Luke and I woke up bright and early on Saturday morning for our Pink Jeep Tour! If you are unfamiliar with Pink Jeep Tours, it is a tour of Sedona. In a pink Jeep. Pretty simple concept, I guess ;-) Something tells me I probably didn't need to explain that...
The Pink Jeep Tour was a gift from Luke's parents. We are so thankful for it, because it really ended up being the highlight of our trip! We LOVED it!
We chose to do the Broken Arrow Tour, which was the most popular and also most daring tour. It was mostly off-roading, and it was so much fun! We had a wonderful tour guide from Costa Rica. He made it fun, and we learned so much! He also had us laughing pretty hard for most of the tour, so that was fun!
Here are some pictures:
See those black marks coming down the rock? Our guide told us those were tire marks, and that the grand finale of our tour was to drive down those rocks. Haha!
We made a few stops for some incredible views during the tour. This was our first one, on Submarine Rock. Gorgeous panoramic views!
And here we are! Pretty much in heaven
Here are some views from our next stop, at Chicken Point
Hangin' around at Chicken Point ;-)
(Okay, so I may have done a little something to this photo to make it a little deceiving :-P).After our two stops, the rest of the tour got a little more scary. But in a fun way! But first we had to check out where the Flinstone House (according to our tour guide :-P)
And then we went down this scary rock at a 45 degree angle...here's another Jeep doing it right after we did it.
We hung out like this for a good 30 seconds...and it felt much scarier than it looks. haha
But the grand finale of the tour made the 45 degree angle look like nothin'...we went down "The Devil's Staircase." This one had me a little nervous, but mostly it was just fun :-) Here it is from the bottom looking backwards
That pretty much concluded our Pink Jeep Tour. If you're ever in Sedona, you HAVE to try it! Sooo much fun! It was about a 2 hour tour, and I feel like we really saw and learned a lot during that time.
After that, it was time to head to The Grand Canyon! We had about a 2-hour drive from Sedona. On the way we stopped at Olive Garden for some lunch. We caught a lot of grief for that one since we can go to Olive Garden anytime at home! But we were in a hurry, and just happened to see one right on our way, so we decided to stop. And it was delicious as always.
We took the scenic route to the Grand Canyon, which means we went through Oak Creek Canyon right outside of Sedona. It was BEAUTIFUL!! And I couldn't believe how different it looked from Sedona with all it's Ponderosa Pines and snow on the ground. Are you starting to see why this was the most beautiful day of my life??
On the way to the Grand Canyon, there is an IMAX movie you can watch all about it. We decided to stop and see it so we could get some history and ready ourselves. It was a pretty good little film! And we even got 4 free Nature's Valley granola bars with our tickets. This was exciting for me, because I LOVE Nature's Valley granola bars :-) Leave it to food, once again, to make me happy.
While at the Canyon, we just drove around, stopping at each lookout point and admiring the view. At one point when we were driving, we were lucky enough to see an Elk!
And since it's January, that's pretty much the only wildlife we saw the whole trip. I'm secretly a little thankful for that. I certainly did NOT want to see a rattle snake!
While we were in Sedona, I was reading the book that Luke's grandma had let me borrow, "The Harvey Girls." I mentioned it the other day.
The book is about Fred Harvey, who built a lot of hotels and restaurants along the Santa Fe Railroad in the West. In these beautiful, classy hotels and restaurants, there were women (The Harvey Girls) who were waitresses who lived by a very strict list of rules set by Mr. Harvey. They lived in dorms and worked very long hours. A lot of these women left their families and came from the East. It was a very interesting read, and I'm not even that into history (although I find that the older I get, the more I appreciate it and find it interesting). Anyway, The El Tovar Hotel is at The Grand Canyon, and it is one of the only Harvey Houses that still stands. I was so excited to get to see it since I had been reading about Fred Harvey and The Harvey Girls all week! I didn't get a good picture, but here's one I found online:
We talked about eating dinner there, but then checked out the dinner prices online. That changed our minds. Haha! But I was excited to at least see a bit of the history that I'd been reading about.
because the sunset was so beautiful!! See? Most beautiful day ever.
Once back in Sedona, we were famished! We wanted to go to the pizza place by our condo that Luke's aunt and uncle had recommended, but it looked packed and we didn't want to wait. We chose the Red Planet Diner instead (although it turns out that we should have just waited for the pizza!)
This place had a fun atmosphere, but that was about all it had going for it. We had awful service and had to wait forever. I ordered chili in a breadbowl, and I was not impressed. Not only that, but they had a picture of Obi Wan Kenobi on the wall, and they had it labled "Obey One Kinobey." That was simply unforgivable in Luke's eyes :-P
But like I said, at least the atmosphere was fun. We felt like we were in Pizza Planet from Toy Story!
After our sub-par dinner, (listen to me, I'm becoming such a food snob! :-P) We headed back to the condo and watched football until we couldn't keep our eyes open. What a full, wonderful day!
