This was our last day in Sedona. We wanted to find another energy vortex and though I was tempted by the Red Rock Crossing vortex we opted instead for the Airport Mesa vortex. We had visited it last time we were in Sedona and it was a challenge for Cristy to make it up the rocks. She wanted to return to gauge her increase in physical stamina, see if it was any easier climbing to the vortex. In short, it was.

We drove all the way up to the airport to park. There are several paid parking areas there, we opted for free parking up at the airport. I put on my AOPA hat as camouflage. Yeah, I’m a pilot! Well… I am! Then we walked down to the vortex trail. The trail is all downhill to the vortex so in that sense it’s an easy trail. But I’m going to call this a moderate hike because the trail is littered with rocks. LOTS of rocks all about the size of a soft ball or basket ball. As an added bonus, last night’s storm had left it plenty muddy. Happily we were able to avoid the rocks and mud and make it to the bottom of the path, about 1/2 mile. My respect for the ladies I saw wearing sandals and flip flops!

The hike down the trail provides stunning views of the red rock buttes and cliffs…

Once you arrive at the mesa there is a parking area (where there is NEVER any parking available) and an overlook that give you stunning views to the east and south…

After pausing to drink and let some folks descend the trail leading up to the vortex rock we began the long (maybe 5 minutes) arduous (there are safety cables to hang on to) climb to the top of the Airport Mesa vortex. We tried to just take it all in. Enjoy the silence. We took our shoes off to feel the rock on our bare feet. We stayed and soaked up the views for 30, maybe 45 minutes but there were some “guides” there that wouldn’t shut up about “how healing, and peaceful the vortex is”. It might have been if they would ever shut up! 🙂

After spending some time in the relative peace and quiet it was time to head back up the trail. We must be in moderately better condition than last time we were here because the hike back up the hill wasn’t that bad.

After we got back up to the airport we thought about having lunch at the airport cafe but it was pretty crowded and I didn’t think Cristy would care for “pilot food” so we drove back down into the NON-touristy section of Sedona and found a nice Thai restaurant to have lunch. I was quite proud of Cristy that it was later than she normally ate lunch but was still feeling fine! After lunch we headed back to the trailer to start making preparations for the long bittersweet journey home. We hated to leave but we missed our family.

We waited until this day, Monday, to try going to the Sedona tourist district. Cristy was a little crestfallen because some of the stores she really liked closed up as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. One store in particular used to sell shirts dyed with the red dirt in Sedona. They were high quality really nice T shirts and blouses. I spent most of my time going from bench to bench on the side walk.

Where I spent much of my time on Monday…

I bought one piece of Malachite from a gem store to make a bolo. Even though it’s crowded and touristy there aren’t many shopping districts that offer you these kinds of views…

On the way back we stopped at a kind hippy looking store that sold drinks, teas, and coffee. Cristy bought some chocolate and we both come some drinks. I can’t remember what mine was. It tasted good yet somehow odd. This was actually our favorite stop that day. We ran into some heavily tattooed folks out front who didn’t look like they would have much in common with us. He was talking about Facebook being offline most of the day. I offered that Bank of America and many other institutions had been offline as well. He raised both arms and exclaimed “Yes! It’s finally happening!” Apparently he is part of the Great Awakening happening in America today.

Later that night a fairly decent thunderstorm hit. I had left the awning out and the sound of it flapping woke me it. It has a wind sensor and will automatically retract but I decided to go ahead and do so myself. Not 10 minutes later huge

One of the reasons I chose to stay in/near Cottonwood, AZ was because that is where my father learned to fly in WWII. It was near the end of the war and after he exited the pilot training program he never flew again. However, I still wanted to see where he learned to fly. Cottonwood airport is at the top of a large bluff above the town and sits in the shadow of Mingus Mountain. The mountain protects the airport from southerly winds and in the morning it is generally calm anyway. We pulled up and was let into the pilot’s lounge by the last of the Saturday morning regulars. I got to chat with them briefly but it was still fun. Cristy noted it was just like being at Oakdale. I didn’t know them yet those guys and I were talking about airplanes and flying like we’d known each other for years. After getting some gas we headed back to the trailer to eat lunch.

If my dear sister is reading this can you ask Dad if he knew Hank Thompson? He was a flight instructor that was there at the time and the plaque below is dedicated to him.

After lunch we decided to bag another “energy vortex”; Bell Rock. There are two places to park, one is just north of Bell Rock, the other about 3/4 of a mile south. There was no room in the north lot so we parked to the south. This was actually good because we had stunning views of the rock as we walked toward it. As we drew closer we saw people about halfway up the rock on the large flat butte that helps give Bell Rock it’s shape. We also saw were people were climbing up to get to that butte so we also climbed up the rock. No small feat for my bad back and Cristy who is not a climber! Or should I say, wasn’t. She made it with the help of three sweet Mexican women who were visiting, a daughter, a mother, and a grandmother who were just sliding down on their butts where we were about to climb up. I climbed up first and positioned myself to pull Cristy up. When she couldn’t quite reach me the mother interlocked her fingers and made a step with her hands telling Cristy, “here, step in my hands! It’s fine you’re not that heavy!”

Cristy did step in her hands, I grabbed her hand and pulled her the rest of the way up. We scrambled up a few more not so hard climbs and finally got to the large flat area we had seen others on. The view was incredible…

We walked around the mesa for a bit and sat and took in the scenery for a while until the sun started getting low. The mosquitoes were about to come out and it was about to get cold. More importantly, we were getting hungry so we started to think about heading back. That’s when I saw it. Remember that parking lot north of Bell Rock, I could see it, fairly close to where we were. And leading to it, a nice, gradual trail; no climbing involved!

Well okay then.

We took that trail down to where it met up with the trail that led to the south parking lot and made our way back to the truck taking in the last of the views.

We then ate dinner at a nearby Thai restaurant that was only OK and then headed back to the trailer. If you’re ever in Sedona take some time to visit Bell Rock! I don’t believe in the energy vortex stuff but I do believe God made some beautiful scenery!

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Our main goal for Day 4 was to hike to one of the energy vortices that Sedona is known for. We decided to hike to Boynton Canyon as our first to visit. It is located far back on the north eastern side of Sedona. We chose this one as it was more off the beaten track and we hoped we wouldn’t have a parking problem. Also, and here is a pro-tip, we planned to get there around 4:30pm as this is when most of the tourists are leaving for the day. As expected parking was fairly easy and we started our hike.

The first part of the hike was fairly level and very picturesque. Most of the people we ran into were going the other way. About halfway down the trail it began going uphill but still not too bad. Even for someone with an injured back like me!

The closer we got toe the “vortex” the steeper the trail became. Being flatlanders we had to stop every so often to catch our breath but all things considered it wasn’t too bad of a climb. It was all worth it when we reached the top as the views were stunning!

I was very proud of Cristy as she normally doesn’t do this type of hiking. But her new hiking shoes really seemed to help her with her footing. She was actually doing better than me! As I alluded to earlier, back was injured so I had to take it easy.

After enjoying the views for a while we hiked back down before the sun got too low and the air got too chilly.

We could do this hike several more times and probably not see the same things twice. Give it a try next time you’re in Sedona.