Trip Journal: Arizona 2019 - Part I
Flagstaff, Winslow, Petrified Forest National Park and Sedona, Arizona
Wednesday, October 30 through Saturday, November 9, 2019
Wednesday, October 30 through Saturday, November 9, 2019
Executive Summary. We had a wonderful trip to Alaska in June, 2019; just us and 40 or so of our closest friends. That was a wonderful experience from every aspect. But by the fall, we wanted a get-away for just the two of us. Perfect time for a Grand Circle adventure, particularly in the red rocks of Sedona. We included a few nights at the La Posada in Winslow figuring that we would be our base for exploring Petrified Forest National Park and of course give us several opportunities to eat in the Turquoise Room. But the majority of our time would be spend in Sedona, where we could get a little downtime when we weren’t hiking in the red rocks. We did a lot of hiking as well as plenty of relaxing. I love it when a plan comes together!
Journal Index. As usual, there is a lot of detail in this journal. I've broken the journal up over several parts as listed and linked below:
Index, Trip Summary (day-by-day short version), Introduction and Planning Details (this page)
|
Day 1: Travel to Flagstaff
Day 2: Flagstaff, Musuem of Northern Arizona and transfer to Winslow |
Day 3: Petrified Forest National Park - Long Logs & Agate House Trail, Onyx Bridge Trail
Day 4: Petrified Forest National Park - Red Basin and Clam Beds Off the Beaten Trail Hike |
Day 5: Winslow to Sedona with a detour through Sunset Crater and Wupatki National Monuments
Day 6: Scheurman Mountain Trail, Tuzigoot National Monument and the mini-meet-up. |
Day 7: Brins Mesa - Soldiers Pass Hike, including the Seven Sacred Pools
Day 8: Sort of Winging It (Shopping and Hang-out Day) |
Day 9: Devil's Bridge, Hot Dogs and a Wind Tunnel
Day 10: The Hangover Trail |
Day 11: Travel Home
Wrap-up, Buy the Numbers, etc. |
The Abridged Version. OK, not everyone wants to read all of the details that I like to capture in my journals. I get that. I had a couple folks on Trip Advisor suggest that I should have highlighted that there was a summary of the 2019 Alaska trip near the beginning of the journal so that they knew they did not have to read all 220 pages. Fair enough. So let’s start with the “Reader’s Digest” version of the 2019 Arizona trip in case you don’t want to read the next 111 pages. Actually, this is not such a bad idea as it becomes a bit of a table of contents for the rest of the journal. Hey, always evolving and hopefully improving the way I document my travels.
Speaking of a plan coming together, we've got an outstanding starting plan for the trip. We have some details in place for the first few days but overall lots of flexibility built in. Once we get to Sedona, we have a list of things to see and do and places to eat and drink, but we'll keep the schedule more on the loose side. We'll go where the spirit moves us. Anyway, here's what we had for our plan as we started the adventure, plus some notes on what we actually ended up doing each day (additions to or deviations from the plan), so basically the short story version of the journal:
Wednesday, October 30, 2019 - Travel Day. We'll head over to CLE as early as 2:00 but no later than 3:00 (depends on when my 1:00 meeting concludes) and grab lunch (no time at DEN). Once we get to Flag, we can grab dinner at one of the breweries if we are hungry. Maybe we'll try Beaver Street Brewery since it is open 'til 10:00 (if we miss it tonight, we can come back on the way to Sedona and have a beer).
That's the plan as it stood on the day we were left, plus the general overview of how things actually played out. The really short version is that this was another excellent adventure in the Grand Circle. Now, as Paul Harvey always said, here’s the rest of the story.....
Just continue reading below if you want more of the background and planning details or navigate elsewhere with the buttons below:
Speaking of a plan coming together, we've got an outstanding starting plan for the trip. We have some details in place for the first few days but overall lots of flexibility built in. Once we get to Sedona, we have a list of things to see and do and places to eat and drink, but we'll keep the schedule more on the loose side. We'll go where the spirit moves us. Anyway, here's what we had for our plan as we started the adventure, plus some notes on what we actually ended up doing each day (additions to or deviations from the plan), so basically the short story version of the journal:
Wednesday, October 30, 2019 - Travel Day. We'll head over to CLE as early as 2:00 but no later than 3:00 (depends on when my 1:00 meeting concludes) and grab lunch (no time at DEN). Once we get to Flag, we can grab dinner at one of the breweries if we are hungry. Maybe we'll try Beaver Street Brewery since it is open 'til 10:00 (if we miss it tonight, we can come back on the way to Sedona and have a beer).
- The travel logistics worked out just as planned. We had no issues getting into Flagstaff and were checked into our hotel shortly after 8:00 PM. A cold evening, but we headed back out to find dinner and unwind a bit. Flagstaff Brewing was the selection for this evening, so we made our first step along the Craft Beer Trail. Good food, but just average beer.
- As it was pretty chilly this morning, we’ll save Sunset Crater and Wupatki for a warmer day and instead explored around Flagstaff. First stop was the visitor center in downtown to get a few ideas which pointed us to the Museum of Northern Arizona, which was very interesting and covered a diverse set of topics, ranging from geology, paleontology, human history and even a tie to Star Wars, all focused on the Colorado Plateau.
