My “bucket list” has been growing, not shrinking, over the past several years. This year I have decided to start crossing items off of it. The first places I decided to cross off the list are Sedona and the Grand Canyon, in Arizona. The great thing about choosing these locations is they are both within an hour and a half of each other. On the tip of a friend who used to live in Arizona, I chose Flagstaff as my base. Both locations are within an easy driving distance from Flagstaff. Flagstaff itself is a cool town, and I think next time, I may take a train ride to Flagstaff from Chicago, and spend more time in the town.

I flew into Phoenix, rented a car, and the plan was to stop in Sedona first, on the way to Flagstaff. I had reserved a tour with Pink Jeep Tours (a must for anyone wanting to get out into the canyons, away from the tourist-y part of Sedona). The adventure of the day began before I even got to Sedona- an SUV collided with a truck on I-17, and the highway was shut down. The accident occurred about 6 miles before the Sedona exit, and it took over an hour to go those six miles. I called Pink Jeep Tours, and they moved me to a later tour.

I had seen Sedona from other photos, and I knew it was beautiful. The canyons there are incredible, and that drive in to town was one of the most beautiful drives I have taken. And then, the tour itself was even more amazing. A friend of mine tipped me off to Pink Jeep Tours, and I cannot recommend enough taking one of them if you’re in Sedona. The Broken Arrow Tour is their signature tour, they are the only tour company that can take people on that trail. The trail is named after the movie Broken Arrow (with Jimmy Stewart), which was filmed there, in part. The tour takes you out into canyons around Sedona, and makes two stops. The first stop is where one of the vortices in the area occurs. The canyon walls cause the winds to speed up through them, creating a wind tunnel. Even if the winds are light, once you get there, they are intense. The second stop was at Submarine Rock, which looks like a submarine has surfaced in the base of the valley. The tour I took was a combination of the Broken Arrow Trail, and also up part of the way to the rim above Sedona.

I had kept Monday open, for either the Grand Canyon, or a return to Sedona. Since I fell in love with Sedona, I went back Monday. The weather had changed, clouds had rolled in, the temperatures dropped, and the winds picked up to between 50 and 60 mph gusts. The clouds made for excellent photographic opportunities. In the late afternoon, storms came through, cutting my explorations short. It both rained and snowed. I sought refuge at the Oak Creek Brewery, had a pint or two, and relished in the days’ adventures.

Next up, my first experience at the Grand Canyon on Tuesday…