Sedona

[MXGOLF]

What kind of outdoor temperatures are you having there? I am trying to decide when to come down nest year. Early spring I think. Not sure as this will be a first for me doing a long trip with the Ranger and the new trailer. It might be easier to motel it and drive the Maverick? Lot's to think about. Thanks,

Sponsored

 

[AzScorpion]

It looks like a lot of people on the trail.

Cathedral Rock is one of the more popular trails and is usually crowded. Believe it or not this wasn't all that bad and it's usually a lot more crowded especially in March. There's a few different trails you can take to get there and this is the first time doing the Baldwin/Templeton trail there. There were only about 6-8 people we saw on that whole trail up and it was a nice hike with good views.

The biggest problem everywhere in Sedona is parking. Most trail heads have very limited parking and you have to get to most really early (like before 7am) and you also need a parking pass and most lots have a kiosk. They now have a shuttle (actually there's 2) where you park in their lots and they take you to the trails and pick you back up. Personally I don't like not having my own vehicle there but sometimes you just have to use them.

What kind of outdoor temperatures are you having there? I am trying to decide when to come down nest year. Early spring I think. Not sure as this will be a first for me doing a long trip with the Ranger and the new trailer. It might be easier to motel it and drive the Maverick? Lot's to think about. Thanks,

It's been low to mid 70's days and high 40's to low 50's mornings. One thing here is the weather is very unpredictable and changes from even a couple days prior. The day before we left the only warm day was supposed to be Sunday and the rest of the week was in the low to mid 60's which would've been perfect hiking weather. While 70's isn't bad the sun is pretty intense here and we like to be off the trails by 12-1pm the latest. But once the sun starts to set it cools off very fast this time of year.

The only month I'd avoid is March especially mid to late March when spring break going on, it's a zoo everywhere throughout Sedona. You'll be sitting in traffic for hours just trying to get through town. There's not many short cuts because of the mountains but there are a few that help. I'd say late February to mid March would be good and it could still be a little cold in the mornings but it never (well usually doesn't lol) gets freezing cold.

If you decide to motel it the link for the resort we're at is in the first post and you can always message me for more info. Just to give you an idea I booked it in January and paid $792.00 for Sunday - Saturday. In Sedna you'll pay that for 2 nights in a decent place and I feel there's way more to do here at night than in Sedona and it's much, much cheaper. There's a ton of good restaurants here, wineries, rafting trips, train ride (which we're doing today) wildlife zoo, day trip to Jerome and coffee shops.

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

Cathedral Rock is one of the more popular trails and is usually crowded. Believe it or not this wasn't all that bad and it's usually a lot more crowded especially in March. There's a few different trails you can take to get there and this is the first time doing the Baldwin/Templeton trail there. There were only about 6-8 people we saw on that whole trail up and it was a nice hike with good views.

The biggest problem everywhere in Sedona is parking. Most trail heads have very limited parking and you have to get to most really early (like before 7am) and you also need a parking pass and most lots have a kiosk. They now have a shuttle (actually there's 2) where you park in their lots and they take you to the trails and pick you back up. Personally I don't like not having my own vehicle there but sometimes you just have to use them.



It's been low to mid 70's days and high 40's to low 50's mornings. One thing here is the weather is very unpredictable and changes from even a couple days prior. The day before we left the only warm day was supposed to be Sunday and the rest of the week was in the low to mid 60's which would've been perfect hiking weather. While 70's isn't bad the sun is pretty intense here and we like to be off the trails by 12-1pm the latest. But once the sun starts to set it cools off very fast this time of year.

The only month I'd avoid is March especially mid to late March when spring break going on, it's a zoo everywhere throughout Sedona. You'll be sitting in traffic for hours just trying to get through town. There's not many short cuts because of the mountains but there are a few that help. I'd say late February to mid March would be good and it could still be a little cold in the mornings but it never (well usually doesn't lol) gets freezing cold.