- By the time we finished at the museum, we were ready for lunch and the temperature was warm enough for a walk around Flagstaff, which we made into a pub crawl and lunch in downtown Flag. We started with lunch at Beaver Street Brewing and then did some sampling at Dark Sky Brewing and one final beer at Lumberyard before heading to Winslow.
- Once checked in at the La Posada, we just relaxed for a while then had a wonderful meal at the Turquoise Room. One of our all-time favorite restaurants.
- Another cold morning, so we delayed our start to Petrified Forest. We spent the morning looking around the WAT Museum at the La Posada (combination art gallery and Winslow history).
- We were finally hiking at Petrified Forest National Park at 11:40 AM, starting with the Long Logs and Agate House trail. Easy hike, but along a completely exposed trail which would be brutal in the summer. But we had very pleasant conditions and enjoyed the loop through the petrified logs and they up to the ruin site, and ancient dwelling made of the petrified wood.
- Since this first hike did not take too long we had plenty of time to explore another trail and tried on of the “off the beaten path” hikes out to the Onyx Bridge Trail. Fun hike out into the desert and not a lot of other folks around.
- After a full day on the trail, we deserved another great dinner in the Turquoise Room.
- Another chilly morning, so again no rush. Breakfast in the Turquoise Room (even if it were not the only game in town, we would still eat every meal here as it is just that good!).
- It was almost 11:00 AM by the time we started our hike in the Blue Mesa area of the park, another off the beaten trail hike, Red Basin Clam Beds, a lollipop route that took us to ancient clam beds and by beautiful red cliff landscapes. Another completed exposed trail, but again we had wonderful weather for hiking. Great hike, pretty easy but on the longer side (about nine miles). Great views along every step of the trail. Plus it was sort of fun following the route provided the NPS to get around the loop.
- You guessed it, dinner at the Turquoise Room.
- Today went pretty much as planned, except that we added in a drive through Sunset Crater and Wupatki National Monuments prior to restocking our supplies in Flagstaff. No real hiking, just a short walk out to the Wukoki ruin site, which was one of the few places we missed from our previous visit. Then it was on to Sedona.
- We hit the jackpot with the VRBO casita we rented in the Village of Oak Creek, well out the Verde Valley School Road. The red rock view that featured Cathedral Rock was amazing, inspiring even. We had a 180 degree panorama from both the patio and the living room. Perfect for an afternoon porch beer.
- Dinner at El Rincon, good Mexican food.
- At 9:15 we were on the Scheurman Mountain Trail, a shortish hike but with a lot of uphill to get to the viewpoints. But it was worth the effort as the vista looking north over Sedona was spectacular.
- After the hike, we explored Tuzigoot National Monument, a ruin of an ancient pueblo site. It is a small park but well worth the visit. Lots of great information in the visitor center as well as along the trail around the ruins.
- Once we were cleaned-up from exploring, we had a wonderful visit with our friends, starting with a reunion with the gang at Casa RedRox, then dinner at the Corner Table. A good time was had by all!
- We ended up covering a lot of new territory on the trails this trip as we hiked at places we had not explored previously.
- On Tuesday we tackled the Brins Mesa and Soldiers Pass loop starting from the Jordan Road Trailhead. We went counter-clockwise around the loop so uphill along Brins Mesa Trail to the pass then down past the Seven Sacred Pool and back via a couple connecting trails. This was an excellent hike! Great scenery and a nice variety of terrain and things to see along the way. Not a lot of traffic along the Brins Mesa Trail but the trail from Soldiers Pass was very busy. After some quiet afternoon with a beer or three on the patio at the casita where we enjoyed that wonderful view, we had dinner at Tortas de Fuego, a Mexican place that had just opened in the Village of Oak Creek. Typical Mexican restaurant, but very tasty.
- Wednesday was a day that we just had to adjust as we went. There were storms including lightning in the area and we did not want to risk getting caught in any bad weather. So we took a wait-and-see approach to the day. We started with Miley’s for breakfast (a standard stop for us when in Sedona) and then went all over Sedona hitting the stores that Lynn likes. Plus we finally visited the Hike House where I got some insight on a couple of trails that are on our list. The Hangover Trail sounds like a winner. We spent the afternoon on the patio, listening to the thunder rumble in the distance and the dark clouds move in and out of the area. Yep, good day to stay off the trail, but we are still enjoying the beauty of the red rocks from right here at our little house. We kept dinner simple with carryout pizza from Pago’s.
- Thursday was our day to hang-out with friends as we will spend most of the day with Tommy and Beth. They collected us at 8:30 in their Jeep and we were off to Devils Bridge. Since we had the appropriate vehicle, we were able to take the rough road directly to the trailhead rather than having to connect on another trail. This is very popular trail and it was packed today. But its popularity is well-deserved as there was great views from the higher section of the trail plus the highlight of the natural bridge at the end of the trail. While it is a steep hike to the bridge the vistas make it worth the effort. After Devils Bridge, we went to Senor Bob’s for lunch. Hey, I like a good hot dog every once in a blue moon. For the afternoon, we split up; the girls went shipping and Tommy and I went on another hike, this time to find the Wind Tunnels. This is supposed to be one of Sedona’s secret places. I found a video on You-Tube and a track on All-Trails that gave away some of the details, so we did find these little caves. Sort of underwhelming but now we know. We reconvened back at the casita to continue our visit before they had to head home. Lynn and just finished up the pizza and other assorted leftovers for dinner.
