We had a 9:30 am reservation to tour the Palatki Red Cliffs Heritage Site,west of Sedona on a washboard dirt road six miles off the highway. The cultural site, in a remote box canyon (rincon), is on USFS land and entry is controlled by rangers and volunteer guides.
The site is the ancesteral lands of the Singua Native Americans who arrived in this Red Rock country about AD 650 and flourished between AD 1150 and AD 1250,when they left the area and were replaced by Apache and other Indian tribes. There is also documented evidence at the site that various groups of people have lived in this area for almost 6,000 years.
The major attarctions of the site are an extensive display of pictographs (images painted on the cliff walls) dating from the Singua era and earlier as well as the remains of cliff dwellings in and under the overhanging red rock cliffs. Despite the difficulty getting to the site, it was well worth the trip and, once again, the views in every direction were spectacular.
After getting back on paved road , it was time for lunch. We decided to go back to the same place where we had lunch yesterday (Wildflower Bakery) and had another excellent meal.
After lunch, we drove to the Sedona airport, on top of a mesa in the center of town, and had a few more excellent scenic views. After a stop at Safeway for a few things, we headed back to the RV and called it a day. Judy did a last load of laundry and we went out to an early dinner at a brew pub in the shopping complex we went to yesterday (Tlaqueque).
We leave for Nelllis AFB in Las Vegas, NV in the morning, then a long ride home on Sunday.
Friday Pictures - Sedona
Showing posts with label Sedona AZ. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sedona AZ. Show all posts
Friday, May 20, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Jazz Fest Trip - Day 28
After breakfast in the RV we drove around the Sedona area to get oriented and decide what we wanted to do for the day.
Sedona is a beautiful, well-ordered town that reflects the presence of a lot of money. It is also a center for people who are into spiritual revitalization through interaction with the beauty of the area, the local sacred Native American sites, and the presence of at least nine "Spiritual Vortexes" in and around the town.
In Sedona, a vortex is a hot spot of natural energy that draws thousands of visitors each year. The vortexs are believed to create positive, negative and neutral releases of the Earth's energy and evoke balance, a heightened sense of awareness and an awakening of the spirit.
Some believe the vortexs are in conjunction with other world spiritual sites such as the Egyptian pyramids and Stonehenge and are connected with them through mystical powers and magnetic attractions. On a practical note, the locals have turned a lot of this into a commercial arrangement, offering Vortex Tours, Life Consultation Sessions and Ceremonies, Crystal Power, Psychic Readings, etc. promoting a metaphysical and spiritual experience for visitors and pilgrims to the area.
We decided to take a short hike into a "vortex" area and found a nice two mile hike up to the top of a butte in Boynton Canyon. Most of the area is on U.S. Forest Service land and the trails are maintained and controlled by them. The hike was great with outstanding views in every direction. This whole area is made up of many giant scenic views. We passed through the vortex at the summit of the butte, but, alas, we didn't feel any special sensations. During the drive to the hiking area, we also saw several Javelina, small wild pig-like animals, crossing the road.
After the hike we stopped at the visitors center in town then had lunch at a nearby restaurant, The Wildflower Bread Company. The food was excellent.
We then went to the Tlaquepaque (tla-lockey-pockey) Arts and Crafts Village to look around and window shop. The shopping complex has over 45 art galleries and many shops, and restaurants in a beautiful setting. The things for sale were mostly all high quality and many were by local artists . We were told there are at least 300 resident artists in town. I suspect many of them have day jobs though. We walked around the complex most of the afternoon and enjoyed looking at the many beautiful things for sale. The native hand made jewelry, mostly all in silver and turquoise, was exquisite. However, as we didn't need any $5,000 bronze cowboy sculptures, $2,000 oil paintings, or $1,000 necklaces, we decided to continue touring the area. Judy did find a couple of inexpensive hand-carved pigs for her collection (Pat insisted tha I had to buy these.
Next, we visited a small chapel built into a bluff just south of town in 1957. It is sort of a strange thing and we are not sure it really is a good fit for the natural beauty of the surrounding landscape. The views from the chapel were again outstanding in every direction.
It was then back to the RV to rest for awhile, then out to dinner at a nearby up-scale Italian restaurant to celebrate our 49th wedding anniversary.
Thursday Pictures - Sedona, AZ
Sedona is a beautiful, well-ordered town that reflects the presence of a lot of money. It is also a center for people who are into spiritual revitalization through interaction with the beauty of the area, the local sacred Native American sites, and the presence of at least nine "Spiritual Vortexes" in and around the town.
In Sedona, a vortex is a hot spot of natural energy that draws thousands of visitors each year. The vortexs are believed to create positive, negative and neutral releases of the Earth's energy and evoke balance, a heightened sense of awareness and an awakening of the spirit.
Some believe the vortexs are in conjunction with other world spiritual sites such as the Egyptian pyramids and Stonehenge and are connected with them through mystical powers and magnetic attractions. On a practical note, the locals have turned a lot of this into a commercial arrangement, offering Vortex Tours, Life Consultation Sessions and Ceremonies, Crystal Power, Psychic Readings, etc. promoting a metaphysical and spiritual experience for visitors and pilgrims to the area.
We decided to take a short hike into a "vortex" area and found a nice two mile hike up to the top of a butte in Boynton Canyon. Most of the area is on U.S. Forest Service land and the trails are maintained and controlled by them. The hike was great with outstanding views in every direction. This whole area is made up of many giant scenic views. We passed through the vortex at the summit of the butte, but, alas, we didn't feel any special sensations. During the drive to the hiking area, we also saw several Javelina, small wild pig-like animals, crossing the road.
After the hike we stopped at the visitors center in town then had lunch at a nearby restaurant, The Wildflower Bread Company. The food was excellent.
We then went to the Tlaquepaque (tla-lockey-pockey) Arts and Crafts Village to look around and window shop. The shopping complex has over 45 art galleries and many shops, and restaurants in a beautiful setting. The things for sale were mostly all high quality and many were by local artists . We were told there are at least 300 resident artists in town. I suspect many of them have day jobs though. We walked around the complex most of the afternoon and enjoyed looking at the many beautiful things for sale. The native hand made jewelry, mostly all in silver and turquoise, was exquisite. However, as we didn't need any $5,000 bronze cowboy sculptures, $2,000 oil paintings, or $1,000 necklaces, we decided to continue touring the area. Judy did find a couple of inexpensive hand-carved pigs for her collection (Pat insisted tha I had to buy these.
Next, we visited a small chapel built into a bluff just south of town in 1957. It is sort of a strange thing and we are not sure it really is a good fit for the natural beauty of the surrounding landscape. The views from the chapel were again outstanding in every direction.
It was then back to the RV to rest for awhile, then out to dinner at a nearby up-scale Italian restaurant to celebrate our 49th wedding anniversary.
Thursday Pictures - Sedona, AZ
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