Arizona Trip #6

Okay...so Monday was the Grand Canyon and Bedrock City. Tuesday we went to Walnut Canyon and we also went out scouting. But...for times sake....I'm pooped (we spent the day at the pool), I am just doing Walnut Canyon today....tomorrow will be the scouting!

So anyway we went to Walnut Canyon.

Above is Jeff and I....is it just me, or does he ALWAYS look this happy in his pictures???? :-)

Anyway, Walnut Canyon is a canyon...obviously, in Flagstaf...well...outside of Flag about 10-15 miles. I used to go there all the time when I was in college. My roommates and I would go there just to walk because there are HUNDREDS of stairs that need to be climbed. It is also very beautiful there. The Indians (I believe it was the Sinagua), lived in these dwellings on the cliffs. It is really unbelievable trying to imagine it. Here is some info I found on the web:

In densely-wooded plateau country southeast of Flagstaff, the small seasonal stream Walnut Creek has carved a 600 foot deep canyon as it flows east, eventually joining the Little Colorado River en route to the Grand Canyon. The exposed Kaibab limestone that forms the upper third of the canyon walls occurs in various layers of slightly differing hardness, some of which have eroded more rapidly forming shallow alcoves; during the 12th to 13th centuries many were used by the local Sinagua Indians who constructed cave-dwellings along the steep well-protected ledges, high above the canyon floor. Today, the appearance of the canyon and ruins is quite reminiscent of the more well known Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado, just on a smaller scale, but the proximity to Flagstaff ensures a steady stream of visitors.

Here is my baby girl and I....
Here is MaKenna, Jake and Cam checking out one of the "houses".

Due to the fact that there are SO many steps and SO many scary cliffs with few handrails...we thought it smart to put Major in a backpack....so here he is going for a ride...and Jeff is getting A LOT of exercise!!

Overlooking Walnut Canyon.

We had a great time...we got a lot of exercise and the kids learned a lot. Cam is VERY into history and LOVES to go to museums and visit places like this...so he was thrilled! MaKenna, Jake and Major...well...they just went along for the ride! I hadn't been there in a long time, so it was fun to go back, and Jeff said he couldn't remember if he had ever been there! He lived there almost all of his life! Anyway...tomorrow, more on Walnut Canyon. Walnut Canyon covers a vast area...and only this particular area is where the National Park is...but you can camp, hunt, etc, it other portions of Walnut Canyon...so the second half of our day "scouting" was still in Walnut Canyon, just not on the National Park grounds. Anyway...more tomorrow...nightie night!