After that, it was time to head to The Grand Canyon! We had about a 2-hour drive from Sedona. On the way we stopped at Olive Garden for some lunch. We caught a lot of grief for that one since we can go to Olive Garden anytime at home! But we were in a hurry, and just happened to see one right on our way, so we decided to stop. And it was delicious as always.
We took the scenic route to the Grand Canyon, which means we went through Oak Creek Canyon right outside of Sedona. It was BEAUTIFUL!! And I couldn't believe how different it looked from Sedona with all it's Ponderosa Pines and snow on the ground. Are you starting to see why this was the most beautiful day of my life??
On the way to the Grand Canyon, there is an IMAX movie you can watch all about it. We decided to stop and see it so we could get some history and ready ourselves. It was a pretty good little film! And we even got 4 free Nature's Valley granola bars with our tickets. This was exciting for me, because I LOVE Nature's Valley granola bars :-) Leave it to food, once again, to make me happy.
Anyway, after the movie, we headed for Grand Canyon National Park. We went to the first lookout point we could find, and once again, I was blown away. Luke's grandma says she doesn't know how anyone could see the canyon and not believe in God. I have to say, I think I agree with her.
It made me feel so small
Being about 6 hours north of Green Valley, where we had been earlier in our trip, it was about 30 degrees colder. There was lots of snow and ice on the ground. A little part of me was afraid that I would slip on the ice and slide down under the bars, right into the canyon. It was a little scary if you think about it!
I love this picture
It made me feel so small
Being about 6 hours north of Green Valley, where we had been earlier in our trip, it was about 30 degrees colder. There was lots of snow and ice on the ground. A little part of me was afraid that I would slip on the ice and slide down under the bars, right into the canyon. It was a little scary if you think about it!
I love this picture
While at the Canyon, we just drove around, stopping at each lookout point and admiring the view. At one point when we were driving, we were lucky enough to see an Elk!
And since it's January, that's pretty much the only wildlife we saw the whole trip. I'm secretly a little thankful for that. I certainly did NOT want to see a rattle snake!While we were in Sedona, I was reading the book that Luke's grandma had let me borrow, "The Harvey Girls." I mentioned it the other day.
The book is about Fred Harvey, who built a lot of hotels and restaurants along the Santa Fe Railroad in the West. In these beautiful, classy hotels and restaurants, there were women (The Harvey Girls) who were waitresses who lived by a very strict list of rules set by Mr. Harvey. They lived in dorms and worked very long hours. A lot of these women left their families and came from the East. It was a very interesting read, and I'm not even that into history (although I find that the older I get, the more I appreciate it and find it interesting). Anyway, The El Tovar Hotel is at The Grand Canyon, and it is one of the only Harvey Houses that still stands. I was so excited to get to see it since I had been reading about Fred Harvey and The Harvey Girls all week! I didn't get a good picture, but here's one I found online:
We talked about eating dinner there, but then checked out the dinner prices online. That changed our minds. Haha! But I was excited to at least see a bit of the history that I'd been reading about.
Mary Colter was the woman who designed most of the Harvey Houses. She built a little rest area on the South Rim of The Grand Canyon. It no longer stands, but the arch of the building still stands as a National Historic Landmark. I got to see it up close and take a picture, so I though that was exciting.
By the time we were done at the Grand Canyon, the sun was setting, and we were ready to make the 2-hour drive back to Sedona for our last night there. I so enjoyed the drive back to our condo
By the time we were done at the Grand Canyon, the sun was setting, and we were ready to make the 2-hour drive back to Sedona for our last night there. I so enjoyed the drive back to our condo
Once back in Sedona, we were famished! We wanted to go to the pizza place by our condo that Luke's aunt and uncle had recommended, but it looked packed and we didn't want to wait. We chose the Red Planet Diner instead (although it turns out that we should have just waited for the pizza!)
This place had a fun atmosphere, but that was about all it had going for it. We had awful service and had to wait forever. I ordered chili in a breadbowl, and I was not impressed. Not only that, but they had a picture of Obi Wan Kenobi on the wall, and they had it labled "Obey One Kinobey." That was simply unforgivable in Luke's eyes :-PBut like I said, at least the atmosphere was fun. We felt like we were in Pizza Planet from Toy Story!
After our sub-par dinner, (listen to me, I'm becoming such a food snob! :-P) We headed back to the condo and watched football until we couldn't keep our eyes open. What a full, wonderful day!
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Day 5 is comin' atcha tomorrow! - Our hike up Soldier's Pass Trail, our visit to The Chapel of the Holy Cross, and our night back in Green Valley.
WOW! That looks like sooo mcuh fun. Great photos :0)
ReplyDeleteI love going The Pink Jeep Tours, I have gone so many time, but every-time I go, I love it more! Always take visitors of the state to it! Glad you were able to experience it!
ReplyDeleteOh, the Pink Jeep tour looks like so much fun! It sounds like it was a great trip!
ReplyDelete