Arizona
Sedona in the movies: Broken Arrow
I finally watched the 1950 Jimmy Stewart movie, Broken Arrow. I say “finally”, because I’ve been meaning to for years, ever since I first went to Sedona, Arizona.
Based on fact, the movie is the story of ex-army scout Tom Jeffords (played by Jimmy Stewart). He is distressed at the way the war against the Apaches is going, and does his best to see if everyone could just get along together.
Sedona – Hedgehogs in bloom
One nice thing about visiting the desert in the spring is the flowers that add splashes of color to the landscape. It’s amazing how even the forbidding cacti, covered in treacherous thorns, have these beautiful blooms. It almost doesn’t seem to go together.
These little hedgehogs are just a few inches tall, and the blossoms are nearly as big as the plants themselves.
As for the name? Looking at these adorable baby hedgehogs …
Tumacacori – Ruins and dancing
Last weekend, I was down in southern Arizona, at a little place called Tumacacori. The main claim to fame here is that it was the site of a Spanish mission, founded by Jesuit missionaries back in 1691.
When the Spanish first arrived, the area was populated by the O’Odham people. The name Tumacacori is a Spanish phonetic spelling of the original O’Odham name, but nobody’s sure what that original name meant.
Over the centuries, this place has seen the O’Odham and the Jesuits, the Franciscans and the Apaches, the Spanish, the Mexicans, and the Americans. The southwest has such amazing history!
Tuzigoot – Ancient Sinagua Ruins in Arizona
Adventure photo – Ruins of a Sinaguan town, abandoned centuries ago:
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Not far from Sedona, Arizona, lie the ruins of Tuzigoot, an ancient Sinagua town that was abandoned centuries ago.
Tuzigoot National Monument (pronounced “too-zee-goot”) is part of the southwest US’s mysterious history. This small hilltop town was built… Full article…
So there I was… riding in the old tow truck
The old tow truck, as opposed to the new tow trucks that the other drivers got to drive. When you’re the new driver at the company, you’re stuck with the oldest truck. Just one of many things I never expected to learn this day!
I set out from Phoenix… Full article…
The rare Arizona Prickly Palm
Desert life is fascinating, in the variety of ways that plants and animals have adapted to deal with the harsh environment.
* Dormant frogs survive buried underground for many months at a time.
* Flower seeds may wait years for the right rainfall conditions, then sprout, grow, bloom, and back to seed in a few weeks…
Ancient Anasazi motel maps?
“The deserts of the American Southwest abound with ancient literature.” Petroglyphs — images or symbols chipped into the rock — are found throughout the area, left by its prehistoric inhabitants. Their meanings are obscure, the subject of much speculation and little proof.
Even when an image seems clear, its meaning isn’t as easy….
So there we were… watching imminent disaster
If you ever come to Sedona, take one of the Pink Jeep tours, and be sure to get the “Broken Arrow” tour. It’s hands-down the best.
The tour involves amazing feats of driving up, down, and over the red rocks of Sedona, and you’ll go places that look like they should be impossible! If you’ve got back problems, this isn’t a wise idea, as you WILL get bounced around a lot…
Ahhh… back to the red rocks
I met our group of adventurous wenches this morning in Phoenix, then we headed up to Cottonwood, where we picnicked beside a lagoon, with big shady trees. It felt like an oasis in the desert!
Next stop was Tuzigoot, the ruins of a town built by the Sinaguans about 1,000 years ago, and mysteriously abandoned 400 years later. Who were these people? And why did they all leave this “oasis” spot…
So there I was… photographing parking lots
Why, you may ask?
Well, I was walking to the bank the other day. It’s not the most scenic route in the world. In fact, you pass quite a few parking lots. But as I walked, I realized there were some amazing things on the way to the bank!