- On Friday we did the big hike for the trip that featured the Hangover Trail (many of not most of the hikes in the Sedona area will be a combination of trails). This would be an almost-nine-mile lollipop route starting at the Munds Wagon Trailhead. We walked along the Munds Wagon Trail to the intersection with the Hangover Trail and went clockwise around the loop coming back via the Cowpies Trail. This was a fantastic hike, lots of variety and huge views along much of the route, but particularly along the Hangover Trail. After our final hike of the trip we rewarded ourselves with beer and fries at Sedona Brewing Company. This will be a regular stop for us when we return as they have a nice selection of very good brews. Dinner tonight at our old favorite the Corner Table.
That's the plan as it stood on the day we were left, plus the general overview of how things actually played out. The really short version is that this was another excellent adventure in the Grand Circle. Now, as Paul Harvey always said, here’s the rest of the story.....
Just continue reading below if you want more of the background and planning details or navigate elsewhere with the buttons below:
One More Trip in 2019. We knew from the start that 2019 was going to be a busy year as we had a lot of trips on the schedule. I had my usual series of trips to support AIAA and business travel for Lynn is picking up as well. Plus we have our big trip to Alaska planned for June. In fact, the schedule was getting so full that we decided early on that we would probably skip the annual UTAH meet-up for the first time in 10 years; just too many work-related trips this year in the late summer and into fall which would really make it tight for getting to Hanksville. We'll just have to work it in as a last minute trip or work towards something that was just Lynn and me to give us the flexibility to work around the other trips.
But a hectic schedule never stops us from looking for even more travel opportunities. We had such a great time in San Diego last fall and in Sedona over Thanksgiving back in 2016 that we figured a late fall trip to the desert southwest would be a good option. Maybe that would be a good time to try for Phantom Ranch. Not a high probability of getting a reservation but worth a shot. Who knows, maybe since we have a tight schedule and are looking to be flexible, the travel gods might throw us a curve ball and grant us a win in the lottery thus forcing us to go. Not likely, but it sounds like a good theory.
During the spring of 2018, we came up with a starting itinerary that included nights at the rim before and after Phantom Ranch followed by a few restful days in Sedona (remember, this is a fall 2019 trip; engineers like to have a good plan in place well in advance of the event). Since Phantom Ranch is a longshot we also had a backup itinerary that substituted Winslow for part of the Grand Canyon days followed by a longer stay in Sedona. We would hopefully get reservations at the La Posada in Winslow and use that as a base for exploring Petrified Forest National Park. Yeah, I know, there are lodging options much closer to Petrified Forest but none are as cool as La Posada nor have the excellent dining of the Turquoise Room. Shoot the back-up plan sounds just as good and the potential main event itinerary, so no losers here. And if we don't get picked in the Phantom Ranch lottery, we'll just put in again for a later date.
Regardless of which itinerary we end up using, we will be spending time in Sedona, so we'll need a place to stay. We've figured out that the Village of Oak Creek works well as a base for us and we have found nice rental places there in the past, although most of those were shared and therefore not ideal or really affordable for just the two of us. Lynn found the solution for that problem. While searching the VRBO website she came across the perfect place for us, a studio casita with a stunning, 180-degree view of the famous Sedona red rocks that included Cathedral Rock. The place was located well down the Verde Valley School Road, so away from the crowds but still very conveniently located for accessing all the that Sedona as to offer. I was hooked as soon as I saw the photos of the view! That is just what I'm looking for in terms of a place to sit and enjoy an afternoon porch beer after a day of hiking. Sign me up!
So the rough outline for both plans were in place, now we just have to work through the details. The domino that had to fall first was Phantom Ranch as that would determine which plan we were going to develop of the fall of 2019. We put that part of the plan in motion on Saturday, August 18, 2018, as we were enjoying a Hop JuJu on the front patio. We finalized our lottery picks, deciding to go for four days in a cabin at Phantom Ranch with early October dates as our preferred choice. I made the submissions using the phone and never had to move from my Adirondack chair. The confirmation emails came through while we were still sitting there, so we're good to go. Now we just have to wait to see if we get lucky with the lottery selection.
We had to wait a bit for that first domino to finally tip as it was not until September 14th that we got the news on our Phantom Ranch lottery entries. The email started by thanking us for our entries but then regretted to tell us that we were not selected. Whomp, whomp, whomp. We'll we can still check to see if there is availability, but I'm guessing they are sold out. Good thing we had a plan B. Honestly, I don't think either of us are upset with this result. Yes, we do want to make the hike into the Grand Canyon, and since we are not hardcore backpackers, Phantom Ranch is our best option. But I think we both really want to try out the VRBO casita in Sedona. Looks like we can start the wheels turning on the Winslow-Sedona option. I already had the rough plan in place, just not specific dates:
That's the going-in plan. We ended up doing something very close to what was outlined above, with a few modifications to the travel logistics. Here's the link to the start of trip, in case you don’t want to read through the rest of the planning details. But all those details are provided below.
