#BestDayEver

There is a magical place called Marco Island, in Southwest Florida, found just off the coast from Naples. The minute that one drives over the Causeway onto the island you feel all your troubles melt away.  The heat and humidity help that, but the beautiful blue and green waters, palm trees and various birds help to move you in the right direction.

I’ve been to Marco several times, but this time I finally parked myself down long enough to truly explore the island.  Although people thought me nuts to come in June (bugs, humidity and heat), I found a quiet place with few people.  By alternating my beach going until the early evening, I was able to stay out longer, snorkel and swim with the fish.

One of the days during my visit saw me on a boat trip with the Florida Adventure and Rentals (http://www.floridaadventuresandrentals.com) Company.  Our tour guide Marco was about to give us a day that we will never forget.  The we being my son and my niece who was making her maiden voyage to Florida.  Marco explained that we would be taking a two-hour tour and we were on our way.

The minute the boat took off out of the harbor, the water became crystal clear, the birds began to circle and the fun began with two manatees who were just as curious about us as we were about them. We stopped the boat and let nature take it’s course.  A giant manatee (Who knew how much they resembled potatoes?) came up to the boat, stuck his head out and wished us a good day.  He stayed for a bit and then decided we weren’t delicious enough looking and went about his day.  The manatees circled the boat a few more times and then it was time to leave. Our guide was very informative the whole day about each and every species that we encountered.  While telling us about the manatees, he shared that they are actually very amorous beings and that one would probably not want to swim with them. 

Our next stop on the tour was the remains of the Dome Houses on Cape Romano.  These Pac-Man looking structures were beyond wild.  The story is very detailed in this link:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Romano_Dome_House.  It’s very interesting and a definite read.  Basically it was a house that was once in one piece but was destroyed during a hurricane.  Beyond that I don't do the story justice, so again, please read the link.  It was so cool to be so up close to them.  They definitely gave off a kind of out of this world energy.

On to find some dolphins….  As we sped our way further south, we were greeted with various birds of all types – heron, egrets, pelicans and more…..  So much fun.  We saw nesting grounds, flying birds, etc.  The place was “littered” with them.  Our tour guide was not going to quit until he was able to get some dolphins “surfing” behind the boat.  What happened next was nothing short of a miracle!  The dolphins literally started to surf behind the boat wake.  They would circle, move in and then flip in the air.  It was one of the most joyous things I have ever seen in my life.  Alas, I would have loved to have shared a video of this with you but a technical glitch prevented that.  Trust me when I say it was one of the coolest things ever.  You will just have to take a tour with Florida Adventures to experience it for yourself.

When the day was done, I remarked to our tour guide that it quite literally had been one of the best days of my life.  I joked about #bestdayever!  Low and behold, the next morning, my niece pointed out that in the condo we were staying at, there was a pillow on the chair that said exactly that “BEST DAY EVER”.

All the elements of this special day still give me goose bumps when I think about it.  The combination of family, stellar tour guiding, great weather, dolphins, manatees and more made for a day that I will never, ever forget.  I remarked to my niece when we got back to shore that if there ever there was a day that was arranged by our angels and spirit guides, that this was truly one of those days.

Until My Next Adventure,

Trish Walker

www.trishwalker.us

Finding Myself Through My Travels!

It's been a few weeks since I have made a blog post.  I was away for an extended road trip and was processing a lot of my stuff while in the car.  What do I mean by this?  I was doing a life examination and seeing where I could make some changes and what needed to go.  I'm back home and ready to rock it.  I had some huge Aha moments and some that threw me for a loop.  I highly recommend this process to anyone who feels stuck. It's a great way to get away and work on some of your "stuff". It's hard to go there, but if you want different results in your life, it's the way to do it.  I realized that you can't sit around and wait for others to change, you have to change your response to things.

