I've struggled with Sedona a bit, mostly around access. There are so many limitations, no parking, no dogs, no, no no.
I think that there are a lot of folks who spend a lot on property in the red rock country- which is stunningly beautiful, and are working hard to keep people out of their backyard.
Finding somewhere to fill water tanks- not here.
How about empty the grey water? Nope
How about some cool wild forest camping- nope- only in designated spots, and there are just a few- over crowded spots. People staking claim to a spot with tents made it feel even more restricted.
It all takes the fun out of the place.
The trailheads are packed by 8:30 and there are cars lining the road nearby. How can that be? There are tons of trails! Are they really all like this? The hikers seem to have a different mindset, like it's 100 percent about the Instagram photo rather than the experience of seeing a place. The community seems to have a different mindset. We were hiking in the "wilderness" with golf courses and condos built right up to the fence line, and the noise of the maintenance machines was constant for hours. It's like there's no regard for the incredible scenery aside from having the prized property at its doorstep.
So, it's beautiful, but really a poor experience.
That said, here are some photos from our beautiful hike in Boynton canyon. We were just going to the canyon when we met someone that was going to the Subway, to get "the photo" of the Subway cave, ok, let's check that out. It was an amazing place, up on a cliff face where ancient peoples had shelters above the valley floor. What they were interested was next to that, and a cool photo- but that was all they had eyes for, not the ancients.
Weird
We retreated to the dispersed site closer to Flagstaff, and it was refreshing to have some space again.
I wonder if there are some dogs down there!?
There’s a cool pertoglyph behind Susan, maybe a spiral, maybe a turtle?
Yes, it’s a long way down!