The Nitty Gritty Planning Details. I like planning our trips. I keep the detailed notes to help be with future training as well as just keeping track of what we are thinking of doing. Anyway, here’s more that you probably want to know (remember the link to skip to the trip!).
December 8, 2018 - Just for kicks I checked rental car costs at Enterprise in Phoenix, renting a compact SUV from the offsite location we've used in the past and returning to PHX versus renting and returning at PHX. The offsite cost was $540 while renting from the airport location was $1,770! Larger SUVs from PHX were $740 and $820. Offsite is the way to go!
February 22, 2019 - Lynn looked at Flagstaff as the entry point for the trip. Interesting option. Decent fare and itinerary on American, one stop through Denver. Depends on what Southwest offers, although they are questionable at present due to union issues with their mechanics. Flying into Flagstaff will save us driving but adds time flying assuming we can go direct into Phoenix. Appears that the cost could be a wash.
Might as well check with the experts on TripAdvisor, that's what the forums are there for. I just asked for pros and cons of flying into Flagstaff (via a connection in Denver) versus direct into Phoenix. The unanimous advice was to take the direct flight to PHX and drive to points north. I am leaning that way as well. The pros for flying into PHX are direct flight which reduces flight delay issues and shortens the travel time, and weather should be nice in Phoenix which takes that potential flight delay cause out of play. Downsides to PHX are more driving and the potential for traffic issues. We have been stuck on I-17 between Phoenix and Sedona in the past. However since we will travel back on a Saturday perhaps the traffic will not be an issue. Flagstaff is a small airport which will be easy to navigate and puts us right in the middle of where we want to be so less driving. The one-stop itinerary just adds opportunities for delays and missed or canceled flights. And the CLE-DEN-FLG route brings weather into play. We would have an early departure time out of CLE to get to Flagstaff via United which just adds stress to the day.
March 17, 2019 - Did a little research on Flagstaff rental car costs. Rates are higher at FLG compared to PHX (not surprising) but I did find a couple options in the ballpark through Hertz. With the "pay now" option there is a Jeep Compass for $560. I will wait until we get airfare in order before deciding on the ground transportation.
March 30, 2019 - Playing around with travel logistics options. Southwest is not taking reservations past November 2, so too early on that point, but fares for the closest days to our trip are at $350 for the direct flights with a good itinerary. Hopefully that will still be the case when our dates are posted. United has flight through Denver into Flagstaff for $380 but still that 0700 departure.
For ground transportation, I can get a midsize SUV from FLG will be $471 through Alamo. I looked at the Enterprise in Tempe that we have been using and the cost for a compact SUV was still nearly $600. That's back to airport pricing. I looked at other options (scanning Expedia, not that I'll book through that site) and found an Avis just north of Phoenix and not far from the airport where I can get an Escape for $426 or an Edge for $462. There were hotels in the vicinity in the $200/night range. Hilton Garden Inn Phoenix Midtown seems reasonable; also the Wyndam Midtown. Plus it is within a couple miles of Huss Brewing, SunUp Brewing and Phoenix Ale Brewing (Huss does not have food, it seems) for dinner on arrival night. Phoenix Ale might be the best option for food.
So cost wise, it is about a wash. Flying into PHX is a little more expensive since we would come in a day early and need to have lodging, but with lower cost airfare and car, the total net cost difference will be about a C-note. That is noise. At present, I am leaning to going out on October 30, direct into PHX. The biggest negatives for me with FLG is the early departure time and the connecting flight. But we still have time to play with options.
May 11, 2019 - I'm still waiting for Southwest to update their flight schedules to cover our dates. Lynn read that they may delay until June 20 before extending due to the 737 MAX issues. So I looked again at Flagstaff. That 0700 departure is less than ideal. Hmmmm, what if we take the evening flight on Wednesday, just like we would do going into PHX. That could work. That reduces the airfare a little, and the extra night in Flag will be less than in Phoenix (found decent hotels near the airport for about $100). Car might be more expensive but not by much. Renting an SUV through Alamo is still the best deal at the Flagstaff airport, but the cost went up about a hundred bucks since last check. Overall, Lynn likes the idea. I will work this one once I get back DC and WV.
May 20, 2019 - OK, we took the plunge and locked in our airfare. I uncharacteristically went against the advice given by RedRox and MikeP on TripAdvisor and opted to fly into Flagstaff. We'll go out on Wednesday evening, connecting through Denver and spend that first night in Flagstaff. The only potential fly in the ointment is that the rental car locations at the airport close at 8:00 PM and our flight does not arrive until 7:40, so it will be close in getting the car that night. So we might have to wait until the next morning, which was what we would do if we went through Phoenix, so not a big deal. I checked with the FLG Alamo; while they do close at 8:00 PM, they keep and eye on the flights and will stay open to handle flights arriving just before closing time. We'll see how the timing works out.
