Sedona Jeep Ride

Yesterday was my first full day in Sedona and it was filled with taking in the sites. There is so much to see within 20-30 minutes from where I’m staying and every site and vista offers a view that is beyond words. The best part of the day was hands down the jeep ride tour. We booked a tour with A Day in the West which was well worth the money as you get a 3 hour tour through the desert and rocky terrain. Our tour guide was awesome and a former New Yorker who retired and moved out here last year. Side note: I met multiple people yesterday who moved out here from NJ and NY. Anyway, I highly recommend checking this company out because it was a fantastic experience. You do get jostled around a lot and I was definitely bouncing up out of my seat (I had a seatbelt on, don’t worry!) when it got really rocky but it was a lot of fun and since you’re on trails and technically “off-road”, you get to see views and things a lot more closely than when you’re on your own.

Fun Fact #1 This is called Thunder Mountain. Walt Disney used to have a house here and this was inspiration for his Big Thunder Mountain Roller Coaster!

Fun Fact #2 These trees grow juniper berries which are used to make gin. The darker green growths on the tree are actually a parasite and guess what it is…..mistletoe! So apparently mistletoe kills the trees and that’s why there are all those dead branches.

Fun Fact #3 Millions of years ago, this all used to be the ocean floor. The horizontal lines on the rocks are water markers!

How breathtaking is this view?!

Fun Fact #4 There are cave dwellings embedded in the rocks, created by the Pueblo Indians/Native Americans. They created these dwellings to hide from the Apache.

Fun Fact #5 The agave plant only blooms these beautiful flowers right before it dies.

Gorgeous shot of the sun shining down for half of the visible land and then a storm farther back. There have been thunderstorms both nights I’ve been here so far and what is amazing is that because the sky is so big here and you can see for so far, the lightning really lights up the entire sky. What’s also cool is that you see a storm that is miles away and you are still in the sun.

Selfie on the jeep!

So if you didn’t get the hint, I loved the jeep ride. My hair was a tangled mess and my body and clothes were covered in a layer of dust afterwards (seriously, I showered and I’m still getting rid of all the dust in my ears) but it was worth it!

Some other highlights of Day 2:

1. Yummy Huevos Rancheros for breakfast. 2. Selfie while stopping at one of the vista/scenic viewpoints on the side of the road. 3. Taking pictures at the top of a point, the entrance of Chapel of the Holy Cross. 4. Front view of the Chapel, which is built into the buttes. 5. Another view from the chapel. Look at that view! And that mansion! 6. One of the views from the entrance to the chapel. Can anyone else see what looks like praying hands in the rock? 7. Walking around the little shops at Tlaquepaque Arts & Crafts Village. 8. Dinner at Javelina Cantina where I got the Chile Relleno Platter. Delicious, but so much food!

And in case you’re wondering, my top is SO via Kohls, my lace trimmed cotton shorts are Freshman via Kohls and my sunglasses are matte wayfarers via Ray-Ban

I hope you enjoyed my Day 2 recap and the fun facts!