Grab your sweetheart, the camera, binoculars and hiking gear, a picnic lunch (or order one from Sedona Memories open 10 to 2. If you call in your order they will add a home made cookie, free) and surprise your honey with a day surrounded by nature in the beautiful Red Rock State Park at Sedona, AZ. The park is open daily from 8AM to 5PM.
Here you’ll be able to spend time with your sweetie, enjoy nature, hike and unwind. Dress is casual. No reservations are required. No crowds. No waiting lists. No stuffy waiters. Just you, your loved one, nature and the creature comforts one hopes for.
Why the Red Rock State Park? Because this 286 acres of gorgeous, (even in the nakedness of early spring before the verdant colors emerge) nature preserve has 10 hiking trails within the park that wind through manzanita, juniper and ripirean vegetation that stretch along the tranquil banks of Oak Creek. Bird sightings include woodpeckers, phoebes, hawks, ducks, doves, jays, towhees, wrens and much more… And, one can picnic at a ramada with the convenience of restrooms nearby, enjoy the nature center or one of the many programs such as the guided nature walk every morning at 10AM.
I found out about this beautiful property early in my real estate career more than 35 years ago while still owned by Helen Frye. The story of the property, as I was told, went as follows: Jack (the “father” of Transcontinental & Western Air, or TWA, as you might know it) and Helen, were flying over what is now the park. Helen, looking down at the terrain below her, was impressed by the beauty of the property and vowed to return to it.
Later, Mr. Frye acquired the property as a gift to his wife.
Isn’t that romantic?
Helen Frye was quiet the lady! It would not be an exaggeration to say that Jack and Helen were one of the original “power couples” in America at a time when wives were expected to stand behind their man rather than at their side. Helen, however, was not only a beautiful social figurehead, she had vast experience “observing and complementing the exclusive 'man’s world' of money, power, and business.” As a society leader in early Sedona history, she would entertain by the creek at the tea house, or from one of many residences built on the property. She was interested in the arts, was a gifted writer, a life-long animal lover and co-founder of the Sedona Humane Society. (A tour of the modern facility located in Sedona, outside the park, is definitely worth your time) and so much more.
You are likely to always remember fondly this romantic Valentine’s Day at the crown jewel of Arizona's state parks located just outside Sedona, surrounded by nature, comfort and so such interesting history!
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