Iris' 3 month road trip around the US

[Mark Sedenquist]

I can/will continue to post the written, but the photos will only be on the blog.

I don't understand the issue with the photos -- We provide unlimited photo storage space for our RTA members. And we have the capability of hosting fully independent blogs -- also for free to our RTA membership.

Actually, it's not a very good idea for you to be posting duplicate posts on two different web sites, Blogspot and RoadTrip America. Although we've really enjoyed reading your adventures, we might need to close this thread. But hopefully not.

Mark

[justmemedia]

The issue is not with Roadtrip America and photos.

Instead, the issue is that I have friends (worldwide) who have also been in discussions on the planning, and are interested in my trip.
1. This trip is for 3 classes. I need a format for the professor to see the posts.
2. I need a place where my friends can see the trip, without having to join a forum.

I do not have the time to download and embed the photos in more than one spot. Copy & pasting the details of the trip, is not a problem.

I will leave it up to you to decide if the thread is closed.
Now, back to 15 days of writing out my observations of places I have visited, find book titles to address the topic of the site visited, and go out to see more museums, while visiting with very gracious friends.

[glc]

Your friends or professor do not have to join the forum to see this thread, it's viewable to anyone. You only need a membership to post.

[Lifemagician]

... I have friends (worldwide) who have also been in discussions on the planning, and are interested in my trip.

As do I. And family.

They all read it, however, very few have registered. All find it a great site to read and see my photos. Been doing it for half a dozen trips, even those not in North America.

Lifey

[justmemedia]

Here is my report on Sedona. I will leave picts on my off site blog.

May 11 Sedona
Sedona is beautiful. I have been given a gift of being driven by my friend’s mother-in-law. I can crane my neck every which way.

I was lucky to have my friend (Ang who I will be visiting in Vicksburg) mother-in-law as my tour guide. It was a great day.

Sedona: Rocks and more Rocks and more Rocks.
The rock formations are amazing. So many different formations and the colors change depending on the time of the day and conditions.

A tribute to Sedona's beautiful red rocks; Arizona artist, Joe Beeler, one of the original founders of the Cowboy Artist of America; and future generations of artist.Joe Beller lived from 1931 to 2006. He was a well respected artist who sculpted cowboy memorabilia. Not much was said about him on wikipedia, but this statue is him painting the red rocks of Sedona for a background to one of his scenes.

The material is metal, with paint on it to give it that realistic look. It is also to full scale.


Montezuma Castle National Manument, near Sedona AZ

An ancient tribe on Southern Sinagua Indians built this 5-story 20 room dwelling somewhere around 1100. It is built on the side of the side of a cliff off I-17 near Sedona, AZ. Early American settlers thought it was Aztec and named it Montezuma.

Clarkdale, AZ
This town was built to house a mining community in 1912. It was a planned community where the brick houses were laid out in rows. It was considered one of the most modern mining towns since it included telephones, telegraph, electrical, sewer and spring water services. Even though the buildings are no longer owned by the company, it is still evident that many people value the history of the town by keeping the houses in the style of the when they were originally built.

Tuzigoot.
An ancient society built upon a mesa.


Sedona Titles:
-Ricky Goes to the Desert by M. Moose
-A Dinosaur Lives in Red Rock Canyon by Saines
-Everybody Needs a Rock by Baylor
-Who Pooped in the Park? By Robson
-Sedona Through Time by Ranney
-Sedona: Amazing Pictures & Fun Facts On the Arizona Redrocks (Kid Kongo Travel The World Series) by Kid Kongo and KL Krebbs

Montezuma Castle titles:
-Corn is Maize by Aliki
-Ancient Indians of the Southwest by Noble
-Desert Life by Jablonsky
-Blaze of the White Cliff by Fidler
-A Kid's Guide to Exploring Montezuma Castle National Monument by Maruca
-101 Questions About Ancient Indians of the Southwest by Noble
-Life Beneath the Water Surface in Montezuma Well, Arizona: A Large Thermally Constant Spring by Blinn
-Montezuma Castle: Home of the Prehistoric Sinagua by Reed