Back in my "happy place" - Santa Barbara, Ca., June 2016

I'm a fan of Doreen Virtue (Google her if you aren't familiar, she's amazing!) on both Facebook and Instagram.  Doreen has some great posts just about everyday that always seem to hit me right in the head.  Today's was, "Stay out of the drama, even if for just one day!".  Wow, that's great.  I went out for a bike ride and decided to do it.  Guess what, it was amazing how many ways people tried to bring it to my handlebars.  I'll give you one example.  I had a beautiful monarch butterfly land on the front of my bike. They were all around.  I stopped to enjoy them.  A gentleman was walking by me.  I told him about the butterflies and hoped he would enjoy seeing them as well.  He looked at me and uttered, "Yeah, well this place is also filled with snakes!".  I looked at him and said, "I'm going to focus on the positive!".  That felt really good!  Butterflies vs. snakes, what will you choose?

I'm feeling really good about the future because I realized this past week that you shouldn't even go to the non-existent future.  Take one step at a time.  I was feeling overwhelmed because my book is going to be coming out here very soon.  Why was I not excited?  I was feeling overwhelmed because there is still a lot of steps between here and there.  This is when I realized to stop looking at the future, and to take it in small bites.  Case in point, make a list every day of three things (yes, just three things) to do.  I will let you know that when you feel so good about just getting those three things done, your list will grow and you will have the energy and spirit to finish it.

After driving nearly 2,500 miles, the Aha list was very long.  With my new thinking, I'm going to take that list one at a time.  As long as I do this, I will keep moving forward and my future will sort itself out.  There is a reason I am in the situation I am in right now. It's preparing me for my best self.  If I don't stop long enough and learn the lessons that are being thrown at me right now, how will I ever move forward in a positive manner. As someone wise told me last night, "Different forest, same trees!".  Basically, if I refuse to figure my "stuff" out now, history will just repeat itself.  Take that nugget and go out there and get at it!!

Dinner View at Duke's Malibu!

“You've got to find yourself first. Everything else'll follow.”  ― Charles de Lint, Dreams Underfoot

Until My Next Adventure,

P.A. Walker

Are you ready to say yes to your soul by shifting your perspective to create something extraordinary? I invite you to contact me via email at pwalker2650@gmail.com to schedule a complimentary intuitive coaching session to discuss how to make your second half of life better than your first.

Please also follow me on my Facebook Page: The Second Half or via Twitter (Patricia A. Walker@50foraYear).

A Journey Completed!

So here it is, the last post for my 50 for a Year mission.  I'm so blessed and amazed that I was able to accomplish all that I was able to accomplish.  I haven't posted in a while because I just didn't know how to come up with the right words to express my past year.  When the time came to do my last "50", it all worked out so organically and flowed so nicely that I couldn't even fathom it. Let me explain. When I thought about what to do for my last 50.4.50, I somehow imagined something big (perhaps a trip or night out) with some of my closest lady friends.  However, timing and school breaks had other plans for me.  That weekend found me heading to Las Vegas and on to Southern California for my son's fall break from school.  After a bit of pondering, I realized that since he had been on my first adventure, it was only fitting that he go on my last adventure! #50.

Last year I had been too afraid to go on the world's largest ferris wheel in Las Vegas, NV.  This year, I decided, what the heck?  What a great way to end this grand adventure of mine.  If you have never been to this Ferris Wheel, it's a pretty big deal.  The top of the Ferris Wheel is 550 feet up in the air, making it the largest ferris wheel in the world.  The views are amazing from start to finish.  Once you board your "pod", you continue moving for the full rotation of the ferris wheel.  It moves so slow that there is plenty of time to ooh and ahh over the Las Vegas Strip, the sunset, the mountains and the desert beyond.  We were able to see the sunset and even the dark skies of night.  All in all, it takes about 30 minutes for your ride to be complete.

It was very fitting that this last event for me on my 50 list was stopping at 550 feet up in the air. My chill glass of champagne was very celebratory to mark this auspicious occasion.  This year has been a year of fun, new things marked off my bucket list and many aha moments that have propelled me into a new way of life.

