The magic of Sedona; this grand high-desert destination in the heart of Arizona continues to enthrall. It's changing…come soon

Sunset, April, 1986

The magic of Sedona

In the heart of Arizona between Phoenix and the Grand Canyon, Sedona and its surrounding canyonlands are places of extraordinary beauty. Many people who live here, and many who keep visiting, still bemoan that--despite efforts over the years--the area was never proclaimed a national park.

Sedona's setting is sheer magic. Perched on the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau, here called the Mogollon Rim, the town skirts red sandstone bluffs, spires, and 2,000-foot-tall formations in hues of red, gold, and gray, all carved from the same geologic layer cake as the Grand Canyon. The town's northern gateway, Oak Creek Canyon, offers a scenic 13-mile, 1,200-foot descent.

Even a brief visit reveals Sedona's charms, so compelling that dozens of residents tell the same story: they came, loved the place, sold houses elsewhere, and stayed.

Named in 1902 for Sedona Schnebly, one of the first girls to grow up here, Sedona is changing; its idyllic ranching days are over. Today it's struggling toward a new identity as an arts colony, retirement community, resort center, and outdoor recreation haven; many folks worry it's in danger of being loved to death. Its population is 11,000 and growing rapidly.

At 4,300-foot elevation, Sedona avoids extremes; it's 20| cooler in summer than Phoenix, as much as 30| warmer in winter than Flagstaff. Visitors this month-- at the beginning of the high tourist season, April through October--will find that leaves have sprouted on the cottonwoods, sycamores, and big-tooth maples lining Oak Creek, and the town's seasonal bustle has begun.

Resorts and galleries, growth . . . and a few worries

Home to 37 art and crafts galleries, some 200 noted Western and international artists, and three foundries, and birthplace of the elite Cowboy Artists of America, Sedona deserves its reputation as an art center in a league with Scottsdale and Santa Fe.

A performing arts amphitheater being built among the red rocks aims for its first outdoor concert this fall. To raise money for the project, its organizers, Performing Arts of the Red Rocks (PARR), have been sponsoring concerts at Poco Diablo Resort. This year's "Concert Under the Stars' is scheduled for May 25 at 7:30. For information and tickets, call (602) 282-7406.

Galleries are strewn throughout the commercial district, which is divided into three sections: West Sedona along U.S. Highway 89A southwest of its intersection with State 179 ("the Y'), Uptown Sedona on U.S. 89A northeast to the mouth of Oak Creek Canyon, and a stretch along State 179.

The best art and crafts shopping is along State 179. And the crown jewel is Tlaquepaque (pronounced ta-law-key-paw-key), the late Abe Miller's romantic vision of what a Mexican arts complex should look like. Fountains, enormous sycamores, courtyards, and handmade tiles set the scene for 37 galleries and crafts shops, as well as several restaurants. El Prado has two galleries here showing Western and contemporary art. Sculptured Arts sells Western and experimental sculpture.

Other contemporary galleries on State 179 include Elaine Horwitch and Ratliff-Williams Gallery. Find excellent Indian crafts at Garland's Navajo Rugs, with possibly the biggest collection anywhere of Navajo weavings in one place. Upstairs from it, Ko'pavi specializes in Hopi crafts.

Garland's Indian Jewelry, 2 miles north of Midgley Bridge in Oak Creek Canyon, sells fine old Indian pawn plus contemporary Hopi, Zuni, and Navajo jewelry.

New resorts now stand beside motels in town and funky-to-charming old cabins for rent in Oak Creek Canyon. For a list of accommodations in all price ranges (often full April through October, so be sure to make reservations), write or call the chamber of commerce, Box 478, Sedona 86336; 282-7722.

New since 1984 are L'Auberge de Sedona, renting cabins with country French interiors (double rates are $192 on weekends, $180 weekdays); Orchards Inn ($95 and $105 Fridays and Saturdays, $85 to $95 Sundays through Thursdays); and Junipine in Oak Creek Canyon, with condominiums starting at $125 to $150 a night for four.

Due to open this month is Los Abrigados, a multi-million-dollar deluxe resort with 187 suites on 20 acres next to Tlaquepaque. This fall, another resort, John Gardiner's Enchantment, should open in Boynton Canyon.

Since it remains unincorporated, Sedona has no town plan, not even a sewer system. It's governed by two counties--Coconino from Flagstaff and Yavapai from Prescott. Surrounded by Coconino National Forest, the town has lost some beauty spots, critics claim, in land exchanges approved by local Forest Service staff.

That the town looks as unified and unobtrusive as it does is a credit to an active volunteer organization, Keep Sedona Beautiful. Its 1,400 members do everything from picking up litter to applying friendly but effective persuasion on issues like sign and design controls.

Wilderness and park news

Preservationists have something to cheer about, too. Arizona's 1984 Wilderness Act set aside two new wilderness areas (see map above). Most of the red rocks you see along State 179, along Schnebly Hill Road, and up Oak Creek Canyon are now included in the 18,500-acre Munds Mountain Wilderness to the east, or in the 44,000-acre Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness to the northwest. Both help preserve undisturbed canyons and forests, strewn with prehistoric to more recent Indian ruins.