ARIZONA SNOW GETAWAY

It does snow in Arizona.There are worlds beyond Phoenix, Arizona beyond the Valley of the Sun, up north, in the mountains, where it gets really cold and snows.

There was no sign of the elevator repairmen at work, again. Later, the computers went HAL-9000 on me. I was really ready when Emily picked me up and we headed for Sedona. Driving across Arizona at night looks like space travel – a dark void, flowing lights, stars. If only the roads we need aren't blocked. The motel room felt like a decompression chamber . . .

Snow . . . rain . . . breakfast at The Coffee Pot. Umm, buckwheat pancakes! We forgot to pack my jeans, so we bought some at a nearby thrift store. The red rock mountains with snow dusting are gorgeous – Sedona looks like downtown Shangri-La.

Cruised up Oak Creek canyon, through rain, into the snow until we started slipping in the snow . . .

Places we wanted to hike were closed and snow-covered. Finally we hiked, in the rain, at Midgely Bridge.

Got my boots and pants all muddy.

Had burgers – with pastrami and flaming hot – at P.J.'s Pub & Grill. Off season rainy/snowy Sedona was deserted, kinda post-apocalyptic, just me, Em, and a gaggle of blonde girls on the streets. A woman at a gem shop told us a snow storm was coming. We got set up to ride it out in the motel.

It snowed overnight! El Troque was covered with snow, including the truck bed, and it just kept coming down!

Had breakfast burritos at The Coffee Pot – a new favorite for me, though Em prefers the huevos rancheros.

Also took pics of the kachinas and a cowboy mural, and the snowflakes were nice and fat, showing their crystalline structure.

When they're wet, the colors of the red rocks become more intense. Clouds brush the mountains – Shangri-La-ish. Cloudy with a chance of yeti.

At Red Rock State Park, after an informative tour from Bob the naturalist, we finally got some serious hiking done, and even got hailed on. It kept transitioning from rain to snow and back.

On the ride back home, the sky was full of clouds like an armada of invading airships.