We arrived in Sedona AZ Sat afternoon and plan to leave Tues am. The temperatures have been in the high 80s during the days and low 50s at night. It has rained each afternoon since we arrived in town. The weather forecasters reported that as of Sun. the area had received about 13.8 inches of rain this year to date. Each day the dark clouds have have moved in blocking the views of the mountains or red rock formations surrounding Sedona. Then the light show and rains would begin. Tremendous claps of thunder and bolts of lightning have been a part of each day's rain showers and sometimes followed by spectacular sunsets.
Sunday we spent checking out downtown Sedona. All the standard tourist stuff – t-shirts, turquoise jewelry, NA products with feathers, postcards, and the still popular, Mexican blanket pullovers.
Monday we took a Red Rock Jeep tour. A fun off road ride for about an hour. We did enjoy a pleasant ride, as Sunday's rain kept the dust down. And then, a little rain on our parade. By the time we unpacked our 'ponchos' – read that as plastic trash bags with a couple of holes for arms and a hood to protect my fragile hair, the rain stopped and it was sunny again. And we complain about New England weather!
Sunday afternoon found us driving south toward Cottonwood to visit Montezuma's Castle. This is a nearly ancient Indian ruin of pueblos built into the sandstone cliffs. Since the ruins had been ransacked many years ago, the researchers can only speculate as to why the Indians left the area. I would find the daily 50 -100 foot ladder climb enough to make me relocate!
Tuesday we traveled from Sedona AZ to Gallup NM, with visits to the Lowell Observatory and Meteor Crater and a stop at the Hubbell Trading Post. You ask why just a stop! As we traveled down the highway, Nancy was talking to my Dad back in MA. During the conversation, they talked about the time differences – the car clock said we were an hour behind Boston time. When we arrived at the Trading Post, we learned that we had lost an hour due to unknowingly crossing into Mountain Time – which also happened to be closing time! We also learned that some of the NA reservations can elect a different time zone than the rest of the state - another 'fact of the day'.
The Lowell Observatory was very interesting and informative about astrology and the 'things' discovered during research at the facility – like the discovery of Pluto which has now be reclassified as a sub-planet. The Lowell Observatory is related to the same Lowell family which was instrumental in the City of Lowell, MA's industrial revolution.
Continuing down the the road, we stopped at the Meteor Crater. This is a six mile ride from the main road to the crater site. And then, a big hole in the ground! Hint: if you hear that at meteor is coming, run, don't hide, don't walk, RUN! Meteors can be large and they do make a BIG hole in the ground! This is definitely is a must see! You just have to remember the Grand Canyon took a long time to get that big. The Meteor Crater was created really fast. RUN FAST!
Wednesday we treated the Highlander to an oil change and filter. We have put 5,500 miles on since we left on this adventure!
Our visit to the Unser Museum, which was payback for quilt shops, was quite interesting. Nancy got to learn all about the Unser family and their auto racing careers. Quite an amazing group and 4 members of the current generation are beginning to race. They have display cases filled with rings from victories in Indy and stock car racing. Then it was a visit to the balloon museum. Not party balloons, but rather very large hot air balloons. Albuquerque is considered to be the Mecca for balloon enthusiast in the US. I guess it's their Carlisle or Paduca. This celebration is a week long event, with the activities beginning a 5:30am each morning. Devoted fools they are!
George and Nancy Floating East
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