How does it feel to have completed what I set out to do?  I can't even begin to describe how this all feels.  This is huge for me.  I am the queen of start something and then not finish it before I start something new.   It felt very empowering and made me excited to usher in a new decade.  The feeling I had while I was 550 feet up in the air was one of complete jubilation.  I did it!  I really did it!

I thank you, the reader, for coming along on this epic adventure with me.  I'm not done with my adventures just yet.  This 50 list has inspired me to continue on with new ideas, trips, and better ways to operate my life.  Stay tuned for more.

“Because everyone has a natural yearning for completion, we are able to change and recreate ourselves endlessly.” ― Ilchi Lee, The Call of Sedona: Journey of the Heart

Until My Next Adventure,

P.A. Walker

From the Space Needle to the Gum Wall - An Adventurous Day in Seattle

We woke up to a warm and sunny Seattle day.  That kind of sounds fake, doesn't it?  Warm and sunny in Seattle, you betcha!  We mapped out our itinerary for the day, grabbed some breakfast and walked from our hotel to the check-in kiosk at the Space Needle.  I highly recommend buying tickets on-line for the Space Needle, as the lines can get long especially in the summer.  Buying on-line allows you to bypass the ticket line and head right inside to show your bar code and ride the elevator all the way to the top of the 605 foot structure.  After growing up in New Jersey and spending a lot of time riding to the top of both the Empire State Building and the World Trade Center, the ride to the top of the Space Needle didn't seem all that long or impressive.  However, when we stepped out of the elevator, the views were amazing.  All around you, you can see water and snow-capped mountains.  It wasn't particularly clear enough to see through the cloud layer and get a good view of Mt. Rainier.  I had been to the Space Needle when I was about 18, but guess I never realized just how impressive Mt. Rainier is.  I decided to do a little research and saw that this massive 14,000+ foot volcano is actually termed a dangerous super-volcano. Now doesn't that just make you feel comfortable?  I guess the millions of Seattle/Tacoma residents just put that right out of their minds.  To me, the beauty and recreational opportunities of living here far outweigh the risk of the volcano.

After the Space Needle, I was able to accomplish another first (hang on as there were several on this particular day) - heading into the Chihuly Glass Gardens.  Spectacular was the first word to pop into my mind when I saw this amazing collection of glass works by Dale Chihuly.  After spending a bit of time reading about this artist, I came to realize that I have seen his work featured in both Salt Lake City and the ceiling inside the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas.  Words cannot describe the beauty of this artist's work.

The second "first" for the day was heading down to Pike Place Market and into the Le Panier French Bakery.  Wow, the food in here was delicious.  I spent several years living in Belgium, so was able to be blessed to go to Paris quite a bit.  The bakery was like stepping back in time to my years over there.  The bread and macaroons were beyond divine.  We had grabbed some cheese from the next door cheese factory Beecher's (www.beechershandmadecheese.com ) and combined with the bread and macaroons, a day spent in heaven was what we experienced.  When I travel outside of Utah, I am always amazed at how much better the food is for some reason. Is this due to scenery, better chefs, I am just not sure.  All I know is I was able to enjoy the best food I have had in a very long time.

No trip to Seattle would be complete without checking out the Gum Wall near the Pike Place Market.  According to Wikipedia, The Market Theater Gum Wall is a local landmark in downtown Seattle, in Post Alley under Pike Place Market.  Similar to Bubblegum Alley in San Luis Obispo, California, the Market Theater Gum Wall is a brick alleyway wall now covered in used chewing gum. Parts of the wall are covered several inches thick, 15 feet high for 50 feet.

As our day came to an end, visions of a delicious dinner swam in my thoughts.  Alas, we will save that for the next post!

Until My Next Adventure,

P.A. Walker

Off to the Beautiful Emerald City I Go!

