Gay Globe Trekker

Sedona’s Second Look

Coming Up: JP's Arizona trip pulls him into a vortex at Enchantment Resort

The image of Arizona indelibly etched in my brain is a lonely highway stretching far into the horizon with three kids standing next to a 1976 broken-down Diesel powered Mercedes, my father cursing and mother studying the map.  My family was on our way to one of the greatest trips of my life—a 7-day whitewater rafting expedition through the Grand Canyon.  Like the millions of other people on their way to the iconic natural wonder, I overlooked the stops and towns along the way—eyes on the ultimate natural prize.  After spending a few days at Enchantment Resort in Sedona, I realize that’s a mistake.

“Headed to experience the vortexes?” asked Alex, my driver who collected me at the Phoenix airport for the two-hour drive to Sedona.

When I told him I had no idea what he was talking about, he looked aghast.  Truthfully, I hadn’t done much background research.  The trip came up last minute, and all I knew was that there was some hiking, a kayaking and wine tasting excursion, and a trip to the Grand Canyon some 35 years after that first childhood experience.

“The vortexes are pretty famous,” Alex continued.  “Special energy forces come together.  Each vortex has special powers or affects you differently.  I met my wife because of a vortex.”

Having lived in Austin, Texas, another earthy-crunchy-crystal-loving township, I’m pretty hip to alternative modalities.  Still, I think Alex caught me rolling my eyes.

As we rounded the corner of main street Sedona, suddenly the spectacular red rock canyons surrounded us, and they took my breath away.  I could see how this place might hold special powers over someone.

We pulled into Enchantment, and Alex pointed to a rock formation known as Kachina Woman telling me that the vortex there heightens—by at least 10 times—whatever emotion you are currently experiencing.

“Guess I shouldn’t show up angry,” I joked.  “That wouldn’t go well for anyone.”

Alex smiled.

“That would be a good thing.  It would heighten it so much, you’d let it go.  Sounds like you probably need to let go of some things,” he said.

JPB happy at the vortex

Over the next several days, Alex was right.  Enchantment is set-up to let the stress and troubles of the world melt away.  Waking up, the views of those canyons felt cleansing.  And at Mii Amo, a destination spa within the resort, the day begins with a morning ritual inside a crystal grotto—a relaxing circular room where a therapist leads a Native American-inspired blessing.  Each day is different, and on my day we were encouraged to set an intention for the day.  Of course, I chose Poptimistic-related thoughts like “healthy” and “joy,” and darn if what I thought would be hokey, didn’t turn out to be peaceful and useful.  When I normally would have muscled right by the Japanese tourists on the hike to Kachina Woman, I instead paused and offered to take a photo of the duo.

Once at the site of the supposed vortex, I did feel a certain amount of energy flowing through me.  I don’t know if it was something emanating from deep inside the Earth, or a positive glow from inside my soul.  Either way, Enchantment helped me tap into a special place.

How’s that for letting go of some stuff?

Green Globe Trekker’s Sedona Round-Up

Stay.  Enchantment Resort is tucked right up underneath some of the most spectacular red rock formations.  Just outside my door, the canyons were calling to me for a hike—and the resort makes it easy since your room key gives you direct access to some of the most well-known trails in the area.  That means within minutes after completing a rigorous climb, I was poolside ordering another Avocalada (an addictive avocado and coconut milk smoothie that could be served healthy, although I asked for a shot of rum).  The recently remodeled rooms are sleek and modern with touches of contemporary Southwestern flare—the enormous showers and separate soaking tubs were my favorite.  Mii Amo is the name of Enchantment’s destination spa within the resort where you can opt to go on “journeys” of personal discovery that are tailored to each individual and last three, four or seven days.  With limited time, I chose an Intentional Aromatherapy Massage, selecting one of ten scents that matched my mood.  “Happy” was my scent—it’s hard not to be upbeat in such a magical setting where the treatment room’s window looked out onto yet another red canyon.

Mii Amo's pool awaits after a hike.

Explore.  Nearly 2 million visitors pass through Sedona on their way to the Grand Canyon missing the 113 hiking trails in a 20-mile radius.  The Hike House aims to change that—and you should make this gem your first stop in town.  This isn’t your typical intimidating adventure store.  Rather, the whole goal here is to match you up with the perfect hiking experience.  You start by chatting with a Hiking Concierge who uses a special computer program to enter your requirements—how much time you have, how hard you want the hike, what kind of scenery you like–and the result is a personalized trail guide with pictures.  It’s like Match.com for hiking!  To me, this was genius.  How often have I been mystified by maps from the National Park Service?  How high does that trail go and will I really see a waterfall?  The helpful folks then walk you through everything from how much water you should take to tips on what type of shoes you should wear.  Evidently, some folks think they can hike the area in flip-flops.  Not kidding.

Fly.  To the Grand Canyon, that is.  A spectacular day trip to the Western Rim of the Grand Canyon is offered by Sedona Sky Treks.  It’s a 1-hour scenic flight in a Cessna over the Colorado Plateau, and then the massive Grand Canyon before landing at an airport managed by the Hualapai Indians.  From there, it’s onto a helicopter for a 3,200 foot descent into the Canyon, and then hop onboard a pontoon boat for a short excursion on the river.  Afterwards, you can continue onto the other Hualapai tourism venues including the famous SkyWalk glass walkway that extends over the Canyon.  Personally, I have some serious vertigo issues—so just looking at people standing on it made me nauseous.  The entire 6-hour trip costs $448 per adult, but honestly, if you’ve never experienced the majesty of the Grand Canyon, and you’re unwilling to wait 1-3 years for a spot to go rafting for multiple days down the river, then this might be the ticket for you.

This entry was posted in Featured, Gay Globe Trekker and tagged , , , . Bookmark the permalink.