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| Top L to R: Pink Jeep tour, Devil's Bridge Trail Bottom L to R: view from our Airbnb, Sesame seared ahi tuna salad at The Hudson |
Once upon a time, a few months before the 2019 Covid pandemic forced us to all stay home, a group of girlfriends moved about the country freely, dining, and exploring...
Each year my 3 girlfriends (Connie Y, Connie L, and Cherie) and I (Conny) get away for a weekend to relax, eat, and catch up. We've known each other since middle school and between the 4 of us we have 10 kids. We plan way in advance and our husbands hold down the fort while we mommies slip away for a much-needed kid-free weekend. Two of us have been pregnant or pumping for the past few years so we had been sticking to locations that are within driving distance. Not this time!! We spent an amazing and wonderful December weekend in Sedona, AZ. We're only a group of 4 but 3 of us have the same name. On our way to the airport my husband texted me, "Have fun at the Conny/ie convention!" The 3 Conny/ies flew in from San Francisco and our friend Cherie flew in from San Diego.
I was a bit nervous because I didn't know if my friends would enjoy the hike but I talked it up since it was recommended by my friend Ben (thanks Ben!). I had seen some amazing photos of the bridge but I didn't know what to expect as far as the actual hike itself. The trailhead was a 25 min drive from our Airbnb and we could take 1 of 3 routes to Devil's Bridge - we opted for the easy one which was 3.9 miles round trip.
We stopped at a few scenic points along the way. The sky was super clear and the views were breathtaking.
The round trip hike from the trailhead to Devil's Bridge and back took us 2 and 1/2 hours. Heading back seemed quicker and we noticed more people on the trail when we were on our way back. We finished the hike in time for a late lunch.
We had a really delicious dinner at Mariposa Latin Inspired Grill (700 West Highway 89A, Sedona, AZ 86336). We shared the following dishes family style:
After breakfast we headed into town for our excursion - Sedona's Broken Arrow Trail with Pink Jeep Tours ($126/person). A small group of 8 sat in a very pink open-air Jeep for an off-roading adventure with scenic views and plenty of photo ops thanks to our tour guide. Read reviews of Pink Jeep Tours on Tripadvisor.
After the jeep tour our next stop was Sedona's New Day Spa (3004 West Highway 89A, Sedona, AZ 86336) for massages and body treatments. The spa has a very small lounge area that pretty much only fit us. They have a hot tub and deck chairs outside, no showers, and only a changing room so we didn't stick around long after our treatments. Read reviews of Sedona's New Day Spa on Tripadvisor.
After the spa we headed back to our Airbnb to shower and get ready for dinner. It was our last night in Sedona and we were excited to dine at The Hudson (671 State Route 179 Suite D, Sedona, AZ 86336-6121) which was recommended by a few friends. Read reviews of The Hudson on Tripadvisor.
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| The Conny/ies take off from SFO |
Usually our trips are Friday-Sunday but we took off a day earlier since we were flying. Having 2 full days makes a huge difference so going forward we've decided our trips will be Thursday-Sunday. We all took short flights into Phoenix, AZ and drove an additional 2 hours from PHX Airport to reach Sedona. We grabbed a quick bite to eat at Biltmore Fashion Park before heading up 51N to Sedona. At Biltmore we parked in a paid lot - they have a ticketless solution that's pretty clever. We got a yellow plastic token upon entering the lot. Stores and restaurants validate by taking your yellow token and giving you back a blue one which you use to exit the parking lot. No ticket, no waste!
We noticed some beautiful scenery during our drive - look at the sea of cactus! Soon the terrain changed to the red rocks of Sedona and we pulled up a super steep driveway to the amazing Airbnb that Cherie found. Thanks, Cherie! Our Airbnb had 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a nice kitchen and family room, a roomy front porch, and incredible views. One bedroom had a king and the other bedroom had 2 queens. In all our years of group trips this was the first time we could each get our own bed! Almost... if you count the sofa bed. I'll get to that in a second.
