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| Hiking | 4.80 Miles |
200 AEG |
| | Hiking | 4.80 Miles | 2 Hrs 33 Mns | | 1.88 mph |
| 200 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | For Part 2 of our Friday hikes at Sedona/Oak Creek to cap off Fall Break, we headed to West Fork Oak Creek, after exploring Devils Bridge.
Despite growing up in Flagstaff, I had never done this hike before. Too bad, as it is a beauty.
The parking area was completely closed off (govt shutdown?), and everybody was parking along the side of 89A, despite the "no parking" signs and threats of being towed. Apparently, if the govt. can't pay to have the parking are open, it also can't afford to enforce the no parking restrictions either. So . . . bottom line: We didn't have to pay the $9 parking fee 
No one seemed very deterred by the parking lot closure, as the trail was relatively busy with families and tourists of all stripes. Although I'm not much of a fan of crowds on hikes, the closeness of the forest and relatively thick foliage generally muffled the noise and when we weren't passing/being passed by others, it was actually possible to get a little sense of solitude. Or, maybe I was just overwhelmed by the autumn colors, which were in full force (will post some photos later).  Just beautiful country. I can see why this is such a popular hike.
A little shy of the two-mile mark, my wife and youngest daughter were ready to turn back. The rest of us decided to plow on for a bit, with promises to hustle back to meet the rest as they started the return hike.
My older daughter and son and I made it to the 10th creek crossing (out of 13, per the trailhead sign), about 2.7 miles in. We wanted to finish off the trail, but decided we needed to get back to the rest of our crew. So, we reluctantly turned around and speed-hiked back.
A very fulfilling hike and day in the Sedona/Oak Creek area. Can't wait to come back and do this one again . . . to the end (and beyond--as I understand that the hike through the creek after the trail officially ends is pretty spectacular). |
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