Well in October 2012, Mom and I went to Arizona to visit my Aunt Debbie, Uncle Larry and see some of the beauties that Arizona offers. Flying in on Saturday, we spent Sunday with my Cousin Allen and his daughter Kayelen in Tuscan, then on Monday Morning, we were off touring Arizona. We have plans to see the Grand Canyon on Tuesday and Wednesday, so we headed toward Sedona to see Montezuma Castle, Tuzigoot, Camp Verde and Sedona. What a day.
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| Arizona Landscape |
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| Arizona Landscape | |
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| No explanation needed |
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| Flowers |
After stopping to get some great pictures of the Arizona landscape, our first stop was Camp Verde, a post Civil War base for those in the nation that were headed to California. Within Camp Verde, is Fort Verde. Fort Verde is cute, definitely worth a visit if you are a history person. Surrounded by the mountains, the Fort is where much of the Southwestern Cavalry got their training. It is a cut little encampment with several of the original buildings, the garden and the parade grounds.
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| Camp Verde Sign |
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| From the Camp Verde Sign |
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| Verde Valley |
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| Fort Verde |
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| Fort Verde |
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| Fort Verde |
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| Parade Grounds |
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| Army Quarters |
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| Officer's Quarters |
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| from the Fort |
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| From the Fort |
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| Fort Verde |
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| Fort Verde |
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| 19th Century Outhouse |
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| The Garden |
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| The Fort |
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| Calvary Saddle |
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| Buddy on Saddle |
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| Buddy on Firing Target |
Then we were off to Montezuma Castle. These are ancient ruins in the side of a cliff. The place is small, with very little parking, so get there early, or be prepared to drive around the parking lot. The walk out to the ruins is about half a mile, so wear comfortable shoes. They are incredible. I cannot see how the people lived in them, but they did.
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| Welcome Sign |
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| How the Caves were formed |
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| The Cliff Side |
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| The Castle |
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| The Castle |
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| The Castle |
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| The Castle |
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| The moon over the Castle |
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| Entrances |
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| tools |
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| Entrances |
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| Water supply |
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| Cactus |
Afterward we headed to Sedona for lunch from the only McDonald's in the nation without a yellow sign. It is not a Southwest color, so the M is in Teal. We took our lunch to Red Rock State Park, then headed on a tour of the beautiful Red Rock Formations.
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| Red Rocks |
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| More Red Rocks |
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| The Engine |
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| The Bell |
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| Buddy |
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| The Engine |
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| Small Rock |
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| McDonald's Teal Sign |
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| McDonald's Teal Sign |
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| Red Rock State Park |
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| Red Rock State Park |
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| Very Scary Sign. |
After lunch we headed to Tuzigoot. This is another area of ruins in Arizona. These were awesome. You are allowed to walk around them and view landscape from the roof area. This is cool, and on a clear day you can see forever (sort of).
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| Tuzigoot |
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| Tuzigoot |
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| Tuzigoot |
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| Winter-fat |
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| Tuzigoot |
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| Tuzigoot Ruins |
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| Tuzigoot Ruins |
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| Tuzigoot Ruins |
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| Tuzigoot Ruins |
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| Tuzigoot Ruins & Tools |
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| Tuzigoot Ruins |
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| Tuzigoot Ruins |
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| Tuzigoot Ruins |
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| Tuzigoot Ruins & Buddy |
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| View from the Roof |
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| View from the Roof |
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| View from the Roof |
After a long day of touring, we headed back to Phoenix for dinner and to rest up for our two day outing to the Grand Canyon. But don't expect that to be the next blog. On the way to the Grand Canyon, we stopped at Sunset Crater and Wupatki Parks. Until then always be safe and remember to have safe travels, enjoy life and get you bucket list checked off.