May 21, 2019 - Locked in the car (midsize SUV) through Hertz. I think that takes care of all the reservations. And just in time as now we are getting close to our excursion to Alaska. We'll put the rest of the Arizona planning on hold until the fall.
August 20, 2019 - There was one last lodging reservation to make, the first night in Flagstaff. Lots of options, but I ended up using points for a room at the Embassy Suites (might as well use the points; that's what they are there for).
September 23, 2019 - The hectic part of the travel year is now over. We did miss the UTAH meet-up this year due to all that we had going on during August and September, but we did squeeze in a weekend trip to Atlanta with Lisa to see the Georgia Aquarium and Zoo Atlanta. Once back from that little trip I started looking at details for the Arizona excursion. I just happened to check the air reservations for Flagstaff while updating my account on United and noticed that there were changes to the itinerary. Tweaks to the departure and arrival times to each leg but the only one that caused any concern was the initial CLE to DEN flight as the layover is now under an hour. The reservations as originally scheduled had a layover of about 1:20 which is ideal, but this change shortened the time to 50 minutes which is cutting it a bit close for my stress level. OK, let's look at the options. There are no other flights that would really work (either really early departure or multiple stops), so I thought maybe we could move forward in the cabin to reduce the time for deplaning. The only way to do that is to upgrade to a premium seat. Lynn and I reviewed options over dinner at Lager Heads and decided to move up from row 26 to row 13 to reduce the time getting off the plane. Basically we were buying insurance that we would make the connection. Hey, I don't trust flight schedules or airlines. And now we have a little extra leg room, so that's a bonus. The funny thing is that after we bought this "insurance" I read an article that suggested this very strategy as a way of reducing miss connections.
Over the next few weeks, I started looking at the details for things to do and places to eat while on the trip. Winslow was easy for dining; we'll eat at the Turquoise Room in the La Posada at every opportunity! It is just that good. While in Sedona we have a list of favorite places but we're always on the look-out for good places to eat and places with a nice view. Well, as long as they are also a good value. The Hudson sounds like a great option. Its website shows a nice view and a decent looking menu. Los Rosales was also recommended. There are a lot of places that we need to try, so we won't get to them all this trip.
Like restaurants, there are also a lot of hiking trails that we have not explored in Red Rock Country. I reviewed the on-line hiking resources plus bought another Sedona trail guide, "Great Sedona Hikes - Revised Fifth Edition," which provided a nice overview and ratings for over a hundred trails in the area. I found it useful. The authors used QR codes that would link to photos from each trail. The photos were not as helpful as the information in the book in most instances, but it was still a nice feature.
So based on this research I developed a list of hikes that I thought would be good to choose from for this trip:
Thursday, October 24, 2019 - I stumbled across the Flagstaff Craft Beer Trail. Now we're talking! There are ten local microbrewery locations in Flagstaff listed as part of the trail. Lynn and I studied options that night while at dinner at Lager Head's. Some don't offer much to our liking, but there are a couple of breweries that have a number of IPAs and Hazys. This could be fun! OK, flying into Flagstaff and spending the first night there now seems to be a brilliant idea.
Friday, October 25, 2019 - I printed a few of the "off the beaten trail" hiking option brochures and maps then Lynn and I reviewed them over beer and pizza at Fat Head's (a variety of Head Hunters IPAs on tap tonight so we sampled them all). After looking at these trails I think that we can skip Devil's Playground, thus removing the risk to the rental car on a questionable dirt road and the need for a permit. The Red Basin hike looks like a winner with a lot of cool stuff to find. Onyx Bridge and the Blue Forest trails also look like great options. There will certainly be no lack of things to see and do in Petrified Forest!
But a hectic schedule never stops us from looking for even more travel opportunities. We had such a great time in San Diego last fall and in Sedona over Thanksgiving back in 2016 that we figured a late fall trip to the desert southwest would be a good option. Maybe that would be a good time to try for Phantom Ranch. Not a high probability of getting a reservation but worth a shot. Who knows, maybe since we have a tight schedule and are looking to be flexible, the travel gods might throw us a curve ball and grant us a win in the lottery thus forcing us to go. Not likely, but it sounds like a good theory.
During the spring of 2018, we came up with a starting itinerary that included nights at the rim before and after Phantom Ranch followed by a few restful days in Sedona (remember, this is a fall 2019 trip; engineers like to have a good plan in place well in advance of the event). Since Phantom Ranch is a longshot we also had a backup itinerary that substituted Winslow for part of the Grand Canyon days followed by a longer stay in Sedona. We would hopefully get reservations at the La Posada in Winslow and use that as a base for exploring Petrified Forest National Park. Yeah, I know, there are lodging options much closer to Petrified Forest but none are as cool as La Posada nor have the excellent dining of the Turquoise Room. Shoot the back-up plan sounds just as good and the potential main event itinerary, so no losers here. And if we don't get picked in the Phantom Ranch lottery, we'll just put in again for a later date.
