The next day we ventured to Sedona. Our daughter, Pamela, was here several years ago and gave us the dream to visit. We are glad we did.

Sedona is a beautiful area tucked in the Verde Valley and Red Rocks. Our Best Westin Sedona Inn was perched on a hillside overlooking this vista.

We enjoyed the tour we took with Pink Jeep Tours out to Indian Ruins called “Honanki Ruins.” Indians lived here 1400 years ago.  Like the Mesa Verde ruins in Colorado, no one knows why the Indians left.

Our tour guide was a “real trip.”  Bill was quite entertaining and very knowledgeable about Sedona. He was an ex-Sheriff and on his sixth marriage. We wished him luck!

We asked Bill why the company is called “Pink Jeep Tours.”  In a shortened version, Don Pratt, the owner, was in real estate around 1960. Due to the conditions of the roads back then, he used a jeep to take his potential real estate clients around.  When he wasn’t getting many  sales, he realized that people just wanted to be in the jeep to see the country side.  That is when he decided to start a jeep tour business in Sedona.  While developing a business plan, he and his wife visited Hawaii. They saw the great attraction to The Royal Pink Palace in Waikiki Beach. That is when he came up with the idea to paint all his jeeps, “pink,”  to draw attention.

There is plenty to see and do around Sedona. Our favorite restaurant was at the airport believe it or not. Mesa Grill became our dinner venture for several days, eating good Jamaican Jerk chicken and fresh vegetables. The restaurant immediately opened up with large windows to a small airport.  To get to it, you had to travel up a small mountain to a mesa.

We found the best “Pecan Pie” I have ever eaten at a restaurant called Judi’s. The owner, Alice, came out and sat with us. She took over several years ago when Judi passed away. Alice said, “I don’t have an ego, I just kept all the original recipes that people enjoyed.” She is a neat lady.

We enjoyed walking in town called “Up Town,” with quaint shops. You just can’t by-pass good looking tee-shirts and we purchased a few.  We saw a chair with a small skeleton.  We had to take a picture of George trying to get money for a “college fund.” ummmm

The neatest building experience was visiting a church, Holy Name. It is on the side of a mountain. Not very big, but the scenery is just spectacular. The homes around it are not bad either.

We did do one trail that circled part of the airport. We went on top of a small hill famous for being “a vortex” of energy. I think I felt that energy.

Kathie and I are planning another visit someday to Sedona. This time we are coming prepared with hiking shoes. You can easily stay here for a week. We met a woman, Ruti, from Bozeman, Montana who spends her winters in Sedona. She loves the area, and loathes the beach.