Driving around the Sedona area

We have been sleeping in the last few days because we know that when we get back to Albuquerque, we won’t be getting enough sleep.  We decided to have breakfast at the Coffee Pot restaurant … home of the 101 different types of omelettes.  I had fabulous fluffy pancakes, while Karen had the peanut butter and jelly omelette.  Strange but delicious. 

Today was a driving trip, to interesting places just outside of Sedona.  After stopping for some more photos of the stunning scenery on our way out of town, and a quick stop at an outlet mall in Oak Creek, our first real planned stop was Montezuma Well.  It’s a natural sinkhole that’s 368 feet wide, and surrounded by 70 foot cliffs.  There were some interesting cliff dwellings built into the side of the cliffs, where people actually lived long ago.

Our next stop was Montezuma Castle.  It’s basically a high-rise apartment building built into the side of a cliff very long ago, and is one of the oldest and largest cliff dwellings in the entire Southwest.  About 35 people lived within the 20 rooms, way, way up high in the cliffs.  It was amazing to see how people would live over a thousand years ago.  What we couldn’t figure out was how the people would actually climb the cliffs to get into the building.

We left the castle and headed to Jerome.  Jerome is located on top of Cleopatra Hill, and is called the “City in the Sky”.  It used to be a mining town but now it’s a tourist destination.  We walked around the town checking out the various shops and the view.  The whole town is basically clinging to the side of the mountain.  Driving is challenging up there.  Very steep in every direction.

On our way back to Sedona, the sun was starting to set.  So we drove the Lower Red Rock Loop Road, looking for the ultimate sunset photo.

We got back to the hotel and walked over to The Cowboy Club where we enjoyed a really good meal.  This place is very popular, and the food is superb.  We started with the Cactus Fries (which are Napolitas cactus strips dusted in seasoned flour and flash fried, served with prickly pear dipping sauce).  Not something you would ever find at home, but very tasty.   

Then it was back to the hotel for some R&R, before our final day of hiking and photography. 

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