Off to the beautiful city of Seattle I go!  After spending five days in Oregon with family to celebrate my nephew's graduation, the road took us on our way to the beautiful city of Seattle.  After we left our rental cabin in Oregon, we took the scenic route down through Hood River, OR.  Hood River is an amazing place right on the banks of the Columbia River.  As we winded our way through town, we came upon another idea for a first!  Paddle boarding in the mighty Columbia River.  No easy feat as you watch the wind whipping down around the water.  Hood River is a mecca for people to come windsurfing and kiteboarding.  Folks travel from all over the world to sport here.  The beauty is jaw dropping and the water looks inviting but can be crazy dangerous with the currents and winds.  We chose a mellow spot that appeared to be kind of it's own little quiet enclave. After getting in our swim suits, we headed into the rental shop to get our paddle boards.  This particular concession is right by the marina. The staff was really helpful and the equipment was perfect for our first foray into the river.  As we dropped in at the mouth of the marina, it became very apparent that this not your quiet tidal pool.  Waves slapped at our boards as we struggled to navigate our way through the waters.  After paddling for just a bit, the fun turned into taking the boards to surf the waves onto the shore.  A good time was had by all, a good work-out and time to jump into the car.  Our route took us over the bridge into White Salmon, WA and on down WA-14 towards I-5.

As the driver, I was the only one who did not get to partake in the heavy napping that was going on inside the car.  Their loss as I got to see some incredible scenery along the banks of the river.  It's about an hour drive to I-5 when you come into Vancouver, WA.  We decided to stop and eat at one of my favorite places for lunch.  Beaches Cafe (www.beachesrestaurantandbar.com) is a great spot where you can sit and look out into the river, enjoy the sunshine and some great food all at the same time.  They are very kid-friendly and brought my son the usual placemat to color on, but it was the trip to the treasure chest to retrieve a toy that usually brings the smile to his face. The menu varies from burgers, shrimp and all the way down the line to the wonderful beef teriyaki bowl that I decided to order.  We had to, of course, finish up our meal with the delicious key lime pie that they have on their menu.

Back in the car we go and on the I-5 Northbound for about another two and a half hours.  As we rounded the final bend into Seatlle, I was met with the lovely skyline that let us know our destination was near.  It was a long day but filled with adventure.  Knowing that I had another first on my list made me realize how blessed I was to be living this adventure.  The excitement of paddle boarding was amazing and ending the night by having a great dinner at one of Seattle's cool restaurants Rock Bottom (http://www.rockbottom.com/locations/seattle) was the perfect end to a perfect day.  Stay tuned for my next installment where I give you the reader, a tour into some cool Seattle tourist spots!

Until My Next Adventure,

P.A. Walker

The Ultimate Road Trip (Part One)

It's been a while since I have blogged.  The reason is I just pulled back into the driveway from driving 2,600 miles throughout the Pacific Northwest.  What an incredible journey.  There is lots to tell so I will whittle the story down to several posts. The reason for this long journey began with the announcement of my nephew Dan's high school graduation near the majestic peak of Mt. Hood, Oregon.  Dan is one of those kids that has remained his solid sweet self since he was born.  You really never knew that he hit teenage hood in the usual sense.  He remained upbeat, happy and just truly embraces each day with vim and vigor.  When I got his invitation, it made me sit back and realize just how fast life goes by.  Here was the cute baby that I used to visit who now had become a man and was going out into the world after reaching the 12th grade mark.  It was only fitting that I be there to join in the celebration.

After leaving Park City, our first stop of the night was in Boise, ID.  Boise is one of those cool towns that most people probably have not explored but should definitely plan on doing one day.  On this particular journey, we simply pulled into a hotel and spent the night.  The real fun started the next morning when we hit I-84.  All the way from home until the Oregon border, you can really crank it.  The speed limit is 80 MPH.  The minute you hit the Oregon border, you have to drop to 65.  Seriously, how can you make any time at that speed?  I pondered why this might be, but if you have ever driven this stretch of road, I truly think it is so beautiful that they want you to slow down and enjoy the sights.