We didn't want picking beds to be awkward so we put everyone's name into a cup. First we all had rank to the beds from best to... not so good. We all agreed that the two most desirable beds were the queens, followed by the king which had to be shared. We would draw names and people would get those beds in that order. The first name picked was... Connie L. Aurgh! I still had a 33% chance of getting my own bed! The second name picked was... Cherie. Wahhhh! Connie Y and I would have to share the king. BUT there was a sofa bed in a common area and Connie Y said she would take that which meant I could have the king ALL TO MYSELF!! I was squealing and jumping in excitement.
My happiness was short lived because (1) we couldn't find clean sheets anywhere in the house and (2) there were no curtains in the common room so Connie would be blinded by the rising morning sun. Back to sharing a king. In the end it was totally fine and a lot of fun bunking with Connie. We agreed that drawing names for beds would be the best practice for our future trips.
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Scenery on our drive along 51N toward Sedona |
We noticed some beautiful scenery during our drive - look at the sea of cactus! Soon the terrain changed to the red rocks of Sedona and we pulled up a super steep driveway to the amazing Airbnb that Cherie found. Thanks, Cherie! Our Airbnb had 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a nice kitchen and family room, a roomy front porch, and incredible views. One bedroom had a king and the other bedroom had 2 queens. In all our years of group trips this was the first time we could each get our own bed! Almost... if you count the sofa bed. I'll get to that in a second.
We didn't want picking beds to be awkward so we put everyone's name into a cup. First we all had rank to the beds from best to... not so good. We all agreed that the two most desirable beds were the queens, followed by the king which had to be shared. We would draw names and people would get those beds in that order. The first name picked was... Connie L. Aurgh! I still had a 33% chance of getting my own bed! The second name picked was... Cherie. Wahhhh! Connie Y and I would have to share the king. BUT there was a sofa bed in a common area and Connie Y said she would take that which meant I could have the king ALL TO MYSELF!! I was squealing and jumping in excitement.
My happiness was short lived because (1) we couldn't find clean sheets anywhere in the house and (2) there were no curtains in the common room so Connie would be blinded by the rising morning sun. Back to sharing a king. In the end it was totally fine and a lot of fun bunking with Connie. We agreed that drawing names for beds would be the best practice for our future trips.
We got settled into our rooms, unpacked, and headed to Whole Foods to pick up snacks and groceries to make each morning's breakfast.
As with most trips, I brought my 2 essentials:
Day 1: Devil's Bridge Trail and dinner at Mariposa
Not going to lie, I had a pretty packed weekend planned for us. Day 1 would start with an 8am morning hike of Devil's Bridge Trail, followed by a 5pm early dinner, and then stargazing at 7pm. The other ladies weren't exactly looking forward to an early morning start but it was the only way we could fit in all our activities in just 2 days! Fortunately (or not), stargazing was cancelled due to bad weather so we just took our time in the morning instead of hitting the hiking trail at 8am. Read reviews of Devil's Bridge Trail on Tripadvisor.
We hadn't seen each other in months so we spent the morning talking and making breakfast. Okay, Connie L and Connie Y made breakfast. We kind of broke up our responsibilities for the trip and it worked out well. Cherie researched and booked our Airbnb. She also drove for part of the trip. I researched and booked all our activites (hike, spa, stargazing, jeep tour) and restaurant reservations for the weekend. Connie L booked the rental car, drove for the other part of the trip, and she cooked breakfast. Connie Y cooked and navigated. We also kept track of all the expenses using a mobile app called Splitwise. They've got a great interface and it was super easy to enter expenses and pick with whom to split each expense. Splitwise has apps for both iPhone and Android.
Cherie is a pediatrician who's immersed herself in a new area of medicine called Lifestyle Medicine. We talked about her (mostly) plant-based diet and she introduced us to oat milk. She bought a half gallon of Oatly at Whole Foods and asked us to help drink it. My initial reaction was "ugh" but for breakfast Cherie made us oat milk matcha lattes which were really good! I tried the oat milk plain and also really liked it. It reminded me a lot of Vitasoy soy milk which I drank growing up. Since the trip I've tried Oatly, Trader Joe's oat beverage, and Califia Farms' Oat Barista blend and I think Oatly is the best. TJ's oat beverage tastes like the soupy water you'd get from a bowl of oatmeal. Womp womp.
