. (I think it's called the Mix, in downtown Flagstaff.) The company of good friends is what we all miss the most during this adventure, so it was so joyful to spend the day with them. We also did a family hike together, but this time the meandering pace was purposeful as both of our youngest (who just met each other that day) are little naturalists that want to take the time to explore all of the plants and wildlife along the trail.
Seeing him have a companion to share his interests, even for an afternoon, was so much fun.
The day before we'd also dismissed Sedona as a bit too touristy (think t-shirt, fortune telling, and ice cream shops), but our friends knew a great local pizza place that made us change our minds entirely. After so much (SO MUCH) togetherness for us on this trip over the past weeks, it was also a bit of a treat that our waiter seated the kids on one side of the busy restaurant, and us on the other, and that we all behaved ourselves and felt grown up.
It was so good to wrap up our Flagstaff and Sedona leg of the trip this way!
~Judy
We had the same experience with Sedona and only breezed through Flagstaff to pick up mail. I agree with you about northwest hiking. The only patch of ground with nothing growing on it HAS to be the trail, and you'll generally be accosted by nothing more frightening than a marmot or banana slug.
ReplyDeleteHa! Those slugs can be quite frightening, though, when they hang out on your garbage can lid and you get a good handful when taking out the trash. Ewww!
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