If you decide to motel it the link for the resort we're at is in the first post and you can always message me for more info. Just to give you an idea I booked it in January and paid $792.00 for Sunday - Saturday. In Sedna you'll pay that for 2 nights in a decent place and I feel there's way more to do here at night than in Sedona and it's much, much cheaper. There's a ton of good restaurants here, wineries, rafting trips, train ride (which we're doing today) wildlife zoo, day trip to Jerome and coffee shops.

$792? Wow, what a great deal for that place - you can’t beat that with a stick!

 

[AzScorpion]

$792? Wow, what a great deal for that place - you can’t beat that with a stick!

It's worth the extra 15 minute drive to Sedona and there's no traffic here. I'm at Genius level 3 on Booking which gives you an extra 10% off their rates. Sometimes I just book it and then keep checking the rates a few times a week and usually can get it lower before leaving.

 

[MXGOLF]

Cathedral Rock is one of the more popular trails and is usually crowded. Believe it or not this wasn't all that bad and it's usually a lot more crowded especially in March. There's a few different trails you can take to get there and this is the first time doing the Baldwin/Templeton trail there. There were only about 6-8 people we saw on that whole trail up and it was a nice hike with good views.

The biggest problem everywhere in Sedona is parking. Most trail heads have very limited parking and you have to get to most really early (like before 7am) and you also need a parking pass and most lots have a kiosk. They now have a shuttle (actually there's 2) where you park in their lots and they take you to the trails and pick you back up. Personally I don't like not having my own vehicle there but sometimes you just have to use them.



It's been low to mid 70's days and high 40's to low 50's mornings. One thing here is the weather is very unpredictable and changes from even a couple days prior. The day before we left the only warm day was supposed to be Sunday and the rest of the week was in the low to mid 60's which would've been perfect hiking weather. While 70's isn't bad the sun is pretty intense here and we like to be off the trails by 12-1pm the latest. But once the sun starts to set it cools off very fast this time of year.

The only month I'd avoid is March especially mid to late March when spring break going on, it's a zoo everywhere throughout Sedona. You'll be sitting in traffic for hours just trying to get through town. There's not many short cuts because of the mountains but there are a few that help. I'd say late February to mid March would be good and it could still be a little cold in the mornings but it never (well usually doesn't lol) gets freezing cold.

If you decide to motel it the link for the resort we're at is in the first post and you can always message me for more info. Just to give you an idea I booked it in January and paid $792.00 for Sunday - Saturday. In Sedna you'll pay that for 2 nights in a decent place and I feel there's way more to do here at night than in Sedona and it's much, much cheaper. There's a ton of good restaurants here, wineries, rafting trips, train ride (which we're doing today) wildlife zoo, day trip to Jerome and coffee shops.

Thanks for the update and information Dave I really appreciate it!

 

[veedubtuner]

Once you reach Cathedral Rock you're at the base and can still climb higher. Annie wasn't having any part of it and after I did it there's no way she could've made it. Bob @Bob902 & Mark @MXGOLF you guys would really love this and if you're even going to come out here let me know and I'll meet you guys pr anyone else for that matter. It wasn't all that bad, a little challenging coming down but you can just butt slide some area which made it easy.

This takes you all the way up to the top.

You're in a tight notch here and it's pretty slick but there are some smaller rocks in the middle to get traction on.

Great views from the top.

My left Achilles got swollen just looking at all that . I'd still hike it though.

 

[RedlandRanger]

They had these Peacocks in a large cage by the entrance. This was the largest one I've ever seen and they had some really cool colors to them.

Every time I'd whistle the large one would scream. lol

That's nothing, Dave! We used to have a peacock that lived two door down from us! That thing was beautiful - not sure what ever happened to it though. The guy who lived there had an unfortunate accident (he was pretty elderly) and his old house has gone thru like 4 owners since he died.

It was cool seeing the peacock strut around - even cooler when he fanned out his tail feathers! The are absolutely beautiful creatures.