Regardless of which itinerary we end up using, we will be spending time in Sedona, so we'll need a place to stay. We've figured out that the Village of Oak Creek works well as a base for us and we have found nice rental places there in the past, although most of those were shared and therefore not ideal or really affordable for just the two of us. Lynn found the solution for that problem. While searching the VRBO website she came across the perfect place for us, a studio casita with a stunning, 180-degree view of the famous Sedona red rocks that included Cathedral Rock. The place was located well down the Verde Valley School Road, so away from the crowds but still very conveniently located for accessing all the that Sedona as to offer. I was hooked as soon as I saw the photos of the view! That is just what I'm looking for in terms of a place to sit and enjoy an afternoon porch beer after a day of hiking. Sign me up!
So the rough outline for both plans were in place, now we just have to work through the details. The domino that had to fall first was Phantom Ranch as that would determine which plan we were going to develop of the fall of 2019. We put that part of the plan in motion on Saturday, August 18, 2018, as we were enjoying a Hop JuJu on the front patio. We finalized our lottery picks, deciding to go for four days in a cabin at Phantom Ranch with early October dates as our preferred choice. I made the submissions using the phone and never had to move from my Adirondack chair. The confirmation emails came through while we were still sitting there, so we're good to go. Now we just have to wait to see if we get lucky with the lottery selection.
We had to wait a bit for that first domino to finally tip as it was not until September 14th that we got the news on our Phantom Ranch lottery entries. The email started by thanking us for our entries but then regretted to tell us that we were not selected. Whomp, whomp, whomp. We'll we can still check to see if there is availability, but I'm guessing they are sold out. Good thing we had a plan B. Honestly, I don't think either of us are upset with this result. Yes, we do want to make the hike into the Grand Canyon, and since we are not hardcore backpackers, Phantom Ranch is our best option. But I think we both really want to try out the VRBO casita in Sedona. Looks like we can start the wheels turning on the Winslow-Sedona option. I already had the rough plan in place, just not specific dates:
- Late afternoon flight into PHX and overnight at our usual hotel near the off-site rental car location
- Get our rental car at the off-airport Enterprise location. Meander to Winslow for 3 nights at the La Posada.
- We will spend at least one day in Petrified Forest National Park. The other day is open but we have plenty of time to fill our dance card.
- Relaxed day to get to Sedona. Check out the beer scene in Flagstaff on the way. Figure 5 or 6 nights in Sedona. I think 6 nights would be best! We'll spend that time hiking and chillin' in Red Rock Country.
- Final day is a cruise back to PHX for the flight home. Hopefully the flight schedule will be such that we have time for breakfast at Miley's before hitting the road.
- Wednesday, 10/30 - Fly to PHX, night near rental car pick-up. Depending on flight schedule, may not need this (if we get a morning, direct flight to PHX, we could travel on Thursday and go straight to Winslow after getting the car (still rent offsite, just Uber over). Lynn brought up a good point, though. We still might want to just go out on Wednesday so that we don't have to worry about flight delays on Thursday. Could be a morning or evening flight. The added bonus of going out Wednesday through PHX and staying the night, is that this gives us an opportunity to try some local beers. Tempe options include Huss, Pedal Haus, Four Peaks and Wren House is also just north of the airport.
- Thursday, 10/31 - Winslow (night 1 at La Posada). We'll just spend the day getting to La Posada. We'll stop in Flagstaff for beer and hiking supplies.
- Friday, 11/1 and Saturday, 11/2 - Winslow (nights 2 and 3 at La Posada). Two full days with Winslow as our base. We will spend at least one day will be at Petrified Forest National Park. Maybe both days as I think there are still plenty of trails to hike and it seems we have covered most of the points-of-interest around Winslow. I would like to get back to Blue Mesa perhaps earlier or later in the day for better light; it is just a really pretty area. Then there's the Devils Playground hike that could be fun, if we can get a permit.
- Sunday, 11/3 - Transfer to Sedona (night 1 in VRBO). Maybe stop in Flagstaff again since there are good beer stores. Perhaps we can also explore a bit more of Sunset Crater and Wupatki National Monuments.
- Monday, 11/4, through Friday, 11/8 - Sedona (nights 2 through 6). No shortage of things to do here! Plenty of gorgeous trails, wonderful places to eat. I would like to finally visit Tuzigoot National Monument sometime this week. Plus I'm sure that we'll find some time to visit with our friends from the UTAH Herd who live in the area.
- Saturday, 11/9 - Travel Day, return home.
- Sunday, 11/10 - Home
- Monday, 11/11 - Holiday
That's the going-in plan. We ended up doing something very close to what was outlined above, with a few modifications to the travel logistics. Here's the link to the start of trip, in case you don’t want to read through the rest of the planning details. But all those details are provided below.
The Nitty Gritty Planning Details. I like planning our trips. I keep the detailed notes to help be with future training as well as just keeping track of what we are thinking of doing. Anyway, here’s more that you probably want to know (remember the link to skip to the trip!).
December 8, 2018 - Just for kicks I checked rental car costs at Enterprise in Phoenix, renting a compact SUV from the offsite location we've used in the past and returning to PHX versus renting and returning at PHX. The offsite cost was $540 while renting from the airport location was $1,770! Larger SUVs from PHX were $740 and $820. Offsite is the way to go!
