I first went to Arizona to meet Sandra Day O’Connor. Well, that is not exactly true, but I did meet her at a cocktail reception at the Heard Museum in Phoenix when I attended a conference of the National Association of Women Judges. https://heard.org/ The conference was held the end of September, just before the rates were raised to winter rates, in Scottsdale at the Gainey Ranch. https://www.hyatt.com/en-US/hotel/arizona/hyatt-regency-scottsdale-resort-and-spa/scott The facilities were beautiful and Harold accompanied me to Phoenix so we were able to enjoy our time together, including a float down the Salt and Verde rivers with 6 other women judges. Harold found that trip down the river to be an eye-opening experience. Listening to 7 women judges from all over the country discussing their experiences gave him a rude awakening.
The South Rim of the Grand Canyon is a must do when visiting Arizona. (I will tell you about the more remote and far preferable North Rim when I get to Utah, but technically the North Rim entrance is also in Arizona). Between 1994 and 2006, the last time I was there, the development at the South Rim was unbelievable. An ugly hotel has been built right along the walkway in addition to the famous Bright Angel Lodge that has been there since 1935. The ambience at the South Rim now consists of hordes of tourists and tacky tourist amenities. John Muir and Theodore Roosevelt did not envision this disgrace when they conceived national parks as places to return to nature. If you go to Arizona you must visit the iconic South Rim, but the best way to do it is to approach from Sedona and drive up there along the scenic route through Oak Creek Canyon.
There are many other sites in Arizona well worth a visit. Driving along the interstate near Camp Verde in central Arizona we saw a sign for Montezuma’s Castle, a national monument. It consists of a marvelously preserved ruin dating from the pre-Columbian culture of the Sinagua people. Neither Harold nor I had ever heard of the monument. It was well worth the detour. A quick tour of the site takes no more than one hour, but it is a well spent hour. In central Arizona we also visited visited the towns of Prescott and Jerome, both interesting places. We had a friend from Maine who moved to Prescott and we stayed at his home on a “ranch.” Well, actually it was the Arizona version of a subdivision in the foothills of a national forest. Our friend had horses on his “ranch” which he and his wife rode into the mountains on long trail rides. Jerome is actually a former mining town and has interesting history. You can learn more about these towns at these links. https://www.visit-prescott.com/ Jerome is also a place to visit in the same general area. https://www.visitarizona.com/places/cities/jerome/ There is a third interesting place to visit, where I have never been, in southern Arizona. We have friends who have a winter home in Bisbee, Arizona, and I intend to visit them in the near future, perhaps taking a road trip down there the next time I visit Linda in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The friends in Bisbee are the same folks who recommended Edisto Beach to Harold and me. They know the kind of places we like. My friend told me when she retired a few years ago at age 65 that Bisbee is the place where hippies from the 60’s who are now in their 60’s go to retire – of course by now they are well into their 70’s! https://www.visitarizona.com/places/cities/bisbee/
There are a couple of other Arizona spots worth the visit. I mentioned Scottsdale earlier and certainly for me at least the premier spot in Scottsdale is Taliesin West, the monumental Frank Lloyd Wright home in the Sonoran desert. https://franklloydwright.org/ My friend Joan and I once took an evening candlelit walking tour of the home and grounds. It was amazing. And any trip to Arizona should include a visit to Flagstaff, simply for the scenery getting there and because it is on the way to Canyon de Chelly National Monument an amazing spot within the Navajo Nation. https://www.nps.gov/cach/index.htm If you ever visited my home on Campobello you would find a couple of amazing photographs framed on the wall. My friend even had an exhibit at the Tuscon Art Museum and Four Corners Gallery. My Bisbee friend took those pictures while visiting his Navajo friends near the canyon. My favorite is found at the top of this page.
No trip to Arizona is complete without a stop in Sedona. The smell of burning sage from the shops, spas, and tourist stops will fill your head and the red rock scenery will take your breath away. If you want to get away from the sage and red rocks you need only drive a few miles up into Oak Creek Canyon where there are delightful hiking trails and at least a dozen years ago great cabins for bed and breakfast. https://www.oakcreekcabins.com/cabins-and-cottages Who knows what these places are like now, but last time I was in Sedona they were great places to stay. Nothing wrong with doing a little ‘splorin’ to find a place that suits your budget and taste. I can’t guarantee there won’t be some smudge pots burning, but you will at least leave the red rocks behind. If you have exhausted all the wonders of Sedona and are ready to move on toward the South Rim, Oak Creek Canyon was a good place to stop. I would revisit Arizona in a heartbeat.
Memories - A Second Chance at Happiness 