Canyons are calling you to Arizona on this premier trip which launched Canyon Calling Tours. Who can pick a highlight when each day is a new and wonderful surprise? Canyon de Chelly is enchanting and you’ll feel the connection between this sacred land and our Navajo storyteller. Boating on Lake Powell to striking Rainbow Bridge leaves one awestruck at the stark beauty. It’s a great night’s camp under star-filled skies sharing stories around the fire. The Grand Canyon is much bigger and more breathtaking than we anticipate. After a challenging hike we find ourselves in a lush oasis at Havasu marveling at the travertine pools and turquoise waterfalls. The stillness and magic of this special corner of the world will touch your soul.
Suzanne C, Boston "It's only Tuesday and I'm out of adjectives!"
Diane S, Hertz, England "Thanks for a wonderful trip. The scenery and places we visited far exceeded my expectations. You made me feel really at home even down to providing one day of British weather! Thanks for making it my best holiday ever."
Debbie W, NJ "My mind and body are on sensory overload. I've run the gamut of emotions and been challenged in so many ways. What a wonderful group and everyone you introduced us to along the way only enhanced the experience. I hope I can hold onto this feeling - sometimes magical things aren't meant to be described, only lived."
Saturday
Meet at 3 pm in Sedona at Sedona-Phoenix Shuttle drop-off point at Super 8 Motel. Check in to our motel. Tour Sedona including a visit to a vortex and a hike among the red rocks.
Sunday
Leave Sedona by 8 am. Hike into Walnut Canyon and walk through Sinagua Indian dwellings. Visit Little Painted Desert. Drive to Hopi Cultural Center for lunch. Visit Hopi villages. Drive to Chinle. Take a jeep ride into Canyon de Chelly and visit famous White House ruins. Camp the night inside canyon. Dinner and campfire with our Navajo storyteller.
Monday
Jeep out of Canyon de Chelly. Visit beautiful Spider Rock. Drive to Monument Valley to gaze upon the magnificence of the buttes. Lunch at historic Goulding's Trading Post. Drive to Page. Take a jeep trip to Antelope Canyon near Page then check into our motel. Dinner in Page.
Tuesday
Breakfast at hotel. Take jet boat ride on Lake Powell to Rainbow Bridge enjoying swims and exploration of bays along the way. Picnic lunch on the lake. Stop at Dangling Rope Marina for ice cream in afternoon. Return to Gunsight Bay and set up camp for the night. Dinner at campsite. Enjoy a sky full of bright stars.
Wednesday
 Breakfast at our campsite. Boat back to Wahweep Marina. Near Page we'll take a short hike to Horseshoe Bend, an incredible overlook of the Colorado River. Visit dinosaun tracks on drive to Grand Canyon. Lunch and shopping stop at Cameron Trading Post. View Grand Canyon from Desert View and other vantage points before watching I-MAX Theater presentation. Drive to Williams and check into motel. Dinner in old west Williams.
Thursday
Leave hotel early and drive to Seligman for breakfast. Drive to Hilltop on rim of Grand Canyon and leave vehicle. Hike down to the village of Supai. Picnic lunch on the way. Hike takes 4 hours. If this is beyond your capabilities or desires you can helicopter into the village for an extra $75. Check into Havasupai Lodge and change into swimsuits. Hike another 2 miles down to three beautiful waterfalls and swim and explore. Hike back to Lodge for dinner.
Friday
Take a scenic helicopter ride back to Hilltop. Return to Sedona and check into motel. Farewell dinner in Sedona.
NOTES:
How do I get to Sedona?
Arrange your flight into Phoenix in time to catch the noon shuttle van. It takes 2.5 hours to drive to Sedona where your Trip Leader will meet you at the Super 8 drop-off. Arrange your homebound flight after 12 noon on the following Saturday. You need to make shuttle reservations (928) 282-2066. The round trip fare is $85 which you can either pay for in advance or bring cash to pay in Phoenix.
"ARIZONA SPECTACULAR"
by Barb Withopf, Tucson, AZ. Sept 1999
She gathers the group of vacationers around
And goes over the plan then its outward bound
To all of the beauty the southwest can offer
Each is thrilled, anticipating the pleasure.
We hike in the canyons and bathe in the streams
We sleep in a cave and have ancient dreams
Where the dinosaur lumbered and the Indian roamed
It seems all mixed up now, and we all call it home.
We skim over the water to Rainbow Bridge
On to the ice cream marina and over the ridge
To set up the campsite, the stove and the tents
We sing and tell stories, happy and content.
In Canyon de Chelly we saw the cliff dwellings
Were fascinated by the stories that Daniel was telling
Monument Valley you just can’t believe
And the Grand Canyon is a hole only God could conceive.
So way out somewhere in the canyon lands
I can see our guide strolling the iron colored sands
Where the eagles fly high and the coyotes howl at night
I hope she thinks of it always as pure delight.
The friendships we’ve made, we hope they will last
Are the memories we’ll take with us, down through the past
So I thank God for the Universe and the Indians for the land
And I thank Cheryl our guide for an Adventure that was Grand.
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