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| Hiking | 12.08 Miles |
3,002 AEG |
| | Hiking | 12.08 Miles | 8 Hrs 19 Mns | | 2.04 mph |
| 3,002 ft AEG | 2 Hrs 24 Mns Break | | | |
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| partners | | Part 2 of our Sedona double. We had a good nite's rest and big breakfast so off we went hoping to find a parking spot at the TH; which we did. We geared up, looked under the bridge and then started up and around a switchback or two before more or less leveling out for a little while. It was fun trying to figure out how this trail was going to get us up and over there somewhere. The views to the west were fabulous  and so the snapping of pictures began because we knew we wouldn't have this light on our way down.
About 9:20ish we arrived at the Wilderness sign and headed north and then west before going north again. Somewhere around here I figured we were heading for the big saddle way above us. It gets a little rocky here. Eventually we reached a drainage and then again before hitting the pour off. The description of this trail is pretty good so we were doing our checklist  :two sets of powerlines, check
ravine, check
level with Steamboat Rock, check
cross the ravine twice, check
Schnebly Hill road in the distance, check As we hiked up the side of the mountain we kept waiting for the steep part to kick in. For whatever reason it really never did as the climb is very gradual, though like Kelly said, it sure didn't seem so on the way down. Plus on the way down it seemed much rockier than on the way up. We were continually impressed with ever-widening expansive views we were treated to as we trudged our way across a couple switchbacks. I do remember Kelly saying "the saddle is not too far" and I think I said something to the effect, "well maybe not to YOU   ". I try to keep my whining to a minimum but sometimes I just can't help myself.
Soon enough we were at the saddle/bench around 11. We had been behind another fellow that we would soon be leap-frogging with and he verified the positioning of Steamboat Rock. Kelly decided we would break at the junction with the Wilson Canyon trail which was just fine with me. The saddle had the better views but the junction had a nice shaded seating area too.
And now we just had a Shaw Butte left so we got back on the trail. Once again I guessed that we would head up and west and then around a corner before topping out at the last saddle and that's about exactly what we did. Once again, this up was easier than expected. Gawd life is great for me when that happens  . We enjoyed the scenery with some interspersed fall color thru the burn area as well as views into various parts of the canyon below us and further away were closer and closer views of the Peaks. Yep it was a good day and little did we know it would get better.
After going over a bit of deadfall and one last steeper section we arrived at the final saddle around noonish I think. We discussed our timing to do both viewpoints. I knew I wanted to do the north for sure so we figured out what our timing would need to be to do both and off we went. On this section we would negotiate more deadfall interspersed with grassy areas. You could see where the end was on both sides for part of this hike. As we got near the viewpoint we encountered a female hiker we had met at the saddle. We would also see her again at the Sedona viewpoint. We made good time and 45 minutes later, the view we had hoped for was before us  .
We took pics of the views before sitting to enjoy the grand scenery. Kelly mentioned something about Vultees Arch and I just happen to look to my left and there it was. Now if I had tried to find it, I don't think I would have spotted it that quickly. So I got a few pics of that as well as of the fire remnants and up the canyon. I think about 1:15 we headed out but not before encountering a hiker and his little dog which made us think of Daisy.
We were back at the saddle 1/2 hour later and started our hike out to the Sedona Overlook. We checked out the tool/maintenance box that was standing almost vertically against a tree before heading up the incline, thru the forest, and then over to the viewpoint where we saw a few other hikers. We veered to the right to a rock outcropping to sit and take in the views before us as well as take pictures of course. I wanted to take particular note of where we were sitting so I could decipher it when we got back to the TH. The sun didn't help with the taking pictures but that's ok; we loved it nonetheless.
Around 2:30 it was time to head back as it would probably take about 3 hours to get down so off we went. The north side of the mountain provided shade as we headed back down to the bench. We saw 5 hikers I think along this stage. At the bench we checked out a path that took us to the edge of the saddle but not really anything new to see here so we continued on.
We started off the bench around 3:25. We were surprised at how much rockier the trail seemed on the way down. We still stopped on occasion to admire the view but were disappointed that the sun would not give us the view of the Schnebly Road formations we had hoped to see in better light at this time of day. We did enjoy the forested area as it's a nice change from the wide open grassy side of the trail alongside the mountain. It's pretty through here with the cypress and juniper and such; hard to get a good pic of it though.
We thot that pour off was right around the corner but you actually have to go over another drainage and then around the corner to get to the pour off. I had told Kelly a little earlier that I wanted to stop at the pour off for one last break (around 4:15) before knocking out the rest of the trail. We ended up ogling a bit at some of the landscape on our way down too so we didn't get back to the TH until a little before 5:15. We studied the sign at the TH to see our route and other routes. We looked way up high to see where we were sitting less than 2 3/4 hours ago.
But no, we were not done yet as Kelly insisted we do down below the bridge to take a closer look at the landscape below  . Which reminds me, I have yet to put together the little video on that. Anyway, it was nice to enjoy this scenery at the end of a 12 mile day. Drank the other 1/2 of my beer and we headed out looking forward to our dinner and for me a Blue Moon brew (out of Denver) at the Blue Moon Cafe in the Village of Oak Creek; a very fitting end to our Sedona double weekend .
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For me, sometimes it's just as much about the journey as the destination.
Oh, and once in awhile, don't forget to look back at the trail you've traveled. |
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