Grand Canyon (South Rim) to Sedona in 2020

[ReallyBigMax]

We're planning to take our signature rig and head South out of western Washington state in late January, as soon as we can clear the mountains heading, initially, for Central and then Southern California, and then on to the Grand Canyon South Rim. Yes, we'll watch the weather, which will determine how quickly we exit California where we'll be visiting friends and family all the way down to Santa Barbara. We'll head pretty directly from there to the Grand Canyon when it looks safe to do so. From the the Grand Canyon we want to head down to Sedona for a week or so. Assuming the weather cooperates, what is the best route to take for this Grand Canyon to Sedona part of the trip?

It looks like all routes lead East to Flagstaff and then South on the I-17. Just South of Flagstaff it looks like we could head directly South into Sedona on AZ-89A, but there is a pretty "interesting" section on the map that looks like it could be pretty steep grades, along with some "interesting" turns as well.

Then there is the end-around route, staying on I-17 almost all the way to Rimrock, then turning North on AZ-179 up through the Village of Oak Creek and on up to Sedona.

Is the AZ-89A as bad as it looks? Or worse? What is the best choice? What else would you suggest?

Thanks in advance!

[accsys]

I wouldn't take AZ-89A unless you like thrill rides and have great insurance. I-17 down to AZ-179 is the best way and probably the fastest since 89A has a lot of slow moving traffic..