Vegas to Sedona

On Day 4 of our Great Western Ramble, we woke up in Vegas, and since one of the best things about this town is its food (in my opinion), we decided that our one eat out meal of the day would be breakfast. Walking through the casino, everything seemed very subdued compared to the night before. I suspect we were the only people in the entire town who weren’t hung over. But subdued is good. This introvert likes subdued.

We went to the Lux Café, and the breakfasts were so huge we had enough to box up for lunch, too. I have to say, they sure know how to make hash browns. Just the right amount of crunch. I was in fried food heaven. In truth, we made very healthy choices for the most part on this trip. But this was Vegas. You’re supposed to walk on the wild side there. So we got our hash brown on, and I have no regrets. I’m such a rebel.

After that we packed up and headed out. Just outside of Vegas is Lake Mead, and of course Hoover Dam. But somehow we missed the turn off for the dam. (Damn.) But we knew we were coming back through this area in a few days, so we figured we’d catch it then.

We left Nevada and drove through the tiny town of Twin Arrows, Arizona, which is right next door (relatively speaking) to Two Guns, Arizona, both on Route 66. I thought that there had to be a story there. In fact, there is. But it’s enough of a story to rate a post of its own, so watch this space.

We also took a side trip to Meteor Crater. I’ve been to this impressive hole in the ground before, and knew my husband would be fascinated by it. He was. (I love being married to a fellow nerd. It’s the best.) Meteor Crater, too, merits its own blog post, so bear with me. There’s just so much to say about this trip!

From there we headed to our final destination of the evening: Sedona, Arizona. We decided to take the scenic route through Oak Creek Canyon to get there. Between that canyon and Sedona itself, something really serious happened to me.

I fell in love with the most gorgeous place I’ve ever seen in this entire country. The switchbacks, the lush greenery interspersed with the red and white striped cliffs and rock formations left me speechless. I mean, my heart hurt from all the beauty.

Sedona is now my heart place. I’d love to retire there, but suspect it will be just out of reach. But I guarantee you that I’ll be going back. Many times. I just felt like I was home.

We checked into our wonderful condo, and headed out to Whole Foods to pick up something easy for dinner. We were going around a corner, and as if it was the most natural thing in the world, this javelina trotted casually across the road. In the crosswalk! How polite. Javelinas can be really aggressive, but you could practically hear this one humming to itself. “Dooo do dooo… I’m walkin’ here…” It was amazing. Sorry, I was too stunned to even think about a photograph.

It was also hot. My husband loves hot. After 40 years in Florida, I’m kind of over it. Okay, so maybe I’d need two retirement homes. Sedona from October to May, and elsewhere from June to September. A girl can dream.

We enjoyed our dinner, and then I went to another beautiful place. The condo had a double wide bathtub. I was in heaven, within heaven. I floated in the cool water, again feeling guilty for wasting water in a desert, but I also remember thinking that there is no place on earth I’d rather be, and no one on earth I’d rather be sharing it with.

Life is good. Enjoy our photos from the day!

There are a lot more tales to tell about this trip, but I’ll try not to post them daily, so as not to put off those who aren’t interested in travel blogs. So brace yourself for a good month of every other day adventures! I’ll try to link them together, so that you can start at the beginning if you find yourself in the middle and want to read the whole saga. Here’s a link to the first post in the series. And here’s a link to the next day’s adventure!

The ultimate form of recycling: Buy my book, read it, and then donate it to your local public library or your neighborhood little free library! http://amzn.to/2mlPVh5