Desert Plant titles:
-America's Deserts: Guide to Plants and Animals by Wallace
-Desert Giant: The World of the Saguaro Cactus (Tree Tales) by Bash
-A Desert Scrapbook: Dawn to Dusk in the Sonoran Desert by Wright-Frierson
-A Desert Habitat: Introducing Habitats by Macaulay
-Cactus Hotel: An Owlet Book by Guiberson
-Here is the Southwestern Desert: Web of Life by Dunphy
-Desert Plants: Life in the World's Biomes by Welch
-Learning About Desert Plants: Dover Little Activity Books by Barlowe
-Desert Food Webs in Action by Fleisher
-Discover Science:Desert by Davies
-Life in the Deserts: Animals Peoples Plants by Baker
-A Walk in the Desert: Biomes of North America by Johnson
-One Hundred One Questions About Desert Life by Jablonsky

Sedona Geology
-Sedona Through Time: Geology of the Red Rocks by Ranney
-A Guide to the Geology of the Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon Area, Arizona (Down to Earth Series, 20) by Bezy
-Rock Formations (Rocks and Minerals) by Dayton

[justmemedia]

May 12
These are the picts of the trip OUT of Sedona up Oak Creek Canyon through the Coconino National Forest. More pictures of the beautiful rocks from the side of the road going up the canyon. And, yes, I did really pull over to take the photos. Some of the ones I wanted to take did not have a spot for a shot.


From an overlook near the top of the canyon. And yes, you can just barely see parts of the road that I had been on.


THIS is how HIGH I was. 6420 ft.

Walnut Canyon National Monument
Cliff Dwellings-Sinagua Culture. The Park Video shows that this is a cultural living area, which needs respect and care. This is part of all of our history. The Sinagua Culture is pre-Columbian. They were dry earth farmers.
The guides say the trail is “doable”. This park is not accessible outside of the paved path closed to the visitor center for those is mobility issues. You are able to see the cliff dwellings from the path.

The Walnut Canyon Sinaqua Indians.

Sinaqua is Spanish for "without water". The Sinaqua were not the first in the area, there are traces of other people being in the area also.

-DVD: At the Edge of the Volcano
-DVD: Arizona’s Monuments PBS
-SW Art Defined by Booker
-Navajo and Pueblo Earrings by Bauver
-Celebrate Arizona by Sardin
-Kid’s Guide: Native American History by Dennie
-Life in a Pueblo by Kalman


Petrified Forest National Park. How beautiful. I started from the southern entrance since I wanted to continue east on I-40. The large rocks are trees that have petrified. You can see the rings in the rocks. The visitor center does a really good job of informing of the history and the damage to this area. I did purchase some petrified rock chips that were certified as coming from outside of the National Park.

I cannot even begin to describe this beauty. The different colors of the strata on the hillsides. The clouds creating interesting patterns over the landscape. The dark and light clouds coming up from the south.

Yep, that sky is getting dark and ready to storm.

You can see where the tree was before it became a rock.

I was able to get a picture capturing the ruins of Route 66 with the trucks rolling along on I-40. It is sad to see that the changes in the routes have caused permanent effects.

This is one of the places that all should see if you are even close to the area. I thought it would take me about an hour to drive through. I was there closer to 2 1/2 hrs. I walked some of the trails. I just observed. It is breath taking.

[DonnaR57]

When I was in college, I worked up at PFNP one summer in the gift shop (then run by Fred Harvey, and now I believe it's Xanterra that runs it). I would use my days off to go into the park and walk some of the trails. Indeed, it's beautiful. You may notice I tell folks to allow 3 hours in the park.

Thanks for all the book recommendations. I've actually checked a few out of my local public library system, and read them. I love that a lot of them are for kids, because I'm trying to "catch up" on some of the juvenile literature that's been published in the last 20 years.


Donna

[justmemedia]

For one of the classes that I am taking, I need to do evaluations on materials for a school library. This is why I am trying to get ahead of listing titles at this time. Also, you had mention that you were a teacher who was valuing the information. If you know of any titles that I have missed, please feel free to recommend them.