28-08 Cottonwood Arizona

28-08 Cottonwood AZ

Sedona AZ (all pics are of the Sedona area)

Jerome AZ

I’m back in the land of Enchantment. The area is a blend of western dessert, Red rock mountain ranges, and forested mountains. It’s a rugged landscape where a Cottonwood lined river looking lush and green, boarders a dry dessert landscape.

I’m working as a camp host at the Dead Horse Ranch State Park for a month, giving me time to explore the area on a slower pace. I drove into Sedona, only about 15 miles north of where I’m staying into the Coconino National Forest. I’m doing a bit of pre-exploring to determine the best time to see the change of colors out here. The best time should be the 3rd week in Oct, as they’ve had a wet summer and fall (I believe around 7” total), so the trees aren’t expected to peak until mid to late Oct. I’m hoping to get some great pictures of Aspen changing color.

Sedona is a striking town surrounded by the red rock mountains. Of course it is a pricey destination, so if your camping, try to stay at a campground like Dead Horse and drive up to Sedona. Lots and lots of hiking trails right from the edge of town and up through the Coconino Forest.
My favorite town to visit out here though is Jerome. It sits above Cottonwood and is only about 10 miles from my current location. Jerome is an old mining town built on the steep slope of the mountain. The drive up to Jerome is a breathtaking road which if I could take my eyes off of the road would provide great vistas. I’ll wait until I reach the old mining town, park and then take in the scenery. It’s billed as the most active ghost town out west. Lots of artsy shops and restaurants, a few bars with entertainment most nights and the neatest old buildings I’ve ever seen.

Watching local Tv, I get the Phoenix stations. Phoenix has the highest rate of car thefts in the country. Lots of shootings and stabbings are reported on each night. They even mention there are many houses used to hide illegal aliens in and to call if you see anything suspicious.

Phoenix also has the deepest drop in house prices in the Nation with lots of houses foreclosed on and many more about to be foreclosed. And of course heavy congestion and accidents on their highways circling the city. Glad I’m out here in the country.

Here at the Dead Horse St pk, we have a busy weekend. It’s Biker week in Cottonwood and we also have boy scouts in the park along with all the bikers, quite a mix. My camp host duties are going fine, cleaning our 8 cabins, restroom duty and cutting firewood. Nice group of folks to work with, so I expect this month to fly by rather quickly.
Enjoy your week and find a little adventure along the way.