Tuesday 3/27/49 Sixty-three March 27th's, wow! I have had some amazing birthday's spent in Mexico, the Caribbean, Hawaii and other points on the compass but I have to say, this has been the very best, the top of the heap, the ultimate birthday of my life.
We were up and had our breakfast served by our host Betty. We were then down the road in search of adventure. We turned off of route 87A onto 179 to the Broken Arrow trail head that Kathy had read about. We took our water, camera's, binoculars, snacks and headed up the trail. The sky a soft blue, not a wisp of a cloud, temperature hovering around 72 degree's, a pleasant breeze from the North and a large smile plastered on my face. Around every bend lay a picturesque scene that I swore could not get any better until we hit the next bend and lo and behold, it actually got better. The mountains alive with a palette of colors. The air was so fresh that I wanted to bottle it and ship it home to be used on special occasions. Birds called a sweet song from their perch and caught the updrafts to drift above us in search of lunch. We saw two ravens nesting in a cleft of an outcropping three hundred feet up. They were busy bringing in straw and sticks to make their house a home. I got two calls (damn Verizon is good) from David and Shelley with birthday wishes. We saw the occasional hiker and their smiles mirrored our own. We also saw a few folks on Mountain bikes risking life and brain function cruising down and up the trail. Actually thinking about it, they may have already lost brain function doing what they were doing. The vista's, the interesting plant life, the sun upon my upturned face - it was truly a slice of heaven. Dennis stated later how he enjoyed this hike more then any he could recall. We walked about 3 miles and called it delightful.
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| Ready to go |
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| Laurie went part of the way |
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| What Sedona is famous for |
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| On the trail |
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| Across the valley |
We then headed back down to old 87A and headed North through Sedona and up through Oak Creek Canyon for a picnic lunch overlooking apple tree's in blossom and a 500 foot Mesa towering over our heads. Tuna fish never tasted so good.
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| Dr. Pepper and Yoo hoo, the drink of champions |
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| Nature and Subway tuna, does it get any better? |
We decided we needed a bit more visual stimulation so we headed back up 179 East to "The Chapel of the Rock". This is a Catholic Church that was built around 1954. It sits 1000 feet up staring down at a valley and vista's that give pause. It was very modern for it's time and broke the mold for Catholic churchs. Strangely, it looks like it is literally growing out of the hillside. To say the view was awesome is truly an understatement. There was a sense of serenity that cast it's net over all who made the climb to witness this view of a lifetime.
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| Amazing Architecture |
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| Chapel entrance |
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| Views from the Chapel |
Exhausted and over stimulated, we meandered our way home for what is becoming our daily siesta break.
We headed out again heading SSW, our destination, Jerome Arizona. A former copper mining town which has transformed itself into an artist community when the mine petered out. We had 6:00 reservations at the Asylum restaurant, housed in a hotel that had once been the hospital. What makes the Asylum a bit unusual is that it is perched on top of a mountain, 2500 feet above the valley floor. All of the furnishing were appropriate for the 1920's age of the ediface. The appetizer's were great, the entree's were better and the conversation and company were the best. What a absolutely wonderful meal, dining in the clouds.
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| The Jerome Grand Hotel |
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| View of the Verde Valley from on high |
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| Ready for the Birthday dinner |
Desert and off key singing was served at home, chocolate cream pie, my favorite. Dennis and Laurie retired and Kathy and I sat out by the fountain and counted the stars and planets and talked about upcoming adventures we might plan for my 63rd year - damn, I can't wait.
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