Sedona - Fay Canyon Hike

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This is our final day, and hike for this trip.  After loading up with the free breakfast at the hotel we pack the car and start our trip to Fay Canyon.  Laurie texted then called Don to see if he was hiking or not.  No response.  Oh well, we can do this one on our own.  As we pull into the parking lot Don is already putting on his pack, waiting for us.  Should have known better.

This morning, the trailhead parking lots are quite empty.  Even the Fay Canyon parking lot has only 3 cars, two of which belong to our hiking group.  The snow is pretty well gone by this time; we expect to hit 60 by the time we leave, early this afternoon.

The tree lined canyon is damp, with the aroma of pine in the air.  The ground is damp but firm, good for hiking.  As we head up the canyon a few people already coming down.

We peel of the main trail heading for the arch.  Don keeps pointing it out but I just see layers of red rock.  This is an unofficial trail so the switchbacks are in name only; instead we are pretty much going straight up to the arch.  In addition, there are multiple prickly pear cacti lining the trail.  Concentrating on keeping your right side clear of the thorns may mean getting speared by the thorns on your left side.  To keep from being stabbed one needs the proverbial eyes in the back of their head.

No blood was shed on the hike up to the arch.

Once I get to the arch I can see what everybody else saw when pointing out the arch from below.  The gap between the two walls is about a dozen feet apart.  There are a couple petroglyphs painted on the back wall signifying this has been here for quite some time.

One the way down a rock decided to follow Laurie by sliding after her, aiming for her foot.  She was able to stop it with her wrist and forearm before it ran into her ankle.   Fortunately she is okay; this was the only accident on our multi-day, multi-mile hike.

Bleeding stopped, we continue up the canyon.  The flora is thickening to the point we only occasionally see beyond the canopy of trees.  Arriving at the end of the trail, officially declared by a sign, Don and I decide to scramble up the lower sloped section of the canyon wall.  I am interested in getting high enough to see back out of the canyon.  It is quite a view.  We can see Bell Rock over 9 miles away.

More and more hikers are making their way up trail as we are leaving.  The parking lot is overflowing when we arrive back at the car.  Even with all those people the hike didn’t feel crowded.

Laurie has been taking notes before, during and after each hike for her next Sedona adventure with the WOW WE hiking group as they are returning here in April.

As we make our way up Oak Creek Canyon, continuing on to Albuquerque, we start planning for next year’s Christmas break.  We throw out a number of destinations not certain what each location offers a couple of hiking nuts.  Wherever we go it will be hard to beat Sedona.

This has been a wonderful outing.  I have never seen so much natural beauty in one place.  The rock formations are astounding.  I cannot recommend this place highly enough if you enjoy being outdoors, especially if you enjoy hiking and don’t mind putting in a few miles and hours of your time to see it.  The photos I posted from this trip are a fair representation of real rocks, mesas and wilderness that make up Sedona.  Be sure to put this on your list of places to go.

Thank you for stopping by,

Mark