We spent breakfast catching up about what was going on with our lives and about our kids. Between us we have 10 kids ranging in age from babies to teenagers. We talked about our latest trips, careers, financial planning, investing, retirement planning, and real estate.
- Stainless steel water bottle Google ahead of time if the tap water in your destination is safe to drink and if it is, bring your own bottle to fill it straight from the tap. I love these klean kanteen bottles - I bring mine on every trip. They come in a variety of colors and sizes so find one perfect for you! The tap water in Sedona didn't taste good so I filled my klean kanteen with water we bought at Whole Food so that I could bring my bottle out on day trips.
- Packing cubes Connie L gave us these Eagle Creek packing cubes as a Christmas gift one year and I've been using them for every trip. I use the roll method and I'm able to pack a ton of clothes into a small carry-on. I use the large cube for most of my clothes, the medium cube for toiletries, and the small cube for socks and underwear. No more hunting around for my stuff! I was able to pack 3 pairs of shoes, 4 outfits, PJs, toiletries, and undergarments for the weekend into a backpack with the help of these packing cubes. Check out some YouTube videos for expert packing tips.
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Look at that steep driveway of our Airbnb! |
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Our selfie from the driveway. From L to R: Cherie, Connie Y, Conny, Connie L |
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View from our Airbnb |
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An even better view from our Airbnb porch |
Not going to lie, I had a pretty packed weekend planned for us. Day 1 would start with an 8am morning hike of Devil's Bridge Trail, followed by a 5pm early dinner, and then stargazing at 7pm. The other ladies weren't exactly looking forward to an early morning start but it was the only way we could fit in all our activities in just 2 days! Fortunately (or not), stargazing was cancelled due to bad weather so we just took our time in the morning instead of hitting the hiking trail at 8am. Read reviews of Devil's Bridge Trail on Tripadvisor.
We hadn't seen each other in months so we spent the morning talking and making breakfast. Okay, Connie L and Connie Y made breakfast. We kind of broke up our responsibilities for the trip and it worked out well. Cherie researched and booked our Airbnb. She also drove for part of the trip. I researched and booked all our activites (hike, spa, stargazing, jeep tour) and restaurant reservations for the weekend. Connie L booked the rental car, drove for the other part of the trip, and she cooked breakfast. Connie Y cooked and navigated. We also kept track of all the expenses using a mobile app called Splitwise. They've got a great interface and it was super easy to enter expenses and pick with whom to split each expense. Splitwise has apps for both iPhone and Android.
Cherie is a pediatrician who's immersed herself in a new area of medicine called Lifestyle Medicine. We talked about her (mostly) plant-based diet and she introduced us to oat milk. She bought a half gallon of Oatly at Whole Foods and asked us to help drink it. My initial reaction was "ugh" but for breakfast Cherie made us oat milk matcha lattes which were really good! I tried the oat milk plain and also really liked it. It reminded me a lot of Vitasoy soy milk which I drank growing up. Since the trip I've tried Oatly, Trader Joe's oat beverage, and Califia Farms' Oat Barista blend and I think Oatly is the best. TJ's oat beverage tastes like the soupy water you'd get from a bowl of oatmeal. Womp womp.
We spent breakfast catching up about what was going on with our lives and about our kids. Between us we have 10 kids ranging in age from babies to teenagers. We talked about our latest trips, careers, financial planning, investing, retirement planning, and real estate.
We also love sharing recommendations about the latest products we're using. Cherie recommended amika Blockade Heat Defense, a hair protecting serum that you apply before using heat styling tools like a hair dryer or flat iron. Those of us who recently had babies need a little help re-growing our hair so she also recommended the ReTress Hair Rejuvenation Kit. I tried it for a few months but didn't really notice a difference. Instead, I took Youtheory Collagen Advanced Formula Tablets - I don't even take the full dosage but I think I've noticed a slight improvement in hair regrowth and skin elasticity. Speaking of which... my skin changed after I had my second kid and I noticed a lot of clogged pores on my face. I've tried a few treatments including Tatcha skincare (The Rice Polish: Deep made my face feel squeaky clean and soft) but it didn't tackle the main problem of enlarged and clogged pores. I had the most luck with products from Paula's Choice, especially the 25% AHA + 2% BHA Exfoliant Peel and Advanced Pore-Refining Treatment 4% BHA. I swear I noticed a difference in just a few days - fewer bumps, smaller, and decongested pores. I did experience flakey/dry skin though so i just moisturize a bit more than usual to manage the situation. Overall I'm very pleased with the results so far! Okay, getting back to recommendations from friends...
