We wanted to start our day viewing the sunrise--something we keep talking about but keep letting slip away. More slippage. But, we did get an early start, beginning at 6:15am.
We combined two trails, today; first we walked down to the trailhead and took the Courthouse Rock loop.
Starting Our Hike
Running Man Shadow
Light and Shadow
There Be Giants on the Trail
Modeling Cool Bandana
Modeling Cool Trail
Cairn Marks the Trail
Then we took the Bell Rock Trail up the side of the mountain. This is the site of one vortex. "There are several energy centers, or vortexes of subtle energy, located in the Sedona area...If you actually go to one of the vortex sites, which is where the energy is strongest, it can be a very uplifting experience. The energy you take in at one of these energy centers can stay with you and affect you positively for days afterwards."
"In addition to being a beautiful and serene place, Sedona has long been known as a spiritual power center. This is because the power that emanates from the vortexes produces some of the most remarkable energy on the planet. This energy is the reason Sedona is full of people that are "on the path", that is, people who have made a commitment to grow and become as much as they can spiritually. It is also the reason that such a large New Age community has sprung up in the Sedona area, bringing with it a variety of spiritual practices and alternative healing modalities, and it is the reason Sedona has sometimes been called a spiritual Disneyland."
The only evidences I had for being at an energy center were the fact that I could keep up with Claire--unusual, these days--and I felt strong the entire hike. But, this could also be due to being at a lower altitude and getting a good night's sleep.
Pushing On
Rest Stop
Looking Back
Going Down
View
Horse or Bike Warning
The Trails
During the first hour of the hike, we encountered only 3 other people. During the next hour, we saw about 10 more; during the last hour, we ran into almost two dozen, about half on mountain bikes. We appreciate the solitude of starting early, especially since this is one of the area's most popular hikes.
The rest of the day will be spent drinking coffee or iced tea, blogging, eating or lounging around the pool and hot tubs.
Inside the big world that you cannot control, you have the small world that you can control. In that small world, if you look, you can see whether to go this way toward the good, or the other way toward bad. ~ Volya Rinpoche, character in Roland Merullo's Breakfast with Buddha