February 22, 2019 - Lynn looked at Flagstaff as the entry point for the trip. Interesting option. Decent fare and itinerary on American, one stop through Denver. Depends on what Southwest offers, although they are questionable at present due to union issues with their mechanics. Flying into Flagstaff will save us driving but adds time flying assuming we can go direct into Phoenix. Appears that the cost could be a wash.
Might as well check with the experts on TripAdvisor, that's what the forums are there for. I just asked for pros and cons of flying into Flagstaff (via a connection in Denver) versus direct into Phoenix. The unanimous advice was to take the direct flight to PHX and drive to points north. I am leaning that way as well. The pros for flying into PHX are direct flight which reduces flight delay issues and shortens the travel time, and weather should be nice in Phoenix which takes that potential flight delay cause out of play. Downsides to PHX are more driving and the potential for traffic issues. We have been stuck on I-17 between Phoenix and Sedona in the past. However since we will travel back on a Saturday perhaps the traffic will not be an issue. Flagstaff is a small airport which will be easy to navigate and puts us right in the middle of where we want to be so less driving. The one-stop itinerary just adds opportunities for delays and missed or canceled flights. And the CLE-DEN-FLG route brings weather into play. We would have an early departure time out of CLE to get to Flagstaff via United which just adds stress to the day.
March 17, 2019 - Did a little research on Flagstaff rental car costs. Rates are higher at FLG compared to PHX (not surprising) but I did find a couple options in the ballpark through Hertz. With the "pay now" option there is a Jeep Compass for $560. I will wait until we get airfare in order before deciding on the ground transportation.
March 30, 2019 - Playing around with travel logistics options. Southwest is not taking reservations past November 2, so too early on that point, but fares for the closest days to our trip are at $350 for the direct flights with a good itinerary. Hopefully that will still be the case when our dates are posted. United has flight through Denver into Flagstaff for $380 but still that 0700 departure.
For ground transportation, I can get a midsize SUV from FLG will be $471 through Alamo. I looked at the Enterprise in Tempe that we have been using and the cost for a compact SUV was still nearly $600. That's back to airport pricing. I looked at other options (scanning Expedia, not that I'll book through that site) and found an Avis just north of Phoenix and not far from the airport where I can get an Escape for $426 or an Edge for $462. There were hotels in the vicinity in the $200/night range. Hilton Garden Inn Phoenix Midtown seems reasonable; also the Wyndam Midtown. Plus it is within a couple miles of Huss Brewing, SunUp Brewing and Phoenix Ale Brewing (Huss does not have food, it seems) for dinner on arrival night. Phoenix Ale might be the best option for food.
So cost wise, it is about a wash. Flying into PHX is a little more expensive since we would come in a day early and need to have lodging, but with lower cost airfare and car, the total net cost difference will be about a C-note. That is noise. At present, I am leaning to going out on October 30, direct into PHX. The biggest negatives for me with FLG is the early departure time and the connecting flight. But we still have time to play with options.
May 11, 2019 - I'm still waiting for Southwest to update their flight schedules to cover our dates. Lynn read that they may delay until June 20 before extending due to the 737 MAX issues. So I looked again at Flagstaff. That 0700 departure is less than ideal. Hmmmm, what if we take the evening flight on Wednesday, just like we would do going into PHX. That could work. That reduces the airfare a little, and the extra night in Flag will be less than in Phoenix (found decent hotels near the airport for about $100). Car might be more expensive but not by much. Renting an SUV through Alamo is still the best deal at the Flagstaff airport, but the cost went up about a hundred bucks since last check. Overall, Lynn likes the idea. I will work this one once I get back DC and WV.
May 20, 2019 - OK, we took the plunge and locked in our airfare. I uncharacteristically went against the advice given by RedRox and MikeP on TripAdvisor and opted to fly into Flagstaff. We'll go out on Wednesday evening, connecting through Denver and spend that first night in Flagstaff. The only potential fly in the ointment is that the rental car locations at the airport close at 8:00 PM and our flight does not arrive until 7:40, so it will be close in getting the car that night. So we might have to wait until the next morning, which was what we would do if we went through Phoenix, so not a big deal. I checked with the FLG Alamo; while they do close at 8:00 PM, they keep and eye on the flights and will stay open to handle flights arriving just before closing time. We'll see how the timing works out.
May 21, 2019 - Locked in the car (midsize SUV) through Hertz. I think that takes care of all the reservations. And just in time as now we are getting close to our excursion to Alaska. We'll put the rest of the Arizona planning on hold until the fall.
August 20, 2019 - There was one last lodging reservation to make, the first night in Flagstaff. Lots of options, but I ended up using points for a room at the Embassy Suites (might as well use the points; that's what they are there for).
