First things first. At the end of August, I headed to Arizona with my partner Shawn.........we visited the surreal Sedona and feasted our eyes on the sacred Grand Canyon.
The American Southwest has called to me ever since I was a kid. I can't explain it, it just has. So, this August I finally heeded that call, and it did not disappoint. Nor did life spare us any challenges prior to heading out. Shawn suffered a rather mysterious collapsed lung about a month before our plane was to take off, which really threw us because we weren't sure if we would be able to fly (the whole cabin pressure vs chest cavity pressure thing). But, as the fates would allow, we were able to fly out as scheduled. Phew. Trip meant to be. All is in alignment.
We arrived in Phoenix, the Superstition Mountains surrounding us, and rented a beautiful Gold Wing motorcycle. From there we headed north and didn't look back. Driving through Sedona, I had tears in my eyes, both because the energy and beauty is so unbelievable and also because I just knew I had been there before. It was goosebumps galore and just so much more than anything I had seen in photographs. But the spectacular Sedona would have to wait another day as we were headed to our hotel further north in Flagstaff.
The desert heat in August nearly did us in until we had reached Sedona and then the magical, fragrant Oak Creek Canyon which offered us a 10 degree reprieve from Phoenix. The Oak Creek Canyon scenic drive is phenomenally beautiful and by now our heads were on swivels. I was on the back of the bike, literally trying to savour every moment as surreal as it was. This land absolutely calls to you- it welcomes you and coaxes you to discover more. I sensed Spirit everywhere I looked- in the multitudes of faces in the rocks, in the soaring red monoliths that towered yet beckoned in their own gentle way and in the fragrant pine forest air that permeates Oak Creek Canyon.
Heading into Flagstaff, the landscape completely changed from Sedona, I could see the sacred San Francisco Peaks in the distance. A different, yet equally powerful energy to the glorious red rocks of Sedona. I was at home. My spirit was soaring.
You know, before I left home, I was hoping for the best but fearing the worst from Sedona. Was it a New Age overrated place that had become tacky and overdone? Would I be disappointed? Well I can tell you that it was the exact opposite. I quickly noted that any pictures I'd seen did not lend Sedona any justice (as my own photos don't....I find myself trying to explain to friends and family viewing my photos that "it was so much more amazing than this even looks!"). And even though we had just one day there, we made the most of it and I know that my spirit got exactly what it was craving. Our hike around Bell Rock and The Courthouse (both energetically powerful red rock monoliths) was an equal blend of the exquisitely serene and the intensely profound. Neither Shawn or I had experienced anything like it before. You could have heard a pin drop back in behind The Courthouse- and the swirling dirt devil vortex (or was it??) that came up ultra suddenly had us questioning everything. It was aMAzing!
After our hike, we headed into Uptown Sedona and toured the shops. Many were of the crystal/healing variety which of course peaked my interest and it was in one of them that I discovered White Buffalo Turquoise. Later on, I had an aura reading done (which was uncannily accurate and I'm not just saying that) in a lovely shop called Sedona Story. We ended the day with a 360 degree panoramic view at the top of Sedona on the Airport Mesa.......just sublime. I just remember sitting there absorbing it all into every cell of my being. I wish we could have stayed for the full sunset but we had to navigate the switchbacks of the Oak Creek Canyon drive.......something neither of us wanted to do in the dark.
The next day was The Grand Canyon. My heart racing, we headed north again, driving across a straight as an arrow highway amidst a flat desert landscape. We both wondered how The Grand Canyon was possibly out here in all of this flat terrain. But we kept driving- toward one of the world's foremost natural wonders. And this was also our chance to drive through the San Francisco Peaks- a very sacred mountain range to the Navajo people and many other nations- and I could feel their gentle yet powerful presence as we drove through (me, again soaking up every moment and snapping away with my camera from the back of the bike).
The Grand Canyon is utterly beautiful (I almost feel silly trying to describe it in words). It is like nothing you know at home, yet it feels completely familiar. Its vastness is almost beyond comprehension and while you feel like you want to stare and soak it all in, you also can't help but respect its overwhelmingly powerful presence. I was very aware of the Hopi, the Yavapai, the Navajo and other tribes who call the Grand Canyon home. Their spiritual presence is palpable. Their faces are in the rocks, their spirits are on the winds. It is not a place, it is an experience.
I leave you with one final shot that further explains why I am synonymous with this place:
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