Travel, Learn, Grow: In the arid zone

Düsseldorf to Phoenix

After a gruelling 24 hours in transit, we landed in the early evening in warm dry Phoenix where our trip began. We skipped or rather dragged our tired feet to the rental car office, picked up our car and headed to a hostel that we had booked in advance which was located on the outskirts of the city. I was grateful for bed to sleep in and a shower since I knew that these two commodities were going to be hard to come by in the following months.

The next morning I woke up early. Initially out of excitement and also from jet lag. I crept out into the garden of the hostel where I watched the sunrise and the sky turn pale blue which I would come to learn is characteristic of desert skies. The warm air smelled dry, tropical and heavy with anticipation. I took in the senses and my excitement for the next adventure waiting before me grew.

After breakfast in the hostel we laid back in hammocks and began to grasp the joyous reality of a clear sky and a hot sun. Then we were off.

the hostel in Phoenix had a music making corner

the rental car, we named him "Theo"

Apache Trail to Chiricahua

We received some excellent advice on the possible routes we could take through Arizona from the owner of the hostel. Our first stop was Apache Trail located east of Phoenix. Along the way we stopped at a forgotten mining town in Goldfield.

Goldfield Ghosttown

We found an abandoned camp ground where we pitched Christoph's tent for the evening. After a light dinner we gazed into the heavily darkened sky which was, throughout the trip, a perfect place to spot of consellations, planets, and other nightly wonders.

grateful to find an abandoned campground where no one bothered us

The next morning our drive through the Apache Trail went further. We stopped along the way to take in the sights: scattered cacti, deep valleys, baby blue skies, soft wind and the call of ravens.

After our time along the Apache Trail, we were headed towards the southeastern tip of Arizona that hugged the border of New Mexico and Mexico. We reached Chiricahua National Monument in the late afternoon where we booked a campsite for an affordable 12 dollars. After setting up camp, we took a light stroll and observed some deer getting their evening grub.

unending roadways

Rising with the sun, we tied our hiking boots and hit the trails. Two trails led us to lookout points over the valley where flat desert meets the rolling hills of Chiricahua; led us to balancing rocks; and lastly led us through mazes of standing rocks that look like choirs of saints.

the upright standing rocks of Chiricahua (featuring a chemtrail)

Tucson and the Sonoran Desert

A short while on the road before we reached the student city of Tucson. A walk around, a bite to eat and we were gone as quickly as we came.

sun setting over the streets of Tucson

In order to save money or rather, afford the trip at all we either slept in the trunk of our spacious Jetta or pitched the tent when the possibility presented itself. After reaching the small town of Gila Bend, we parked the car and spent our first evening sleeping in the car. To our surprise: quite comfortable.

Taking out the back seats out, we had just the right amount of space to stretch our legs out. In the morning we would greet the sun by opening the trunk from the inside- practical!

After visiting the local tourism office for some advice on things to do and see in the area, we decided to visit a petroglyph site located a few kilometres outside of town.

close to the border of Mexico, we came across this stretch of open road on our drive through the Sonoran desert

Sedona

We planned to stay in Sedona for a day and at most two but after driving into the red rock scattered city it was obvious to each of us that this time would not be enough. Hitting our first trail in the late afternoon we scurried up Bell Rock before the sun drifted into the next time zone.

The next morning we climbed Cathedral Rock- this trail was one of my favourite trails. When we reached the end of the trail and explored around and found another trail and of course, followed it. This second trail led us even higher to another lookout point where we caught up with some local hikers who gave us some insight on life in Sedona.

After Cathedral Rock, we hiked Devils Bridge.

Devils Bridge trail links to another trail called Vultee Arch which was next on our list. After trekking through thick forest for a couple hours we were starting to wonder when the trail reaches the peak. As we were wondering about the trail we heard a scattering of feet and a beastly huffing. I looked up and next to the trail stood a family of Javelinas who scattered and screamed from our startling presence. After our shock we continued on. Poorly marked and virtually empty of hikers, I began to ask myself if we were on the right trail. The sun had only a couple more hours left to shine. We reached a crossroad but our trail was not listed… but we saw the arch so we hiked towards it. There was no clearly marked path but there were some indications of hikers on what we thought was the trail. After finding no continuation of the trail at the arch we climbed down and tried another trail. At this point I was very unsettled and growing anxious.

A little while later we crossed paths with a hiker who reassured us that we were going the right way and that we didn’t have much longer to go. I sighed a sigh of relief and was thankful that I would not get stuck in the forest and become a bear’s dinner.

Being out of my comfort zone and experiencing fear for those few hours made me realise how important it is to step out of my comfort zone in a bigger sense. As long as I stay comfortable, I grow numb, get used to things and life glides by. However as soon as I step outside of my comfort zone and taste fear the senses explode and awareness takes over.

