Vortex Visuals

I didn’t know what to expect in Sedona Arizona. My in-laws rented a spectacular Air ‘BnB for  a family trip, nestled amongst the mountains. It was in celebration of their 50 year marriage.  How is that possible without killing each other?  I’m only a little over half way there.  They are an incredible couple and I could only hope to be as happy as they are after 50 years together.   

I knew that in Sedona there were amazing red rock formations and that it is considered a hiker’s wet dream.  Our Air BNB was surrounded by them. Every angle was a spectacular view.

I’m not a hiker but I like challenging myself and feeling like I’ve pushed myself physically… usually that involves picking up the pace from the couch to the fridge.   My husband’s family are avid climbers and hikers.   They are athletic and seek out opportunities to walk and climb and were determined to tackle the “Vortex” rocks like Bell Rock and Cathedral rock.     A vortex is an area where there is a palpable energy field . There is a circular magnetic pull that has twisted all the trees at the base of these rocks  so they look like licorice twizzlers. 

On one trip to a Vortex, I sat alone on a plateau and closed my eyes to meditate.  I’ve always been incapable of slowing my mind down enough to be successful at this, but for some reason, at the Vortex, I was able to simply sit and “be”.  It was surprising to open my eyes and check my watch and see that I had been there for an hour.  I was lost in my breath and the feeling of nothing…and everything at the same time and it was overwhelming.   

Tackling a Vortex climb is also not for the faint of heart.  I started climbing one but realized it was beyond my expertise and I did not have proper shoes so I conceded to the rock.  My sister in-law persevered and made it to the top, which impressed me to no end.  She said it was  terrifying at a couple of spots and she is a seasoned climber.  She also said the strange energy made her feel a little unstable.  I am fascinated with the reason for this magnetic pull and some New Ager’s believe it is from an alien force and fully expect the top of a Vortex to open up one day and an alien spaceship to fly out. 

Sedona is the birth place of “New Age”.  Everywhere you go in town there are shops selling crystals and meditation techniques and readings by psychics.  I couldn’t resist and had a rather lame reading ,which could have been applied to any woman of my age, but it was a fun way to spend an hour. 

We took a day trip to the ghost town called Jerome.  It hangs off the cliffs in central Arizona and was originally a mining town full of men, gambling and prostitutes.  When the mining industry there collapsed it was abandoned.  Eventually people wanted to preserve this town and its history and so they began a campaign to reclaim it as a  Historical site and tourist location and it worked.  Today you can walk the hillside streets that are home to various cafes and local artisans selling their creations. 

There is a historic hotel called the Jerome Grand Hotel where you can pop in and have a cocktail. 

It was built in 1927 and was originally a Hospital.  It was sold in 1994 and reopened as a Hotel in 1996.  It is famously haunted and has been featured on some “Ghost Hunting” shows.  It has been structurally  maintained as the Art Deco Hotel it is and even has the original sliding cage elevator… which was also the location of the only known murder that took place.  It is suspected that , Claude Harvey, the Hospital maintenance man was murdered in April 1935, and his body slid behind the elevator shaft in order to make it look like an accident. 

There are many sightings of Claude in the hotel by guests and staff.  There are also sounds of children laughing and running up and down the hallways, the smell of baby powder, zinc oxide, flowers, dust, whiskey and coughing can be heard coming from empty rooms.  Especially on the 3^rd floor you can hear hospital gurneys and wheels squeaking as this was the location of the operating room. 

We sat in the beautiful bar and sipped on Martinis and basked in its history.  I explored the main floor hallways but you are not allowed to go up to any of the floors unless you are a booked guest. 

Someday I’ll go back and stay there for a couple of nights.  It’s just such an amazing location and view and I like a place that is a bit spooky.

We ate some food in town at one of the bistros and walked around looking at some Mexican art.  I bought some Día de los Muertos statues.  There is also a great old-time candy store  so I purchased a bag of assorted candies that I remembered from my childhood.    It’s a good work -out to visit Jerome because the streets are so steep that walking through the town can bring on a sweat and a racing heart. 

The other trip I would recommend is a visit to The Grand Canyon.  It’s not that far a drive from Sedona and it can be done in one day. 

Walking from the parking area along a path, you don’t expect for everything to  suddenly open up to this never-ending massive crater in the earth that has gigantic rock formations on either side.  It left me feeling like I was on a man-made science fiction set for a movie.  The red colour of the rocks and the way the sun bounced off of them was absolutely stunning.  There were spots where you could walk out onto a ridge and the whole world was beneath you.  Of course, I was wondering how many people had taken one pose too many and accidentally slipped off an edge.  It was exhilarating and terrifying and the entire time I was holding my breath.

Besides the obvious hiking there are other things to do in Sedona. There is some delicious and authentic Mexican food and ,since we don’t really have that at home, I was excited to get eat some great food.  We also hit up a few charity shops and I found some cool, cheap, vintage clothing.  I bought a new hat and a lovely silver and turquoise horse necklace. There is an abundance of beautiful silver jewellery. Turquoise is also found in most jewellery shops. It is home to the Hopi, Navajo, Yavapai and Apache peoples, who are the original people of Arizona.

I would go back to Sedona any time and definitely stay at the same place.   Next time I’ll bring along some good hiking boots. Happy trails readers!