We arrived [after a stressful little traffic jam on The highway just before the campgrounds (freaking out we would miss a good spot, LOL)] at 4:10 pm and picked a Great! [stressed for no reason!] spot, got checked in And started setting up at 4:40 and we were done by 5, 1/2 the time as my solo setups ! We did not set up the kitchen or eating area though and ended up eating all our meals in town…. GLAMPING! Lol

The spot we got, # 1 on the F loop, was a great spot, close to the bathrooms, but not too close to be bothered by the noise or traffic. We were on a corner, but we hardly saw any cars drive through and about 50 yards from our spot was the water. I will post a map of the campground and note the best reserved spots at the end of this post.

After camp was set up we decided to head in to Flagstaff For dinner. We were originally heading to Diablo’s Burgers, which we’ve had before and loved… they were packed, it was a bit chilly outside and most their seats are outside so we opted for this tempting little Italian spot in the same plaza and boy was that a great decision!

Dinner at IL Rosso’s, I ordered cheese ravioli w/meatball and garlic bread with Wunderlust Altocumulus White IPS draft. Greg ordered the Italian sausage Stromboli and a Mother Road Kolsch draft. This place has a serious bar and some serious drinks but is a small unassuming spot with a crowd of locals at the bar.

The food was fantastic. I’ve been craving a genuinely delicious Italian meal and this place hot the spot. I’ll be adding this one to The Map !

In the morning we were up around 7:30 and headed into town for a much needed Starbucks and a breakfast snack. Then we hit the Canyon Outfitters where I got some new hiking pants with zip off legs and a new hiking top! We earned $15 off our next visit and they had a great selection and the prices were much better than some of the big box spots. We will definitely be shopping here again.

Then we headed to West Fork Trail where we hiked mostly along the water and went several miles in and further than we’ve gone before. We’ve hiked this train in 4 seasons now, see a few of my other season shots below. We didn’t go as far as we wanted but we got hungry and headed back. I’d love to do the full 11 miles of this hike, it is an overnighter.

I’m collecting shots of West Fork in each season, so far summer and winter. We’ve been there in fall before so I should have one of these but for some reason I don’t yet… I will soon though!

It was an amazingly beautiful day to play in the water!! Observing the water spiders make funny shadow faces as they danced on the clear creek water!

We headed not far up the road from west fork for lunch at The Table, where we ordered personal pizzas, he got a build your own and I got the margarita pizza and added portabella mushrooms. A Mother Road IPA for me and the Mr got the Mother Road Kolsch. The pizza was good, hit the spot and is very convenient to the campgrounds and nearby hiking.

After lunch was wine and relax time. We hit our two favorite wineries in Oak Creek, about a 25 minute drive from the camp ground. Page Springs Cellars has an amazing view of the Canyon, we love to sit on their deck in the shade and enjoy the peaceful view with a glass wine. I had to grab a bottle of their Ice Wine, a delicious sweet desert wine!

After about an hour at Page Springs we headed over to our other favorite winery, Oak Creek Vineyards & Winery, for a flight and a charcuterie board, always amazing here with their selections ! Here I got a bottle of the Chardonnay and Greg chose the Petite Sarah and a bottle of Port.

We didn’t realize how long it had been since we had done a winery run up here in Sedona, both properties have made some amazing improvements ! We highly recommend you check them out!
After the wineries, we headed to town and walked around the shopping center along the north stretch of Hwy 89A. Of course I had to memorialize all of the statutes. 🙂

Tonight we built a fire and enjoyed the night just goofing off and watching for skunks. We didn’t see as many while the fire was going, but after the fire was out and we were settling into our sleeping bags we could hear them scavenging our site, there were several..lol.

In the morning We slept in and had a late start so we did a Starbucks breakfast and then some window shopping as we waited for the lunch hour. Of course I found more sculptures and then we found some some fun head gear.

Our lunch spot choice was a re-visit to a spot we visited way back on our very first trip to Sedona on our 2009 Arizona Road Trip. Javelina Cantina has a great patio with beautiful views of the red rocks and some fine prickly pear margaritas! To be honest though, the food was just O.K. I remembered it being better so it could have been the dish or the day. I won’t take it off The Map, but I keep it mostly for the views and the margaritas.

After lunch we hit the campsite and then walked up to the creek that runs by it, there are beautiful trails along the water, here we played in the water, picked wild berries and enjoyed the cool canyon views.


So… this here is the very last photo taken with my beloved Sony a6000, just before I took this photo, she took a little dunk in the water when i lost my footing and almost fell in where i was already knee deep :(. (my awesome husband has since let me use our Amex points to replace her, he is amazing!)

After this sweet little water hike we headed up to Doe Mesa for a sunset hike before grabbing a late dinner at Olde Sedona Bar & Grill and turning in for the night. Here was very mediocre that felt over priced and underwhelming. We don’t even remember what we ate. :/

We had another fire when we got back to camp, relaxed and soaked up our last night. The skunks were scarce tonight, and we used the tent heater most of the night as tonight it definitely got colder.

We packed up camp early Sunday and headed home after a delicious breakfast at The Coffee Pot. This spot was also a re-visit from our 2009 road trip, they are also a long time staple of Sedona and delicious. Omelettes are their specialty and I love their Chorizo.

We were able to get home around noon and get unpacked and get some rest before heading back to reality on Monday :(.

Cave Springs Camp Site map…. the BEST spots in the reserved section, IMHO are # 1, which will have more traffic, and #11 which is up against some woods and much more private. It is a bit further from bathrooms. Both spots will still be closer to the highway but are right on the water!