What a difference a day makes, or in this case about 14 days to be exact. The skies were heavily overcast and a threatening gun-metal gray, when we met in Phoenix near I-17 & Bell Road on the morning of April 6, and several of us had already run into rain on the way in. One of our hikers actually decided to cancel after we met, saying it was raining heavily near her home when she left, and the forecast for the day was not looking any too good. That threw a pall of doubt over the rest of us, and I wondered who else might decide to bail at this point.

As our caravan of five vehicles sped northward on I-17, that open slice of sky began to close in on us, and we drove all the way into Sedona under heavy cloud cover. Picking up our Red Rock Passes at the South Gateway Center off of highway 169, we got the local forecast, and it wasn’t very encouraging with showers throughout the day. We began to experience a light drizzle before we reached our turnoff at Dry Creek Road. Wonder just how dry that creek is going to be today? Shortly after we hit the dirt portion of the road, the drizzle actually turned into a mushy sleet for a brief period. Dang! What’s next – snow? At least the dirt road was now dampened down sufficiently that we were not eating each other’s dust. Nearing the trailhead, I realized we had gotten bad advice from yet another supposed expert. The Coconino District Forest Service people had assured me only a few days earlier that this dirt road was perfectly suitable for passenger cars, I recall as I almost bottomed out on the massively rutted and rocky last 50 feet of the road in my Dodge Dakota pickup. Sure, a passenger car jacked up on large off-road mud tires perhaps.

Pictures taken, we resolve to hike until the weather decides to get really serious, then high tail it to heck out of here.

We were not ten minutes into the hike, when the skies opened up, starting with another light drizzle and soon advancing to a light shower. Time to break out those ponchos now.

What? Did someone say they did not bring theirs? Methinks somebody is going to get a wee bit soggy today.

Slogging along through a dampened deep sand stretch of the trail, we were soon greeted by a couple of our hikers heading back already! C’mon people – our trusty weather forecasters promised this was going to be a great day.

Remember? We spot a bright flash of lightning and listen for the following boom of thunder, echoing off in the distance. Another mile in and a couple more of our hikers are going the wrong way. As the lightning gets closer and more frequent (why is your hair standing on end, Mike?), Mike Wargel and I make a quick decision to call in the remaining troops and get out of here fast. This is getting a bit too serious now.

Everyone present and accounted for and safely back at the trailhead, we get out of wet gear and try to dry off the best we can. The temperature has now fallen to 55 degrees.

Since it was now past noon and most of us had not eaten yet, we discussed lunch options, with some opting for pizza and others heading in a different direction for hot soup and sandwiches.

The next challenge would be climbing back out over these now slippery and muddy ruts and safely navigating the four miles of dirt/mud road back to pavement. Luckily, we all made it out without incident and did not leave a single oil pan or transmission behind us. Over hot pizza, we discussed coming back in a couple of weeks and trying this hike again in better weather.

It is nearly 10:00 AM when we step out onto the trail to discover what dark secrets may await us in the hidden depths of Secret Canyon.

Although the air temperature is the same 60 degrees as two weeks ago, it is also much drier and more comfortable now. We were not ten minutes into the hike, when a couple of very large and threatening cumulus clouds with ominous dark gray underbellies started drifting overhead.

Not again! Lucky for us, they moved out just as quickly as they appeared, and we would not see a single rain drop on this beautiful spring day in red rock country. On this day we would be treated to cool, refreshing breezes and fluffy white cumulus clouds scuttling overhead, providing the perfect contrast to an azure blue sky against the red rock monoliths of Secret Canyon.

We could not have asked for a better day.

Our trail, which lies entirely within the boundaries of Red Rock Secret Mountain Wilderness, very shortly takes us across Dry Creek, which is certainly living up to its description on this day, as it appears not to have been wet in quite some time. We soon find ourselves laboring through the first of several soft sand pit sections of the trail that were actually easier to navigate a couple of weeks ago, when the sand was damp and a bit firmer.

This trail follows a long-abandoned jeep trail for the first couple of miles, before it actually enters the mouth of Secret Canyon. It’s a bit hard to believe that a jeep could have really navigated some portions of this trail, as it snakes its way up and down through sections of bare bedrock and through open forests of pinyon, juniper, scrub oak, and manzanita, with its telltale shiny red branches.

There seems to be a contradiction in the length of the trail, since the guide books show it as 4.0 miles one way, the Red Rock Country maps available at the Gateway Centers show it as 5.2 miles, and the trail sign shows 5.5 miles. It’s a good guess that it’s probably closer to 5.5 miles. We are wondering if we are really up to an 11-mile hike today, when we were really mentally prepared for an 8-mile hike instead. We agree to see how far we get by lunchtime and make a decision then. After about 1.9 miles we make one more ascent before entering a small clearing of bedrock that provides sweeping and breathtaking views of the surrounding red rock country and the entrance to Secret Canyon, beckoning us to descend into its depths.

Secret Canyon is actually the longest and most remote of the numerous canyons within the Dry Creek Basin.

The remainder of Secret Canyon Trail parallels one of many tributaries of Dry Creek, as it meanders along the floor of the canyon through forests of towering ponderosa pine, pinyon pine, large alligator juniper, sycamore, and oak. Hiking with Chuck and Peggy Giovanniello at this point, we discuss the aroma of ponderosa pine bark, most noticeable when it is dampened, something we would certainly not experience today. Peggy said it reminded her of vanilla, while I thought it was more like butterscotch. Crossing the dry creek bed from time to time (Chuck G. and I would later come up with a total of 24 crossings from start to finish), the trail climbs a short distance above the canyon floor before soon dropping back into the canyon once again. It seems to do this almost as many times as it crosses the creek bed.

Through clearings in the trees on either side of the trail we get great views of spectacular red rock spires, pinnacles, buttes, cliffs, and mesas, with the views getting better and better as we move deeper into the canyon, and the canyon walls move in closer.

As we top out on yet another ascent of the trail and enter a small clearing, Glenn points out a large window, framing the blue sky behind it, high up on one end of a soaring cliff to our right. At the other end of the cliff is a large mushroom-shaped rock that we promptly dub Mushroom Rock. I am now seriously wondering if I brought along enough film for this trip, as I take picture after picture of the many hidden charms within these red rock walls of Secret Canyon.

It is shortly after noon as Richard announces over his TalkAbout radio that the lead group has found a great spot for lunch near the creek bed.

We catch up to them shortly, and we all enjoy a leisurely lunch break while sitting on a couple of large logs, great fallen giants of the forest. We are now exactly 4.6 miles from the trailhead, according to Glenn’s handy GPS. During lunchtime conversation, we find that one of our new hikers, Sharon Strong, is not only a world class globe trotter, traveling the far reaches of the world (off to Switzerland for a week of hiking the Alps this summer, followed by a week’s visit to a friend in Scotland), she hikes every weekend she gets a chance, and in her spare time is a full-time pediatrician. Awesome, Sharon! Finishing up lunch, we decide that 4.6 miles (9.2 miles RT) is far enough and pack it in for the day, as we make our way back to the trailhead and out of this spectacular and unforgettable place in the Arizona wilderness, known as Secret Canyon.