Williams - Sedona, Chapel of the Holy Cross and more...

Monday May 25 –  We left Benson and drove to North Phoenix RV Park.  The office was closed for Memorial Day but fortunately someone was standing around and told us to just take a spot.  There sure weren’t very many pull throughs and we wanted one as we’ll only be here tonight.  We got parked and as we were setting up, Earl realized the slide out in the back, passenger side this time had gone bad.  Oh brother!  We just replaced the one on the driver side!  He’ll have to wait till tomorrow to call in as everything is closed today. I am SO glad we’re not staying here. $35 to stay in a parking lot crowded in between tons of others.  I can’t figure out why people stay here, and probably 1/3 of them are permanent sites.  Oh well…. It’s hot, about 90 today and supposed to be 105 this weekend! We’re ready to move on tomorrow!

Tuesday – May 26^th.  We left Phoenix this morning, hot, hot, hot  Yuck!  Earl got the slideout motor ordered this morning, so we’ll have it shipped to us and should arrive by Friday. We are now in Williams, AZ, and I am almost giddy with excitement. The trip from Phoenix was awesome as we watched the temperatures gradually drop – we’re almost 20 degrees less than Phoenix!  As we approached Flagstaff, I just got on a travel “high” from seeing GREEN – I didn’t realize how tired I was of seeing only dry dusty areas with mostly cacti everywhere.  Thousands of green pine trees make this look a little more like the Blue Ridge mountains we’re used to.  BUT…. As we got closer, I was elated to see snow on the mountain tops!!!  Oh my goodness.  Amazingly beautiful – reminded me of when I went to Switzerland with my parents.  Elevation of over 7000 ft here makes for cooler temperatures.  Supposed to be in the 40’s tonight and high 60’s tomorrow, maybe hit 70.  So time to dig out jeans and jackets!  There’s a LOT to do and see around here.  We may very well decide to stay longer than this week.   

 We are in Canyon Motel and RV Park, way up high and deliciously cool weather.  Regularly $55 a night, but we have Passport America so only $27 for us!  Once again, that is paying off big time.  I LOVE it here! Can’t wait to get up tomorrow and go to Sedona!  Hope I can sleep tonight! Here’s a few photos of the RV park – really cool set up with several railroad cars that they rent as cabins.

So after we got settled in, we went to explore Williams!  What a great "hub" this is going to be for our next several days.  Really lovely downtown area and lots to see...

Wednesday – May 27^th -  Sedona is everything and more that all my friends have told me! Beauty everywhere, the whole way there, and once there, quaint, unique shops, art galleries and restaurants.  Some have called this the most beautiful place in America. It’s in the heart of the Verde Valley and at the gateway to northern AR.  We found a wonderful RV park right in town that we very may well decide to come back to visit for a longer period in the future! Perfect town to stroll up and down the streets on both upper and lower levels.  It also helped that the weather was so beautiful, just making one feel great to be out and about! Sedona is great for hiking with relatively wide and hard packed trails. Lots of mountain bikers were here too. Here’s a few photos, and trust me, for every one you see here, I have about 30 more!

 Here's how the cops dress in the West!  :-)

This is a beautiful shopping area in Sedona that we'd have likely missed had not our friend, Lloyd Heilman told us about it.  We still might have missed it, as it's not advertised locally very well, but in driving around, we just happened to come across it, and it really is beautiful, full of unique shops and amazing art galleries.

 I guess beauty is in the eyes of the beholder!  The dress is lovely, the bride?  Not so much.

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Among all the neat shops, we suddenly came across this arched doorway.  Much to our surprise, it is a beautiful chapel!

 We had been told by SO many of our traveling friends to be sure not to miss Chapel of the Holy Cross, and oh my, SO happy we made a point of seeing this!  Unlike anything we've ever seen!

The Chapel is at the top of the mountain, so all the way up we noticed such beauty!

 We have been amazed throughout all our travel in this part of the country that plants seem to be able to grow right out of the rock!  Here's an example above and below.

From the top, we could see for miles.....so beautiful. 

 

And below us..... a magnificent home!

 On the way back, we just kept marveling at the beauty of nature.  Here’s some of the amazing views of Oak Creek Canyon!

What a great day!  What a beautiful country we have!  I hope I've never taken it for granted, but I KNOW I never will after this trip, and lots more to come.