My first "first" of this trip was stopping in Pendleton, Oregon for lunch at an amazing place called the Prodigal Son (http://prodigalsonbrewery.com).  I had the most amazing salad ever: fresh goat cheese, toasted hazelnuts, sliced apples and mixed greens with homemade cider vinaigrette.  I also splurged on splitting an amazing cheese burger with one of my road trip buddies.  This was by far one of the tastiest cheese burgers I have ever consumed in my life.  Every bite was a tasty morsel.

Pendleton is the ultimate western town.  When you first pull into the downtown area, you are taken back to some old western film.  There is even a giant cowboy boot on the sidewalk to advertise a very cool little store that sells all kinds of signs and house items.  It's definitely worth a walk through.  The name escapes me but it was right next door to the Prodigal Son.

As we winded our way up to the destination for the night, we spent many miles driving along the banks of the mighty Columbia River.  What a beautiful sight.  Since we do not have much water in Utah, it is always a treat for me to be around such big bodies of water.  I just soak in the moisture.  As we rounded the bend on I-84 into the Hood River, Oregon area, we were greeted with our first glimpse of Mt. Hood.  I have been visiting Mt. Hood for over twenty years since I have family there.  Everytime I spot it for the first time on a trip, it never ceases to amaze me.  Just look at the beauty and grandeur of this volcano.

Stay tuned for the next installment in this awesome adventure through the Pacific Northwest!

As Always,

P.A. Walker

An Adventure That Went South (West)!

Mountain biking on Antelope Island, Utah.  That sounded like a good item to check off my 50 for 50 list.  I had been to Antelope Island before but never mountain biked there.  Sounds fun, right? Let me give a little history on Antelope Island.  The island has an area of 42 square miles.  It is the largest of 10 islands that lie within the Great Salt Lake.  Antelope Island has natural scenic beauty and holds populations of pronghorn, bighorn sheep, American bison, porcupine, badger, coyote, bobcat, and millions of waterfowl. The bison were introduced to the island in 1893, and Antelope Island Bison Herd has proven to be a valuable genetic pool for bison breeding and conservation purposes. The bison do well because much of the island is covered by dry, native grassland. [Excerpt taken from Wikipedia.  Lots more history there is you desire a deeper understanding.]

Bikes on car, helmets and water packed.  Let's go.  It's about an hour and half ride from Park City.  Before I knew it, we were there and ready for some adventure.  I suggested that we stop at the Visitor's Center which is one of the first stops when you get off the Causeway onto the Island.  The center is a cement building perched on top of one of the highest points on the island.  As I exited the car, I realized that there were swarms of gnats.  Little tiny, annoying bugs that fly right into your ears and nose.  Okay, this should be interesting.  Perhaps the plan might have to be modified.

Pushing forward onto the island, we decided that Buffalo Point would be a great trail to do.  It's about a mile round trip and is overlooking the Great Salt Lake.  I suggested we hike in a bit to see what the terrain looked like since I had my son with me.  He is a great mountain biker on flat trails, but this one looked a little challenging.

Once we exited the car, it became very apparent that the gnat issue was not going to get better.  Undaunted, I suggested that we abandon the bikes, but still hike to the topmost section of the  hill.  Bad idea!  Anytime we stopped, we were absolutely swarmed.  If ever a person were to go completely insane, it might be in this instance.  They were everywhere, moving with us as we ran faster and faster back towards the car.  My son was screaming, I was screaming….

After finally getting back to the car, and getting whatever gnats were inside the car out, my kid declared that he never, ever wanted to come back to this island again.  Can't say as I blame him.