Connie L recommended her Hoson 1 Inch Curling Iron which she got on Amazon. Since it was a leisurely morning I actually tried both the hair protecting serum and curling iron before our hike. I didn't use a holding spray and I wore a hat on our hike but my hair actually held up really well! You'll see in the pictures coming up.
We got dressed, packed some snacks, filled our water bottles, and got ready to go to the Devil's Bridge trailhead. The hike would be mostly flat so I decided to wear my Allbirds Tree Runners. The girls asked me how I liked my shoes.
- Pros: very comfortable for wide feet, soft enough you can go sock free, nice arch support, machine washable, environmentally friendly
- Cons: over time my big toe nail will wear a hole through the top of the toe box, not super attractive
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Healthy breakfast and a beautiful view |
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Routes posted at the trailhead |
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Start of the trail to Devil's Bridge |
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Easy to miss sign to Devil's Bridge |
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Our before hiking photo :) |
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Cold enough for jackets |
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These are roads for ATV |
We walked on wide roads meant for ATVs - we were passed by several trucks on our way to the on-foot hiking path. It got pretty dusty sometimes and even though it was cool enough to wear jackets it was also very sunny. These roads were pretty flat and most of the hike was easy until near the end where there was increased elevation and rock steps. The white soles of my Allbirds picked up a lot of the red dirt along the trail - I guess I have a little souvenir of the hike. A little bit of trivia - the red color comes from rocks being exposed to the elements causing iron particles to oxidize, or rust.
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Start of the on-foot hiking path |
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Lots of cactus along the trail |
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Hiking trails of red dirt |
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A little elevation |
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Nice natural stairs |
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First group photo op |
We stopped at a few scenic points along the way. The sky was super clear and the views were breathtaking.
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Great view point |
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| Another group photo before the final climb |
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| Final set of rock stairs before Devil's Bridge |
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| Bend right before the bridge |
Soon Devil’s Bridge came into view. We stood back to take it in. It almost looked unsafe to cross - my hands are sweating just thinking and writing about it. Everyone had to wait their turn to get onto the bridge for photos. There were a few groups of hikers on the other side of the bridge standing in line. Unless you have a drone you have to exchange phones with someone also waiting in line. Thank you kind stranger for taking our photo!
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| View right before walking onto the bridge |
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| It's really quite narrow right in the middle |
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| Devil's Bridge |
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| Safety in numbers on Devil's Bridge |
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| Wide angle shot of us on Devil's Bridge |
The round trip hike from the trailhead to Devil's Bridge and back took us 2 and 1/2 hours. Heading back seemed quicker and we noticed more people on the trail when we were on our way back. We finished the hike in time for a late lunch.
For years we joked that when we reached a certain age we would shop at Chico's and get Asian mom perms. We're not ready for perms yet but there was a Chico's near our lunch spot. It was a sign, guys! We decided that we each had to buy something from Chico's so we spent a good hour browsing and trying things on. We all crammed into one giant changing room and were instantly transported back to our high school days modeling and critiquing outfits. We tried on a lot of things including some of the same tops (did I mention that all 3 of us Connie/ys had the same Gap hoodie back in the day?) but ultimately we each got something different that we really liked!
We had dinner reservations later that night and decided to wear our new tops out to dinner.
