Sedona Adventures

GPS, Mingus Mountain and a Wild Ride

September 24, 2008
by Garden Girl

As we headed up Mingus Mountain we set the GPS unit in the hummer h3 for Jerome.  The GPS was a new gadget for us and we were quite intrigued by it.  With every leg of our journey we set the GPS for the next stop.  As we drove the GPS would show us the direction we were heading in including the curves or straightness of the road ahead.  I mention this because later this fact will demonstrate the sheer complexity of this particular road.

As with every mountain, as you go up it will have little switchbacks in the road. Although the road up Mingus was beautifully scenic the turnbacks were starting to make me a little green.  Finally we reached a stretch that was a little smoother and less curvy.  As my stomach began to settle, I thought "this isn't so bad". Boy was I wrong, so very very wrong and the GPS was about to tell me how wrong. As we climbed up the road The GPS suddenly flashed the impossible.  Did I just see what I think I saw? The road ahead looks like a u-turn.  As we continued the whole road seemed to be a series of u-turns.  As we slowly proceeded my stomach said "OH Yeah, you saw it allright. For the next upteen miles the road went from straight to a 180degree turn. The further we went the worse it seemed to get. My stomach was quite ticked but my eyes were amazed at the beauty of the mountain. A battle was raging between my eye and my stomach.

My husband was enjoying every bit of the ride from the scenery to the amazing change in elevation.  In fact, he was intrigued by the incline of the road and how difficult it would be for a cyclist.  Although he had been told that many cyclists bike Mingus mountain, he wasn't so sure.  He thought the guy at the bike shop was pulling his leg.  Then in the opposite lane was proof that cyclist really do ride Mingus.  A lone cyclists was spinning away.  I thought surely this guy is well ... well you know crazy and a rare sight to see.  At this point my husband was secretly praying that the group he was joining for a ride in Sedona wouldn't want to do Mingus mountain.  Even though he has the stamina to complete a 100 mile ride, this elevation and incline wasn't something he thought he could do.  The lone cyclists wasn't a rare sight as we soon passed others bikers peddling along the Mingus mountain highway.  I take my hat off to these cyclists cause anyway you look at it what goes up must come down.  Biking up the mountain might be difficult but going down would be one hell of a ride.

I tried to take pictures of the cyclists as we passed them but the windows in a Hummer H3 aren't the most photo friendly.  

The trip up Mingus Mountain also revealed some wonderful hiking spots and a neat place to go camping.  I've been told that Mingus Mountain is one of the nicest places to go camping.  I would have loved to stop and hiked around the area but we need to press on to Jerome.

By the time we got to Jerome, I was nausea but excited by the scenery and the cyclists we saw.  We decided to stop and stretch our legs and make a pit stop.  Some people when they travel hone in on candy shops, or historical buildings or restaurants.  Me, I seem to gravitate towards bathroom facilities.  If I've been to a city I can tell you where the cleanest or most convenient bathrooms are.  In Jerome the public bathroom is in the Fire Station (maned by volunteer firemen). 

They have a very clean facilities.  This town is very interesting.  It was originally a mining town.  Early in its history it had a very colorful life which included a row of brothels smack dab in town.  The brothels were a very strong part of this community sometimes encouraged by the mining company.  Fires didn't even slow this industry down. The brothels just rebuild and went on with business.  Now Jerome is a hot spot for artisans, tourists and bikers (this time I mean motorcyclists).  It was nice to walk around the town.  It was evident that a couple of the bars were hangout spots for motorcycle riders.  In fact long rows of bikers were parked along the street in front of them.  I could spend a few hours milling around this quaint little town but the road is calling and we must listen.  Hope the road is straighter. 

Sometimes the GPS leads you in the wrong direction.  As we left Jerome heading for Sedona, the GPS unit tried to take s us down a narrow dirt road with a very steep incline.  Lucky for us we don't follow the GPS without questioning.  Sedona Here We Come.

Tags: hiking, Driving, Arizona, sightseeing, Jerome, Mingus Mountain, cyclists, motorcycles, camping, gps