September 23, 2019 - The hectic part of the travel year is now over. We did miss the UTAH meet-up this year due to all that we had going on during August and September, but we did squeeze in a weekend trip to Atlanta with Lisa to see the Georgia Aquarium and Zoo Atlanta. Once back from that little trip I started looking at details for the Arizona excursion. I just happened to check the air reservations for Flagstaff while updating my account on United and noticed that there were changes to the itinerary. Tweaks to the departure and arrival times to each leg but the only one that caused any concern was the initial CLE to DEN flight as the layover is now under an hour. The reservations as originally scheduled had a layover of about 1:20 which is ideal, but this change shortened the time to 50 minutes which is cutting it a bit close for my stress level. OK, let's look at the options. There are no other flights that would really work (either really early departure or multiple stops), so I thought maybe we could move forward in the cabin to reduce the time for deplaning. The only way to do that is to upgrade to a premium seat. Lynn and I reviewed options over dinner at Lager Heads and decided to move up from row 26 to row 13 to reduce the time getting off the plane. Basically we were buying insurance that we would make the connection. Hey, I don't trust flight schedules or airlines. And now we have a little extra leg room, so that's a bonus. The funny thing is that after we bought this "insurance" I read an article that suggested this very strategy as a way of reducing miss connections.
Over the next few weeks, I started looking at the details for things to do and places to eat while on the trip. Winslow was easy for dining; we'll eat at the Turquoise Room in the La Posada at every opportunity! It is just that good. While in Sedona we have a list of favorite places but we're always on the look-out for good places to eat and places with a nice view. Well, as long as they are also a good value. The Hudson sounds like a great option. Its website shows a nice view and a decent looking menu. Los Rosales was also recommended. There are a lot of places that we need to try, so we won't get to them all this trip.
Like restaurants, there are also a lot of hiking trails that we have not explored in Red Rock Country. I reviewed the on-line hiking resources plus bought another Sedona trail guide, "Great Sedona Hikes - Revised Fifth Edition," which provided a nice overview and ratings for over a hundred trails in the area. I found it useful. The authors used QR codes that would link to photos from each trail. The photos were not as helpful as the information in the book in most instances, but it was still a nice feature.
So based on this research I developed a list of hikes that I thought would be good to choose from for this trip:
- Bear Mountain, difficult with a lot of elevation change, wonderful vistas.
- Hangover Trail, loop with Munds Wagon and Cow Pies trails; 8.2 miles (this one really sounded interesting to me).
- Schuerman Mountain Vista, short but steep (Tommy had also highly recommended this one).
- Soldiers Pass and Seven Sacred Pools (Once Lynn read about this one it became a "must do.!").
- Big loop around Cathedral Rock from route 179 (Hiline & Templeton).
- Mescal Trail.
Thursday, October 24, 2019 - I stumbled across the Flagstaff Craft Beer Trail. Now we're talking! There are ten local microbrewery locations in Flagstaff listed as part of the trail. Lynn and I studied options that night while at dinner at Lager Head's. Some don't offer much to our liking, but there are a couple of breweries that have a number of IPAs and Hazys. This could be fun! OK, flying into Flagstaff and spending the first night there now seems to be a brilliant idea.
Friday, October 25, 2019 - I printed a few of the "off the beaten trail" hiking option brochures and maps then Lynn and I reviewed them over beer and pizza at Fat Head's (a variety of Head Hunters IPAs on tap tonight so we sampled them all). After looking at these trails I think that we can skip Devil's Playground, thus removing the risk to the rental car on a questionable dirt road and the need for a permit. The Red Basin hike looks like a winner with a lot of cool stuff to find. Onyx Bridge and the Blue Forest trails also look like great options. There will certainly be no lack of things to see and do in Petrified Forest!
Monday, October 28, 2019 - I made a list of the Flagstaff breweries with a map. We don't have time to hit all of the breweries, even if we split this across a couple days (maybe we can visit one on arrival night, then a few the next day and maybe one or two one the drive back from Winslow to Sedona; we'll see how that works). But now I have a good list of the ones that are of most interest, which ones are open when we'll be in town and the ones that are clustered together and easy to walk between.
Tommy sent a message to see if we were still coming out and to start discussing options for the week. I reckon we'll be hiking with him at some point. We also got Alex in the loop. We will try a mini-meet-up on Monday. The plan is to meet at Casa RedRox around 6 PM then dinner out, probably at The Corner Table in VOC.
Tommy sent a message to see if we were still coming out and to start discussing options for the week. I reckon we'll be hiking with him at some point. We also got Alex in the loop. We will try a mini-meet-up on Monday. The plan is to meet at Casa RedRox around 6 PM then dinner out, probably at The Corner Table in VOC.
Tuesday, October 29, 2019 - Getting ready to get ready. I'm over packing, again. The weather is going to be very variable in Arizona. Cold in Flagstaff and Winslow the first couple days, then still cold mornings with moderate temps for Petrified Forest and finally beautiful fall days for Sedona (highs around 70F and lows about 40). Layers will be needed. And that just makes me pack more stuff. Well, as long as it all fits in the suitcase and does not exceed 50 pounds all will be well.
We were done with trip prep at 8:01. At least as done as we can be for now. We'll knock out the final chores and packing in the morning. But at present I am pouring the last beer we have in the fridge. A crowler of Hop Stalker. What a great IPA. The aroma is just amazing as soon as the can opens. Time to relax a while. |