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| Finally taking the plunge at Chico's |
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| Successful shopping excursion at Chico's |
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| Heading to dinner in our Chico's tops |
We had a really delicious dinner at Mariposa Latin Inspired Grill (700 West Highway 89A, Sedona, AZ 86336). We shared the following dishes family style:
- Leek soup $10
- Grilled Jumbo Tiger Shrimp $16
- Empanadas - Corn, Peppers & Queso with Pineapple Criolla $11
- Pulpo Parrilla - Grilled Spanish Octopus, Smoky Garbanzo Purée, Fire-roasted Artichoke, Fennel Slaw $20
- Hokkaido Sea Scallops Seared in Aji Amarillo Butter & White Wine $16
- Mom’s favorite Au Gratin - potatoes layered with white cheddar $13
- Charred Organic Cauliflower, Chimichurri $7
- Chef's Favorite Roasted Mushrooms Medley, Herb Butter Compound $11
- Pescado Paradiso - Chef’s Fish of the Day with Campari Fire-Roasted Tomatoes, Charred Corn, White Wine and Herb Butter, Frijoles Negros and Quinoa Pilaf $36
- Tarta de manzana - Almond Frangipane Filling Topped with Organic Gala Apples and a Oatmeal Brown Sugar Streusel and Salted Caramel Gelato $12
All the dishes were very flavorful but they were a bit heavy with butter or oil. Luckily the portions were just right so we were able to enjoy a bit of everything. We couldn't finish the mushrooms so we decided to take them home - the leftovers would be delicious in our scrambled eggs the next morning! Read reviews of Mariposa Latin Inspired Grill on Tripadvisor.
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Leek soup $10 |
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Grilled Spanish Octopus, Smoky Garbanzo Purée, Fire-roasted Artichoke, Fennel Slaw $20 |
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Empanadas - Corn, Peppers & Queso with Pineapple Criolla $11 |
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Pescado Paradiso $36 |
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Hokkaido Sea Scallops Seared in Aji Amarillo Butter & White Wine $16 |
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Chef's Favorite Roasted Mushrooms Medley $11 |
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Charred Organic Cauliflower $7 |
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Grilled Jumbo Tiger Shrimp $16 |
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Mom’s favorite Au Gratin - potatoes layered with white cheddar $13 |
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Almond Frangipane Filling Topped with Organic Gala Apples and a Oatmeal Brown Sugar Streusel and Salted Caramel Gelato $12 |
After dinner we headed back to our Airbnb to change into our loungewear, enjoy some ice cream, and watch romantic Christmas movies. Cherie and I bonded over our love of Hallmark-style Christmas movies and we managed to get the other girls to sit through Netflix's A Christmas Prince. It wasn't very good but if you're in the mood for some good cheesy Christmas movies, I recommend:
- Snowed Inn Christmas (Lifetime 2017) - Andrew Walker and Bethany Joy Lenz are rival writers at a magazine who get snowed in... at an inn. Get it? They have such amazing chemistry!!
- The Princess Switch (Netflix 2018) - Vanessa Hudgens plays an American and a vaguely European princess who switch places. She has a surprisingly good British accent!
- Operation Christmas Drop (Netflix 2020) - Christmas set in a US Air Force base in Guam
- A Wish for Christmas (Hallmark 2016) - Lacey Chabert grows a pair and stands up for herself at work.
- Bottled with Love (Hallmark 2019) - This isn't a Christmas movie but I just love the two leads Andrew Walker and Bethany Joy Lenz. Cute "You've Got Mail" type of story.
The next night we slogged through Netflix's Marriage Story - it was intense and also dragged. None of us liked the movie but I LOVED Laura Dern's boss performance. The lady won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress a few months later!
Day 2: Broken Arrow Pink Jeep Tour, Sedona's New Day Spa, dinner at The Hudson
Our second day started with another leisurely breakfast at home. Scrambled eggs with mushrooms (from Mariposa Grill), avocado toast, muesli, and oatmilk matcha lattes.
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| Breakfast with a view |
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| Making breakfast |
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| Breakfast before our excursion |
After breakfast we headed into town for our excursion - Sedona's Broken Arrow Trail with Pink Jeep Tours ($126/person). A small group of 8 sat in a very pink open-air Jeep for an off-roading adventure with scenic views and plenty of photo ops thanks to our tour guide. Read reviews of Pink Jeep Tours on Tripadvisor.
