Friday, April 3, 2009

Sedona Day 6



Day 6 has been the worst day for weather that we have had. When we got up it was cool and cloudy. Our first stop of the day was at a State Park called Montezuma's Well. This is a sink hole which contains water fed by a spring. The water stays at a constant 76 degrees throughout the year. There have been many generations of Indians who have lived around the well and you can see some of the living structures on the sides of the cliff as well as on top of the hills around the well. It was an interesting stop for us.



Our next stop was at a State Park called Riordan Estate Grounds. This is a beautiful 13,000 square feet house. It is actually 2 houses joined by a great room which is about 1,000 square feet. Two brothers who ran sawmills, railroad, and other ventures married two sisters. The brothers built the houses and the families lived there the rest of their lives. One house was furnished in period furniture and we could not take any pictures. The other house was set up as a museum and did not necessarily have period furniture. We were allowed to take pictures here. The first house was loaded with Gustav Stickley furniture--all in outstanding condition.
We enjoyed the museum and then went into Flagstaff. Go to http://www.azstateparks.com/Parks/RIMA/index.html to view their webpage



When Linda and I were here with the Schmdt's, Frank and I went to an old hotel that served imported English beers and Ale while Linda and Nancy went shopping. I enjoyed my time there and decided to try to find the hotel and eat lunch. The ranger at the Riordan Estate Grounds told us it was the Weatherford Hotel and the restaurant was called Charleys Pub. We found the hotel and it was the one I had visited over 25 years ago. Zane Grey had stayed in the hotel and had written one of his books while there. They have a webpage, www.WeatherfordHotel.com , that you can check out.

We decided to go through Williams, AZ to the Pine Country Restaurant--the place we had dinner a few nights ago--to get a slice of pie and travel some more of Route 66. The pie and coffee were great.

We left Williams and went to Prescott, AZ to check it out. We planned on going there tomorrow. We stopped by the tourist information center, got brochures on Prescott and returned to Sedona via Jerome and cottonwood.

The winds were extremely high today and not a pleasant day to drive, but, we did enjoy the things we saw. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day.

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