emd

I've been there between Christmas and New Years a few times. No, you don't need snow chains. It doesn't snow often in Sedona, and when it does it's a dusting (Flagstaff is a different story, so if you plan to go there, disreagrd this). Decemebr-Jan is the best climate in Sedona IMO, esp for hiking. Cool and crisp and dry in a.m., enough for a fleece jacket, but by 10 a.m. you are down to one long sleeve layer, and by noon down to a T shirt.

luvtravl

Sorry it's taken so long to finish this trip report!

Day 8/Torrey to Moab - Had one of the best scones I've ever eaten from Austin's market. It was blueberry. DH got a breakfast bagel at a coffee shop/bakery on the way out of town. Headed to Moab. Seemed strange to be back on an interstate highway after so many days of backroads. Cell phone service reappeared outside Moab. We stopped at the Arches visitor center and were able to sign up for the late afternoon Fiery Furnace hike the next day. After exploring the visitor center, we went into town for lunch at the Slickrock Cafe. DH and I split a burger with onion rings and quesadillas. Food was good and prices were reasonable. The town of Moab itself seemed pretty touristy with lots of traffic. We kind of missed the peaceful rural setting of Torrey.

Since we were signed up for the Fiery Furnace hike, I needed to find some new hiking boots since mine fell apart(literally) on the Angel's Landing trail in Zion. Found a great pair of Merrell's at a hiking store that was at the end of town (near Moab Brewing Company). The staff was great. I must have tried on 15 pairs of shoes/boots and they were wonderfully patient and helpful.

After we found the boots, we wandered around several of the shops and then checked into the Dreamkeeper Inn. Lovely place. We were in the large Tree Room with king bed. Nice rooms, beautiful grounds with pool and hot tub. Breakfast was okay. If you like b&b's, this would be a good choice. I think we've decided though that we would rather have the privacy of a hotel for future visits.

Dreamkeeper was walking distance to most shops and restaurants. Dinner was at Zax for pizza. They have a buffet with every kind of pizza you can imagine, salad, etc. We sat at an outside table and watched the people and traffic while we ate.

Day 9/Moab Arts Festival & Arches National Park. We were fortunate to be visiting during the Memorial Day Arts Festival in Moab. Excellent! Not sure if it was juried but the vendors were impressive. DH bought a sand picture that he is now proudly displaying in his office. I saw some lovely turquoise jewelry that I wish now I had purchased. Lunch was a burger and shaved ice at the festival.

After the festival, we headed to Arches. Wonderful!!! We spent several hours exploring the park before our hike at Fiery Furnace. I was a little nervous about the hike but it was a lot of fun. I'm afraid of heights but had no problems. I'm really glad we signed up for the 4 p.m. hike though. It would have been too hot earlier in the day. By the time we hiked the temp had cooled off a little and the lighting was amazing. I probably took 200 pictures during the hike. The hike lasted about 2 1/2 - 3 hours.

Dinner that evening was at the Moab Brewing Company. DH enjoyed the beer sampler while we waited for our table. DH had the fish tacos and I had pork medallions. Both were great.

Day 10/Moab to Phoenix via Valley of the Gods and Monument Valley. Got up early and went to see a couple of petroglyphs before to Phoenix.

We didn't really plan on driving through the Valley of the Gods but saw the sign and decided to do it. Very few cars and fantastic scenery. Monument Valley was also scenic but we enjoyed Valley of the Gods even more. Driving through Monument Valley we saw a very large dust devil. I'm a storm spotter and fascinated with weather so that was really exciting!!! Dust devils don't photograph very well but I certainly tried.

We got to Phoenix around sunset and decided to go back to In and Out Burger for our last meal of the trip. It was 99 degrees around 6 p.m. but we decided to sit outside and eat. Of course it's a dry heat lol! Another great burger and a milkshake.

We stayed at the Fairfield at University Avenue near the Airport. Very clean and the front desk staff printed our boarding passes for our flight back to Nashville the next morning.

Overall what can I say? It was a FANTASTIC trip and we hope to go back some day! Thanks again to everyone for their wonderful advice and suggestions.