As we started driving again, I realized we still had not seen any bison or antelope.  One cannot come to the island and not see one of these animals.  When I promised to not stop the car at all, my son agreed to continue down the road to see what wildlife we could see.  We were rewarded with a herd of bison lounging on the beach and antelope prancing through the tall grass.

Antelope Island is very scenic and beautiful.  I am sure there are times of the year when the gnats don't swarm.  I, for one, am not ready to venture back there again.  However, the day was not lost.  We soaked in some beautiful scenery, turned the mishap into a funny story and ended up giggling the whole way home.  My kid was re-naming it Gnatelope Island and kept saying we got "Gnatomic Bombed".  It turned out to be a great bonding adventure.  We were met with adversity and turned it into a great day!

"When adversity strikes, that's when you have to be the most calm. Take a step back, stay strong, stay grounded and press on." - LL Cool J

Until the next adventure,

P.A. Walker

As always, you can follow me on Twitter or my Facebook page, Kiva Wellness.

Today The World Was One Big Family

How does one even explain this new adventure? Fate, universal love, karma, not quite sure what it is called. Last week brought with it an amazing first for me. I have never had the opportunity to attend a Hollywood premier. On April 1st, no fooling, that all changed. Let me back up by saying that about two weeks ago, I was standing in my kitchen and the overwhelming feeling that I was about to go to Los Angeles overcame me. Why did this happen? Not quite sure. I just thought to myself, I am going to be going.  I am really learning to trust my intuition, so I proceeded with my day with the understanding that I would be taking yet another trip. I happened to jump on Facebook that same night and messaged a dear friend of mine and told her that I was going to be going to Los Angeles. She reminded me that the World Premier for the latest installment in the Fast and Furious franchise would be taking place right around that time.  I just felt in in my bones. I told her that if it was meant to happen, tickets to the world premier of Furious 7 would just manifest. Again, remember I was now an authority on living the Secret after listening to it for ten hours. Well, I am here to tell you that this stuff really works.

Speed up two weeks, one frequent flier ticket later and a link that once it was clicked sent me into the world of “Congratulations, you now have a ticket to the World Premiere of Furious 7” on April 1^st in Hollywood, California.  It's a long story on how this all evolved.  I won't go into it, just stay tuned for the book…….

The Big Day Arrives

The morning of April 1^st I boarded a plane with an overloaded carry-on bag containing three outfits. After all, what does one wear to a movie premiere?   I also boarded the plane not having seen Fast and Furious 2 through 6. I had speedily watched 1 after learning I was going to be going. It was suggested that I at least get to know the players. I landed amongst the beautiful palm trees, people and sunshine.

Heading to my hotel in Hollywood, I realized that right at that moment the ceremony for Vin Diesel getting his star on the Walk of Fame was taking place. There were so many people that all I could see was the top of his beautiful shiny head.

When you see pictures from these Hollywood events, all looks so glamorous. Don’t get me wrong, it really is glamorous. However, it is also an endurance event. Let me outline my day and night. We started standing online at 2:00 PM. We were told to stand there and they would let us in to get our wristbands. Since we had no concept of time, we were afraid to do anything, leave to go pee, get a drink of water, anything. We did (we being a good friend of mine and myself) start to really get to know the occupants of our line. We had a nice young couple who had left their child with grandma. We also befriended a lovely young lady who had been an extra in the movie. She had driven all the way from Northern California by herself. She was totally a fan.

As the day progressed, 2:00 turned into 3:00 and all the way to 5:30.   At 5:30, we started moving. Yes, I am going to get my wristband and then find the nearest restroom. Guess the April Fool's joke was on me. We were ushered right out to the red carpet. The red carpet in this case, was actually a black and white carpet which resembled a road. There were very cool cars parked all around. We stood on this area for several hours as all the celebrities and beautiful people cycled through their interviews, waving, coming up to us fans and signing autographs and taking pictures. I have to say, everyone was really nice.

