Devils Staircase and the Red Rocks of Sedona

I remember riding down the “Devil’s Staircase” in Sedona, a summer or two ago. It was exhilerating to say the least. Here’s a video clip of someone driving his Razor 1000 down on the staircase.

Schnebly Hill trail OHV in Sedona, AZ

Below, are some photos I took of our ride thru the Red Rocks of Sedona last 6 March 2018. The videos above are some videos I found in YouTube and not taken during our adventure ride.
During our ride, we visited two very interesting historic sites, the Palataki and Honanki Ruins. The Sinagua Indians built dwellings on the side of Sedona’s Red Rock Cliffs.

The Palatki Heritage Site and its sister site, Honanki, were the largest cliff dwellings of the Red Rock Country between AD 1150 – 1350. They were first described by Dr. Jesse Walter Fewkes, famous turn-of-the century archaeologist from the Smithsonian Institution, who gave them the Hopi names of Honanki (Badger House) and Palatki (Red House). The Hopi, however, have no specific names for these sites.

The Palatki Heritage Site cliff dwelling and rock art site is located near the town of Sedona in north-central Arizona. Currently managed by the U.S. Forest Service under the Red Rock Pass Program, the site is open to the general public for visits seven days a week (closed Thanksgiving and Christmas). A small visitor center and bookstore, run by the Arizona Natural History Association, is located a short distance from the parking lot.

There are three trails at Palatki Heritage Site, one trail that takes you up to the Sinagua cliff dwellings, one that takes you to a view of the dwellings and a third that goes to the alcoves that shelter the painted symbols, or pictographs from every native culture to ever occupy the Verde Valley. These trails, each ¼ mile one way making the round trip distance one and one half mile, are fairly easy but they are not accessible to most wheelchairs.

The area next to the cliff dwelling is limited to ten visitors at a time. Reservations are required. Before you visit call for reservations at (928) 282-3854 and read our Archaeological Site Etiquette Guide.

Pets are not allowed beyond the parking area at this heritage site.

2 Comments

  1. Thanks for sharing! Love the pics.

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      You are very welcome Teresa!
      ♥♥♥

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