On the third morning in Sedona we hiked a shorter trail and did some window shopping. Streets filled with shops of esoteric books, healing stones, Psychic workers, and vortex healing excursions. Known to be a spiritual power centre, Sedona is allegedly home to four of many energy vortexes located around the planet. These energy vortexes are locations where energy supposedly spirals and flows upwards. It is said these energy vortexes compel people to Sedona and those who live and spend time there are on a path to spiritual growth, awakening and enlightenment.

Weather I am pulled by the vortexes or the sheer magnificence, I have to say that Sedona is one of my favourite places to be.

Flagstaff

Up the mountain, the temperature falling and barely enough gas to get us to Flagstaff where we quickly filled up before deciding to drive up to the Lowell Observatory. With anticipation we listened to a lecture about NASA’s recent explorations in our solar system all the way out to our cold lonely friend, Pluto. We were shown recent photos of Pluto in spectacular resolution that have not been released to the public yet. Then we waited in line to take a glimpse through Clark Dome telescope which magnified Jupiter 300-500 times. On the surface of Jupiter was a barely noticeable black dot. A dot the size of a pinhead. And this tiny black dot? This tiny black dot was one of Jupiter’s 67 moons…and all of the sudden my perspective changes.

A second telescope revealed the Orion Nebula which is located just south of Orion’s belt. The Orion Nebula is magnificent. I was reminded that the skies are full of beautiful artwork.

cooking in the cold with our camping stove

breakfast in the park

The flora of Flagstaff is so diverse to that of Sedona which is only a short drive away. The fresh cool breeze through the pines took me back home to Canada during our short time in Flagstaff

Gun shops were not uncommon to see throughout our time in the southwest.

The Grand Canyon

Arriving at the Grand Canyon in the early afternoon we gathered information on possible hikes and decided that we would take the trek down the canyon. Since it is not recommended to climb to the bottom of the canyon and back in one day, we decided to spend a couple of nights in the canyon where we would do a day hike before climbing back up. After getting our camping permits we drove to a lookout point, cooked some pasta and watched the sunset over the canyon.

these guys were everywhere

We cooked outside in the open a lot during this trip and each time we were asked by passerbys 'when is dinner ready?!'...

The next morning we took the shuttle bus to the South Kaibab trailhead and our descent began. We needed about four hours to get to the bottom of the canyon where beautiful bright green trees lined the creek where our camping spot was. Protected from the wind, the temperature in the canyon was warmer and we were comfortable in the night without a cover over our tent. The nights were long and clear. Waking often, I peered out into the deeply blackened sky and spotted my favorite constellations as they would drift from east to west throughout the course of the night.This is a pleasure that I miss since being back in the busy cities of Germany where the light pollution is too great to make out any stars patterns.

resting at the first lookout point, we were joined by a caravan of mule

the trail is mainly a series of switchbacks

finally reached the bottom where we crossed the hanging bridge- smiling and ready to set up camp

One day hike took us along the bright angel creek and another took us to a lookout point where we observed the Colorado River rushing by as time stood still.

at angel creek about to get my feet wet

lookout point from the first hike

beautiful trees, a babbling creek and soft sand- paradise

The climb up was tiring. A 12 Kilometres trail, 1500 m elevation gain and 15 Kilograms on our backs with a teasing incline finally brought us back to Grand Canyon village. In the village I took a shower for the first time since the start of the trip…showering is overrated.

finally reached the rim- this picture was taken right after the exhausting climb up

at desert outlook on our drive out of the park

on the road again

Page and surroundings

We didn’t spend much time in Page, a quick hike at horseshoe loop (which was spectacular) and a glance at the local dam. The initial reason we visited Page was to gather information on how one can visit Arizona’s famous wave rocks. To our disappointment, only 10 people are chosen each day to visit. We would have had to pay 10 dollars each to have our names entered into a lottery and hoped that both of our names would be drawn in order to take the obligatory guided hike the next morning. Something we unfortunately, did not have time or money for.

Horseshoe Loop

Monument Valley

Another drive through the empty desert where dinosaurs used to roam free and we reached Monument Valley. After paying a 20$ entrance fee, we took the long drive through the valley as the sun crept towards the horizon. We stopped often along the way to take in our surroundings. Standing among mysteriously shaped, eroding rocks, twisted juniper trees with nothing to hear but silence. I stood still and soaked up the moment. Those are the moments that I take with me, moments to learn from. To remind me to stop and be still.

Reaching other corners of the valley, we stopped to speak with a local from whom we purchased Juniper seed chains from. He explained to us the significance of the seeds to give us courage and to conquer our fears. We asked him about his culture. He sang traditional songs for us and shared stories of the rites of passage and how wedding ceremonies are celebrated amoung native tribes. I am grateful for the knowledge he shared with us.

Canyon de Chelly

Our last stop before reaching New Mexico was Canyon de Chelly, located in northeast of Arizona. The canyon has been occupied by various archaic peoples and has provided a living community for the Pueblo, Hopi and Navajo tribes over the course of nearly 5000 years.