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| Get ready for a bumpy (and cold) ride |
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| Lots of red rocks |
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| Twisted tree trunks attributed to vortex energy in the area |
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| Getting ready to climb a super steep hill |
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| Standing in between a fault line on Submarine Rock |
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| You can see how much movement there's been between the fault line over the years |
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| Fault line with some plant growth. Nature finds a way. |
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| View from Submarine Rock |
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| Close up of the fault line on Submarine Rock |
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| Lots of prickly pear cactus in the area |
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| Our tour guide pointed out the White Line, a bike trail along the edge of this cliff face. Yep, people ride bikes there. |
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| View from Chicken Point Overlook |
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| Group selfie at Chicken Point |
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| Chicken Point panorama |
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| We had to take a picture with the pink jeep |
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| Steep part on High on the Hog Trail |
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| Hanging on during a super steep descent on The Road of No Return |
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| I think we took 15 takes before we got a good jumping photo. It was our tour guide's idea! |
The tour finished at the Pink Jeep Tour offices which is in an area filled with shops. We walked around looking for souvenirs to bring home. My husband and I agreed long ago that the only things we bring back from trips are things we can eat so I stopped by The Sedona Fudge Company to drool over their large selection of chocolate creations. I ended up picking up fudge, chocolate covered nuts, and chocolate covered honeycomb. My husband and kids loved everything. Read reviews of The Sedona Fudge Company on Tripadvisor.
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| Sedona Fudge Company has tons of options |
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| Caramel covered apples |
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| Browse a large selection of fudge and chocolate |
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| It's hard to pick even a few things |
We each enjoyed different treatments:
- Ultra Moisturizing Wrap Body Treatment 75 min - $165
- Prickly Pear Pomegranate Body Treatment 90 min - $190
- Sweat Lodge Spa Ritual 90 min - $195
- Swedish massage 60 min - $125
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| Modest entrance to Sedona's New Day Spa |
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| We were treated to snacks and our choice of cake at the spa |
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| A quick cheers before we went in for our individual treatments |
After the spa we headed back to our Airbnb to shower and get ready for dinner. It was our last night in Sedona and we were excited to dine at The Hudson (671 State Route 179 Suite D, Sedona, AZ 86336-6121) which was recommended by a few friends. Read reviews of The Hudson on Tripadvisor.
We again ordered a bunch of things to share family style.
- Chef Jeff's Famous Corn Chowder - with fire roasted peppers $7
- Chapos baja shrimp ceviche - tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, onion, avocado, cilantro, garlic, chalupa, tortilla chips $17
- Bruschetta 3 types (3 for $15):
- House-smoked salmon: pesto cream cheese, caper, red onion
- Warm artichoke spread: artichoke, roasted garlic, romano cheese
- Funghi: mushroom, roasted garlic, ricotta cheese, thyme, chive
- Steamed clams - matchstick potatoes, fennel leek broth, garlic bread $18
- Sesame seared rare ahi tuna salad - mixed greens, napa cabbage, rice noodles, snow peas, carrots, bean sprouts, red peppers, crispy wontons, soy ginger dressing $21
- Crispy chicken sandwich - crispy buttermilk fried chicken, baby Swiss tomato, honey mustard slaw, brioche bun $16
- Salmon - brown sugar fennel butter, exotic rice blend, seasonal vegetables $30
Prickly pear mocktails
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| Chef Jeff's famous corn chowder $7 |
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| Chapos baja shrimp ceviche $17 |
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| Steamed claims $18 |
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| Bruschetta 3 for $15 |
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| Sesame seared rare ahi tuna salad $21 |
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| Salmon special |
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| Crispy chicken sandwich $18 |
We had been talking about trying prickly pear and The Hudson served a cocktail called The AZ Mule which had tequila, prickly pear, ginger beer, and lime - we got it without tequila since none of us drink. I don't care for ginger beer so I asked them to make me a drink with prickly pear and other fruit juices. It was yummy! I thought the food was only okay. Everything looked better than it tasted. We were so full that we didn't have room for dessert though the chocolate peanut butter pie sounded good!
We spent our last night in watching Netflix, chatting, and chilling. It was such a fun weekend that we immediately began planning our next trip. We decided to go to Orcas Island in Washington state. We secured a weekend and even booked an Airbnb during their peak season (accommodations go quickly between May-October). Unfortunately, the Covid pandemic hit and we were forced to cancel our trip. We'll have to wait 2 years before we can travel together again!
If you enjoyed reading this travel blog, please check out my other trip posts:
Happy traveling and thanks for reading!