 

[AzScorpion]

We did the Verde Canyon train ride today. It was a decent trip and a few cool mountains and large formations along the way but really nothing wowing. Maybe I'm jaded from living out here so long because a lot of people were wooing & wowing along the way. I was really disappointed with the tunnel as I thought you could see it from afar but the way the tracks are you really can't see it at all until you're right under it and then its just lights out for 734' which goes pretty fast.

They have an open cart every 3rd car so you can walk through and get a better view and better pictures. The enclosed cars were nice and cold with the AC going and very roomy and comfortable and they gave everyone a cheese and crackers dish with some meats inside along with waters and a small bottle of champagne.

I'd say if you're looking for a relaxing way to kill 4 hours it's a pretty good afternoon trip but I wouldn't ever do it again. Now the one in Durango, CO that goes up to Silverton is by far our favorite one. There's some really greats sights along the way and some crazy elevation over bridges and deep drop offs. That one we're looking forward to doing again.

You can really see how long the train is in the next 2 pictures. There's 5 more cars behind where we were.

 

[AzScorpion]

They told us to look up because this rock looks like a turtle and it really does. lol

There's a few of these caves along the way and one of them had an eagles nest inside. You could see all the sticks and grass hanging out of it but I missed it because I was back inside.

 

[AzScorpion]

The Picketts were the family that owns all the land and made the tracks out to the ranch back in the early 1900's. This was the only old building left along with the outhouses off to the left of it. This is where the train stops and then the two locomotives up front detach and go to the rear for the return trip.

The locomotive going by on the second tracks to the rear.

This was the depot.

 

[AzScorpion]

We went up to Devils Bridge this morning and got to the Mescal trailhead around 7:10am and the lot was just about full. The other day the jeep driver told us that this time of year Mon - Thurs the crowds thin out then people start filtering back in on Thursday afternoon and it gets crowed again throughout the weekend. I had already booked everything else so today was the only day tome it up there and it was really crowded.

The hike is really easy until you get to the last part and while I didn't think it was difficult Annie couldn't make it up the high parts (her knees were still sore from Tuesdays hike) so she waited at a large rock which you can climb on top of and see some nice views from there. Once at the top there was a huge line to cross the bridge. People were saying they've been waiting for an hour and were still in line. I'm not that patient and if it were our only trip coming here I'd most likely had waited but I'll come back and do it another time. It was still nice to see it and it was a nice morning.

The first 1.5 miles are really easy and this will take you to the Devils Bridge trailhead.

There's some nice scenery along this trail.

 

[AzScorpion]

Once you get the the Devils Bridge Trailhead the elevation starts to change but nothing to much and it does get rockier.

At about the 3/4 point you can just see the bridge over the trees.

Here's where the fun starts and it got way to steep for Annie to go any further.

The bridge is a lot wider than I thought and even on YouTube it looks narrower than it really is

It's har to tell but the line goes way down and cures back in and there's people also waiting at the beginning of the bridge

Got some good exercise in. lol

 

[AzScorpion]

After the hike I wanted to at least get off road a bit and I went to a trail I did a few years ago with my '19 Ranger called Diamondback Gulch. Total time was about 90 minutes and I remembered there were a couple difficult spots but it's got a lot more torn up and washed out since then. It's a very rocky trail and has a lot of steep drops and some big boulders that I was surprised I cleared and only heard a couple of loud "thuds" underneath.

Annie spotted these 3 deer off in the brush.

 

[AzScorpion]

Pictures never do it justice but it was pretty steep in spots and there were some pretty good sized rocks.

 

[AzScorpion]

The hardest part is when you come down this steep part then have to climb back up. You cant see it in the picture but there's several huge rocks that form a wall right about where the turn is near the top. You need speed to get up and over them but not to much because they're big and you'll bottom out. Plus you don't want to go to slow and get stuck and have to back down.

Sponsored