The location of Sedona

• Sedona is located in the Upper Sonoran Desert of northern Arizona at an elevation of 4500 feet.
• Uptown Sedona (the part in Coconino County)
  and West Sedona (the Yavapai County portion) form the City of Sedona.
  Originally founded in 1902, the town was incorporated into a city in
  January 1988. The Village of Oak Creek, despite its location seven miles
  (11 km) to the south and outside Sedona city limits, is a significant
  part of the community.
• The city of Phoenix lies 114 miles to the
  south, Las Vegas is 278 miles to the northwest and Los Angles is 482
  miles to the west. The Grand Canyon is 110 miles north of Sedona.

The geology of Sedona

• The famous Red Rocks of Sedona are one of the
  most beautiful natural sites in the United States. Part of the eroding
  Mogollon Rim of the vast Colorado plateau.
• Sedona’s canyon walls show nine layers of
  stone from different geological periods spanning hundreds of millions of
  years. There are six layers of sandstone, two thin layers of limestone
  and atop all of these, one igneous layer of basalt stone. The different
  sandstone and limestone layers were formed by wind blown sand dunes or
  mud deposited by inland seas. The red colors of some of the sandstone
  layers are the result of iron oxide staining the rocks over great
  periods of time. The uppermost igneous layer was deposited by volcanic
  eruptions 14.5 million years ago and once covered the entire Verde
  Valley several meters deep in lava.
• The Verde Valley, meaning Green Valley, is so
  named because of the natural copper, appearing green when extracted
  from the ground, which had long been mined in the nearby hills and not
  because of the colors of local vegetation. The waters of Oak Creek come
  from the many natural springs along the course of the creek and not, as
  is commonly assumed, from melting snow of the nearby sacred mountain of
  Kachina Peak.

History of Sedona

• Evidence of human presence in the Sedona
  region begins around 4000 BC when hunter-gatherers roamed through the
  Verde Valley. As early as 300 BC the dry desert soils were being farmed
  by the Hohokam people, who developed systems of irrigation canals by 700
  AD but then mysteriously abandoned the area, perhaps because of a
  regional volcanic eruption in 1066 AD.
• Next to arrive were the agrarian Sinagua
  Indians, whose Spanish name means ‘without water,’ this being an
  indication of their ability to farm in the dry environment. Settling in
  the area from about 1000 to 1400 AD, they built pueblos and cliff
  dwellings, perhaps influenced by the architecturally more sophisticated
  Anasazi Indians, and made baskets, pottery and jewelry. They also
  established trading relationships with tribes from the Pacific coastal
  regions and northern Mexico, and exported the high-grade copper, which
  they mined west of Sedona.
• Traces of the Sinagua may be found in the
  remains of their ruined pueblos scattered around the Sedona area. Sites
  such as Palatki, Honanki, and Wupatki had dozens of rooms in double
  story buildings and were decorated with intriguing pictographs and
  petroglyphs depicting clan affiliations, mythological beings and
  astronomical observations. Archaeologists theorize that the Sinagua may
  have conducted religious celebrations during particular periods
  determined by their celestial observations.
• Early in the 15th century, the Sinagua
  disappeared from the area for reasons that remain a mystery and about
  this time the Yavapai and Apache Indians began to settle along the sides
  of Oak Creek canyon.
• Europeans first arrived in the region in
  1583, when a group of Spanish explorers came in search of gold and
  silver. Following the end of the Civil War and the creation of the
  Territory of Arizona in 1863, homesteaders began to settle in the Verde
  Valley and along Oak Creek from the 1870’s. The early settlers were
  farmers and ranchers, and Oak Creek Canyon was well known for its apple
  and peach orchards.
• Growth was slow at first because of the
  remoteness of the region. In 1902, when the Sedona post office was
  established, there were 55 residents. In that year the small town was
  named Sedona after Sedona Miller Schnebly (1877–1950), the wife of the
  city’s first postmaster, who was celebrated for her hospitality and
  industriousness. In the mid-1950s, the first telephone directory listed
  155 names. Parts of the Sedona area weren’t electrified until the 1960s.
• The first spurt of development came during
  the 1940’s and 50’s when Hollywood began filming western movies amidst
  the red rocks, such as the classics Billy the Kid, Apache and Broken
  Arrow. Many of Hollywood’s classic westerns were filmed in or near
  Sedona. The red rock buttes and desert landscape provided a striking setting for these films, most notably Broken Arrow (1950), starring James Stewart.
  Other famous actors who have appeared in movies filmed in Sedona
  include John Wayne, Barbara Stanwyck, Burt Lancaster, Robert Mitchum,
  James Stewart, Glenn Ford, Rock Hudson, Gene Autry, Joan Crawford, Henry
  Fonda, Ryan O’Neal, Elvis Presley and Robert De Niro.
• In the 1960s and ’70s the beauty of the red
  rocks began attracting retirees, artists and an increasing number of
  tourists. Currently more than four million visitors pass through Sedona
  each year. While there is no evidence that the area of Sedona was a
  highly venerated sacred site in antiquity, it has since the late 1980’s
  become the most visited ‘new-age’ pilgrimage destination in the United
  States.

Interesting Facts about Sedona

• At an elevation of 4,500 feet (1,372 m),
  Sedona has mild winters and hot summers. In January, the normal high
  temperature is 51 degrees Fahrenheit with a low of 21. In July, the
  normal high temperature is 93 degrees Fahrenheit with a low of 63.
  Annual precipitation is around 19 inches.
• According to the United States Census Bureau,
  the city has a total area of 18.6 square miles (48.2 km²), all of it
  land. As of 2009, Sedona’s population is 11,500 people. Sedona’s cost of
  living is 50% higher than the U.S. average. The cities ethnic mix is
  91% Caucasian, 1.6% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.4% and African
  American, 5.5%.
• The major Industries in Sedona are tourism and hospitality, recreation, retail shopping and art galleries.

Important places to visit in Sedona

• Sedona’s main attraction is its stunning array of red sandstone
  formations, the Red Rocks of Sedona. The formations appear to glow in
  brilliant orange and red when illuminated by the rising or setting sun.
  The Red Rocks form a breathtaking backdrop for everything from spiritual
  pursuits to the hundreds of hiking and mountain biking trails.
• Among the rock formations is one that closely resembles the character Snoopy (from the popular Peanuts
  comic strip) lying on top of his doghouse. Another nearby rock is said
  to resemble Lucy, also from Peanuts. Other landmark rock formations
  include Coffeepot Rock, Bell Rock, Cathedral Rock, Chimney Rock,
  Courthouse Butte, the Mittens, the Cow Pies, and the Rabbit Ears.

Sedona Vortexes

Various local tour guides speak about
‘vortexes’ or specific sites of concentrated energy at different places
in the Sedona landscape but geologists and highly experienced dowsers
strongly refute these notions. The general area of the red rocks does
seem to have an inspirational effect upon some people, but this effect
cannot be attributed to particular places in the landscape.