From Chicago to LA by car and train - Day 5 - Sedona and Lowell Observatory

[fillmore]

We all woke up feeling much better than when we went to sleep and after showers and a bit of pottering we went to find the breakfast room. DS declared the scrambled eggs the best so far. There was a good choice of south western breakfast items, pastries, fruit and cereals. It was then time to book a taxi (eek!) and go to pick up our rental car at the airport. Our taxi arrived within ten minutes and we set off for the airport. Our hotel was 4 miles away from Flagstaff itself so the journey took a while. The airport was tiny and it wasn’t long before we had our hands on a black Jeep Compass and the licence plate game could begin with our own Oregon plate! We headed back to the hotel but the Sat Nav that came with the car couldn’t find it. DH had also downloaded an app called Sygic which we used for the remainder of the holiday and we didn’t use the car’s one once.

We were originally going to explore Flagstaff but DH wanted to get some wrong side of the road miles under his belt before we attempted a built-up area so we headed off to Sedona instead. Sygic wanted to keep diverting us but we (that is, I) knew best so we followed Highway 89A to Sedona. Oh wow, the roads! The road was basically being dug up and re-laid whilst still being used. We could barely see for dust from the road at one point and had to crawl along.

It was certainly an experience, but was worth it when the scenic route to Sedona started. This was amazing. The twists, the drops, the red rocks ahead. We were all in awe.

We arrived in Sedona and headed off to find lunch. After a couple of stops to look at menus I decided on Canyon Breeze. Again, I can’t remember what we had but it tasted good. Out at the back they had a viewing area across to the rock formations which were spectacular.

We then went for a browse around the shops before stopping off at the Black Cow Cafe for ice cream and pie. I really liked Sedona and could have stayed there longer. Here we have the first cactus of the trip!

We then headed back to Flagstaff as we wanted to go to Lowell Observatory. Unbeknownst to us the clock in the car was one hour earlier than the actual time so we were now later than we thought. Instead of going back to Flagstaff and going for dinner we had to go straight to the observatory.

We explored the area downstairs where you had to complete missions by reading all the displays. DS struggled a bit and even when we helped him it was a bit tricky for us! There was then a science show which was very informative about the different gases in different planets. The demonstrator performed some crowd-pleasing experiments like placing items in liquid nitrogen. It was then dark enough to start using the telescopes to view the moon. The observatory was in a beautiful wooded setting with good views over Flagstaff. Unfortunately, we were all getting tired and hungry by this point and they only had crisps, soda and sweets to eat in the shop. We stayed for about ten minutes for the talk about stars and although DS was happy to stay it was going to be a fine line between OK and overtired so we set off. So many people were arriving as we were going!

We drove past a Target on the way back and picked up some supplies and a high-back car seat for DS before calling it a night.

Tomorrow: here’s a clue – “Well it goes through St Louis, down through Missouri, Oklahoma City is oo so pretty!”

[Melbatb]

Wow - stunning scenery again! You managed to do a lot considering you had to pick up the car and get used to it!

[Disney Wishing]

Sedona looks nice, great scenery.

[Guest]

Adore Sedona - so many very happy memories. It's a beautiful place - all that amazing red rock. It rivals Monument Valley with its formations. Did you have time to visit Tlaque Pacque? An amazing "folly" but just breath taking. Can't wait to hear how you "got your kicks".