Through my travels, I’m finding the oddest similarities between places that should not be. Sedona is appropriately beautiful as expected. Just driving through the town, you can stop every 50 yards for a photo opportunity. I found it interesting in that it is much like Alaska, just a bit more cozy. In Fairbanks, you have majesty rising all around you with an endless array of opportunities for fishing, camping, hiking four wheeling, etc. Sedona is much the same, but with the more cozy and comfortable red cliffs and forests all around you.

The feel is much the same as well. Peaceful. Easy to get away from the noise and into quiet. And spiritually powerful. It was really odd because I was talking to this woman on a hike and she was telling me that she just moved back here from Poland to open up a belly dancing studio dedicated to helping women find the feminine divine. She did not have a business card on her so told me the name of the studio. I looked it up, and found it in Alaska.

The best you’ll get from me here is 1) a hike I took and 2) I need to come back and explore more. It is easily worth a week. Sedona is popular for a lot of reasons but one of them is the artist community. It is known for “elemental power vortexes” that empathic people can tap into to. My hike took me to one of four. It was a bit off the trail but easily found, even marked with a pile of stones. I sat and contemplated, breathing in the air and the peace in the shadow of the mountain. It is what brings artists, seekers and teachers: those looking to get more in touch with themselves. Aye, I’ve seen enough in my 49 years not to knock anything.

I ran into the female hiker on my way back and started to discuss. She wanted to know what I felt. Peace and calmness and a ethereal quiet. It was different for her. It caused an uneasiness. She said she thought the power vortex was male/female so didn’t know why it made her feel uneasy. With my reaction, she felt it must have been more male? My take was a little different. The search for the feminine divine can create an imbalance, with the emphasis on feminine. For me, I’ve gotten in touch with my feminine side so feel more balanced? Like I said, I’m not knocking it.

I also ran into a another pair of hikers, a mother and daughter who were setting out at night. That surprised me so I asked. The answer I got was simple enough: heat and tourists. Makes sense. No talk of power vortexes or the feminine divine, only to be on the look out for wild pigs: they are small but can be aggressive.

The daughter had lived in Philadelphia and the son still was. Philadelphia can be overpowering. The young woman said she lived there for three years before she realized she lived close to Valley Forge National Park.

I think we forget. But I also think with Covid we have to remember. The Danes even came up with a word for it, that I cannot pronounce let alone spell. But it has to do with getting out and about and getting in touch with nature to get away from the negativity that is pressing on us from all sides. It is easy in a park or place like this to get away from that pressure. Getting more in touch with it helps build a barrier between us and the negativity.

I got my three mile hike in. I found my power vortex. I found interesting similarities from places so different from one another.

If a journey like this ever happens again, I’ll have a hard decision to make. I like running quiet but I’d really like to have a roof rack with a bike and kayak?

But this was veg day. A day to relax, catch up on my sleep, and I received a reminder that a simple three mile hike each day and a good night’s sleep can do wonders for my spirit. I’m learning lessons. I need to remember them, actualize them. I enjoyed my last couple days of summer, driving with the windows down and walking in shorts, feeling the heat seep into me. But now it’s time to finish what I began and head north. First stop: Colorado, where I have to clean my car out of all snacks because bears know how to open doors. Wouldn’t that make for a hell of a Snicker’s commercial. But then to Wyoming and Montana.

A chillier north awaits me.