We finally got in to see the movie at 11:00 PM.  The movie was amazing. So amazing, that I have already gone to see it again three days after the last viewing. What a beautiful tribute at the end for the late Paul Walker.

Several things became very apparent to me during this day long experience. The cast of this franchise are so close and love each other dearly. They also really care for their fans. Other things that became apparent were that after experiencing the movie premiere I can honestly say I may never do that again. The best thing that became apparent that night was that this movie brought together fans, celebrities, rap stars, producers, family members etc. from all different races, cultures, and for one night, it felt like all was right with the world. All was right with the world and we were one crazy big family. It was truly a feeling I loved and will carry with me throughout the future.

"My philosophy is: If you can't have fun, there's no sense in doing it." - Paul Walker

Until My Next Adventure,

P.A. Walker

Second for Sedona

[Part Two] The rest of my journey to Sedona was one filled with beautiful scenery, long empty roads and lots of time to listen and absorb the CD's I had brought along. It was truly amazing to me that there is still so much empty space left out in the wilderness. It re-energized me to see not one Target, McDonald’s or strip mall for miles and miles. In fact, I didn’t see one Target all the way from Provo, UT to Sedona. I can’t tell you what a great feeling this was.

Even though there was nothing for miles and miles, I didn’t once feel “alone” if that makes sense. I carried such a peaceful feeling with me throughout the drive. I trusted that someone or something was out there keeping an eye on me. If I had broken down out there, not only was there no cell service but it could be a really long time until someone came along. Was I scared? No, because I just totally trusted that I was okay. It has taken me a long time to be in this peaceful place. It felt great and I was ready for a fun weekend in a beautiful place.

When you first drive into Sedona, you are met with the most amazing scenery right from the get-go. Case in point, please reference picture below.

The red rock formations are like nothing I have ever seen before. Such beautiful hues of color. During my weekend there, I got plenty of eye candy in the form of these rocks. I also had the most delicious meals at several restaurants. The first one that comes to mind is the Heartline Café (www.heartlinecafe.com). Definitely check out this restaurant. They have the most amazing French Toast stuffed with a delightfully light lemon crème. It was so good that I went back there twice. The second time I got talking to the owner of the restaurant.  Phyllis and her husband have run the restaurant for 20 plus years. She is such a great person and to make things even more special, we both realized that we had grown up in New Jersey. Her husband was from the very small community that I come from in the town of Wayne. What a small world. Phyllis gave me the official cookbook from their restaurant. Again, what a great place to eat. Not to be missed.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1rjZLZyyos#t=28[/embed]

The next day I had the pleasure of hiking for six miles round trip. Some would say too much, but it was so breathtakingly beautiful that I was blessed to be able to do this hike. Along on the ride was my cousin who resides in Arizona. She was a rockstar on this journey deep into the woods. We saw beautiful red rocks, trees, amazing vistas. It was called Boynton Canyon. The trail ran along side the property for the Enchantment Resort. What a special place tucked back into the wilds of Sedona, away from the touristic main strip. It was nice to get away from it all.

 

After this great hike, we treated ourselves to a lunch like no other at an organic restaurant called the Chocola Tree Restaurant (www.chocolatree.com). Their menu was a very eclectic mix of organic fare. I ended up ordering about four things just because they all sounded so good. The meal was finished off with a Pachimama latte. Such a delicious mix of ginger, cinnamon and love.

My time in Sedona came to an end very quickly. Before I knew it, I had to put myself back into the driver’s seat. I chose to push through and drive ten hours back to Park City. This time I went a different way and went through the Vermillion Cliffs area which is at the top of Arizona. Amazing scenery (again reference pictures). Unless you actually experience this part of the world, it is very hard to put into words.

The last hour of my trip was spent struggling up the canyon in a snowstorm. Snow, I just left 75 degree weather and sun. I was tempted to turn right around and go back to Sedona but figured I had a few folks back at home that might not be happy with that decision.

Until my next adventure,

P.A. Walker