AZ '23 - Day 7: January 1, 2024

Happy New Year!

One Last Hike

We had to pack up the truck with all of our luggage as we were going to spend the night in Phoenix, to catch an early morning flight out. Again, packing the truck is like luggage Jenga, but the guys got it done, with no injuries this time! 

With all bags, and people, loaded up we headed out to one last hike in Sedona. Cathedral Rock was our choice for the morning.

The parking at Cathedral Rock is very limited, so the city has setup a shuttle system to use. You park in their lot and take a shuttle to the trail head. No one is allowed to park at the actual trailhead. We met three guys with ropes and helmets on the same shuttle. They had much more adventurous plans than we did!

We made it to the trailhead and began our hike. It is listed as a moderate hike, and being more of a rock climb than a hike. I read that if you are hiking with sticks, to be sure that you can still carry them with your hands free, as there are a couple of spots where you need your hands free for three-point style climbing.

Dean shot some video at the very start of the trail head.

We all continued with the rock climb. Each of us moving at our own pace, trying to find what we thought to be the best way to ascend the butte. Clint definitely  proved himself to be the most agile when it came ot rock climbing on this trip. At Bell Rock he made it higher than the rest of us. The girls and I made it to 'Big Crack' and chose that to be our stopping point. The three guys continued onward and actually made it to the End of Trail (as per pictured sign!). It was a great hike/climb that we all enjoyed.

Agave plants

Cathedral Rock

While we were all still hiking

Just a little steep

The Big Crack- Dean already scaled, Nicky deciding

Made it to the top!

What victory looks like...

Camera lessons at the peak!

The view from the top of Cathedral Rock

Doing what he loves

Sign says it all!

Island of Isolation, AZ style....lol

Wren that wanted Dean to feed him

View of the peak from below

Mole

Once we made it back to the trail head, waited on a shuttle and made it back to the truck, we were all hungry. It was just after noon and New Years Day, so we were hoping we could find an open restaurant in Sedona, before heading south to Phoenix. Kip has mentioned Mole on our tour the previous day, so I plugged that into our Google maps and we made our way there. It was our lucky day because they were open and could seat the six of us right then.

What a fabulous experience this restaurant turned out to be! The Mexican dishes we enjoyed were the freshest food that we've had in a while. The guacamole appetizer was the best guac we've ever had. We totally forgot to snap a picture- we were so hungry and it was so visually appealing! We enjoyed chicken, asada beef, and portobello tacos. Their beans and rice were delicious as well. The guys picked up on the end of the LSU vs Wisconsin while we waited on food. It was a great New Years lunch!

CHAMPIÑON TACOS

Tigers Win!

Before heading to Phoenix, we wanted to take in a few shops in Sedona. We found a parking spot at the Tlaquepaque Arts & Crafts Village. We walked around a bit, peeking in the various shops and enjoying our last few minutes in Sedona.

Phoenix

After shopping, we began the drive south to Phoenix. We were planning on stopping at Montezuma Castle National Monument in Verde, AZ. As it turns out, the site was closed due to the holiday. We drove near just to see if we could see any part of it from a distance. We think we saw the area, but were not completely sure, as it was a good distance away.

As we got closer to Phoenix, we finally saw saguaro cacti all along the landscape. These only grow in Arizona and only in the Sonoran Desert. Water and temperature are key factors as well as elevation. Dean and I had not seen any 'in the wild', even with our previous visits to Arizona. Of course, we had to stop to get a few pictures of these guys as well as other cacti near them.

Once we located our hotel in Phoenix we got the truck unloaded and then began our search for our last supper location. We found a local brewery, as we all know that Clint is a fan. Fate Brewing Company was a winner for us! We enjoyed some brews, pizza and burgers. We watched Alabama lose their bowl game as we finished our meal.

Our flight leaves AZ just after 7 am. It has been such a great trip. We realized on our drive home from MSY that we had not even established a safe word for this trip. To me, this speaks to the ease that we all get along and for the respect that is shared amongst our sixlet! We are blessed to live in the country that we do, to be able to travel as we want with who we want. Until our next trip...