At the end of April, I headed out to Phoenix to meet up with Jessica Block for a weekend Adventure in Arizona.
Saturday: Canoing in the Verde Valley
Jess made some fresh squeezed orange juice and we headed off early to the Verde Valley. We were going to the Verde Valley Birding and Nature Festival where Jess was an instructor in a canoing class. I got to take the class.
The morning was spent learning canoing, which was great for me, since the last time I tried to canoe my boyfriend Kevin spent all the time paddling while I slept!
After a nice lunch, we headed down the Verde river. We did crash and flip the boat ( making for a wonderful dip in the cooling water) and run into a few trees and rocks.
Overall it was a wonderful day in a surprisingly lush location.
After the trip, we headed up to the Colorado Plateau and Sedona. I loved the Colorado Plateau on my drive cross country - all those great red mountains in Utah, so it was great to get to see them again here in Arizona. Once we arrived in Sedona, we watched the sunset over a quick dinner and then fell asleep. It had been a long day.
Sunday: Hiking the Vortexes in Sedona
Sunday was a morning to sleep in. We drove by and stopped at the Bell Rock Vortex.
Then we headed out to Boynton Canyon. Boynton Canyon is considered the most "electro-magnetic" and most powerful of the four vortexes in Sedona. We went on a 5 mile hike through the canyon.
Hydration is very important in Arizona!
Given the heat of Arizona, it was nice for much of the hike to be in the shade of trees, before hiking above them for a view of the canyons.
After the hike, we got some treats in downtown Sedona, before heading back to Phoenix and the airport. I had such a great time just relaxing and unwinding and enjoying the beauty of being outside.
It was a wonderful weekend and a good chance to me to reconnect with Jessica and the beauty of the Southwest.
