The Desert Towers of Sedona (aka my van is broken)

The wedding in Phoenix was beautiful, but it was time for us to move on. We drove north, to Red Rock Country in the Coconino National Forest. On Tuesday, we went for a nice hike on the Bell Trail through the Arizona backcountry to a swimming hole on Beaver Creek - it was nice to go for a swim and get cooled off as the weather was still quite warm.

Saguaro Cactus Driving North from Phoenix

The Desert Towers of Sedona

Getting back to the van, we noticed that the coolant level was low - there were no drips under the van, so we didn't think much of of it, but thought we should get it topped up. We drive up to the hardware store, but when we got there, found that the coolant was dripping pretty good at this point, so on the advice of a kindly local, we headed just down the road to the village's mechanic shop. As it turned out, the water pump was shot, and needed replacement. The parts wouldn't arrive from Phoenix until Thursday morning, so we were camped out in the Mechanic's parking lot for the next 36 hours or so. One really odd coincidence is that when Meghan's older sister found out where we were, her response was, "The mechanic's shop behind the Chevron? Ya, I've been there..." As it turns out, she had some car troubles a few years ago and ended up there herself. It's a small world.

Wading in Leech-Infested Water for a Photo

Here are the Results - Was it Worth It?

The van needing repairs did give us the opportunity to explore Oak Creek, and all the galleries and whatnot that they have to offer. We also went to a timeshare presentation, partly to pass the time, but mostly for a free helicopter tour of the whole Sedona area. That was awesome. It was a short flight, but it gave us a unique perspective of the area, and gave me a chance to get some cool photos.

After that, we drove a bit further north, to Flagstaff. We did some climbing at "The Pit" (aka "Le Petit Verdon"), which is just outside of town. We met some great people, and ended up going to a screening of Luxury Liner, the First Ascent of Supercrack, which is a climbing movie about the bold, visionary first climb of a famous climb at Indian Creek, a desert climbing area in Utah known for it's parallel-sided "splitter" cracks. It was pretty cool. Today was a rest day, after I gave my arms a huge workout yesterday flailing trying to lead a 5.11a (didn't finish it, even with lots of falls). Tomorrow we're headed out to "The Overlook", a trad climbing area in Oak Creek Canyon just south of Flagstaff. We hiked in today just to check it out, and it looks pretty cool.

It's Saturday evening when I write this post, so that's when I'll date it, but it might be a day or two before we get back into town and hook up with free WiFi.

Cheers,

Ian