EDITOR'S LETTER

I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve hiked the West Fork. I quit counting when I got to 35. And that was a while ago. If you’ve ever been, you’ll understand the allure. The West Fork of Oak Creek is a tenacious seductress. And despite the inevitable queue at the trailhead, I’ll go back again this month. I have to. The oaks and maples are on stage now. Dancing in the candlelight of autumn.

I’m going back for the color. And also the history. When I was there in August, I raced past what’s left of the old Mayhew Lodge — as I’d done so many times before — anxious to hit the trail. On the way out, though, I stopped to look around. It reminded me of exploring abandoned barns as a boy in Wisconsin, and I was curious. Later that night, I searched our archive. But there wasn’t much. Just a few photos with short captions and a hotel listing in our September 1947 issue: “30 guests can be accommodated in comfortable rooms, with bath, American Plan, $7 per day.” I wanted more, so I sent an email to Janeen Trevillyan. She’s the director of the Sedona Heritage Museum.

“Hello Janeen. This is Robert. From Arizona Highways. I’m wondering if you have any information on the Mayhew Lodge.”

“GOBS of information and TONS of photos,” she replied. A few hours later, the reams of history arrived. It’s an interesting history.

The site was homesteaded in the late- 1800s by Jesse “Bear” Howard, who was on the lam for killing a sheepherder in California. The secluded entrance to the West Fork of Oak Creek made a great place to hide. It got even better in 1880, when Bear built a log cabin that would later be absorbed by the lodge. He didn’t stick around, though. And neither did the string of subsequent owners, including the Thomas family, who operated a boarding house. It was a primitive lodge known as The Tioga when Carl Mayhew first saw the property.

Mr. Mayhew was an accomplished photographer in Flagstaff. His shop had an enamel-plated sign that read: “Mayhew’s Kodak Studio.” And on the backs of the postcards he sold were the words: “The Mayhew Studio, Better Pictures, Flagstaff, Ariz.” In the early 1920s, he was invited to Oak Creek Canyon by filmmaker Jesse L. Lasky, who was a pioneer in the Hollywood film industry. He was scouting locations for The Call of the Canyon, a movie based on the Zane Grey novel. When they got to The Tioga, Carl Mayhew saw his future and made an offer. “I think he paid $7,500,” said George Mayhew, the son of Carl and Ethel, and the brother of Betty.
 

When the family arrived in the canyon, the property was a mess. “Pigs were running wild,” Ethel said. “There were weeds as high as your head in the front yard. I remember a single red rose in the garden. There were no electric lights, no highway, just an old trail.”

However, it didn’t take long for the Mayhews to turn the rundown lodge into one of the premier destinations in Arizona, one that featured a swimming pool built into the red rock. In addition to the resort atmosphere and scenic backdrop, Ethel’s cooking was a draw. Traditional Sunday dinners were renowned. Other days, she’d serve up the unexpected, including lobster con queso and baked pears. She made pies, too. In a story for a creative writing class, Edith Smith Denton, a local student, wrote about them: “In the summer of 1948, I went to the lodge to care for the Mayhew grandchildren while their mother, Betty, took care of the guests. Mother Mayhew, who did the baking, became ill and was unable to cook. Betty was no pie maker, but since I’d learned in high school to make an excellent crust, it became my duty to bake pies for the guests.”

Among those guests were celebrities, including Ferde Grofé, Gloria Vanderbilt, Jimmy Stewart and Clark Gable. One of the nicest, Betty said, was Cesar Romero, who stayed at the lodge in 1940 while filming Viva Cisco Kid. “We stayed in this very charming lodge by a creek,” he reminisced. “A beautiful spot.”

“We lived off the land,” George said. “We had two orchards there, and we’d trade apples for potatoes. We had corn. We had chickens. We had a cow — and it was just for milk.”

Although Carl died in 1943, Ethel continued on, with the help of her family. But in 1963, during the off-season, the lodge caught fire — a passing motorist spotted the flames leaping out of the windows. Despite extensive damage, the Mayhews made repairs and persevered. The end was near, however. And in 1969, they sold the historic homestead to the U.S. Forest Service. Reportedly for $171,000.

“With the closing of the lodge, people just cried,” Ethel said.

A few years later, on February 13, 1975, the lodge was added to the National Register of Historic Places. But by then, the property had fallen into disrepair. “Initially, we planned to develop Mayhew Lodge as a visitor center,” William D. Hurst, a regional forester, wrote to U.S. Senator Paul Fannin of Arizona on April 3, 1975. “However, we have not received sufficient funds to implement these plans.”

Sadly, on March 26, 1980 — 100 years after Bear Howard built his cabin — the Mayhew Lodge burned to the ground. Arson, most likely. Today, all that’s left are the skeletal remains. And the ghosts. And the oaks and the maples, which are on stage now. Dancing in the candlelight of autumn. Draped in sequins of red and gold. It’s time to go.