Day 7 Sedona

We went to bed early last night and had a fairly quiet night on Schnebly Hill Road in the Coconino National Forest. Wake-up call at 6:30 so we could drive to Sedona and the trailhead for our hike. 

The Boynton Canyon trailhead parking was already full so we had to park on the side of the road about a tenth of a mile away. Here, Jessica made us some delicious pancakes for breakfast with our homemade maple syrup, we washed up and slathered on some sunscreen, and filled our day packs. We didn’t begin on the trail itself until 8:30 AM. It was not too hot and the trail was part shade anyway but we fifty-somethings struggled nonetheless. My blood pressure has been up and down and hard to control lately which made me feel like I had to pass out. Jessica was bothered by the hike too and felt a little sick to her stomach. The first mile and a half parallels the road and you can see the roofs and backyards of residential buildings. About 2 miles in there is a junction and you would continue straight to the mystical vortex or turn right as we did to go to the Subway Cave. The trail rose steeply here gaining most of the 727 ft of elevation change in this last section. About a mile on, you come to a giant slot in the red rocks known as Subway Cave. You can either climb straight up the steep and slippery middle or…

you could go left up the rock scramble to an alcove high above. From this alcove to the left lay some Indian ruins and to the right you go around a corner with a steep drop off to enter the back of subway Cave.

The view from the back of the cave looking out is incredible. It looks as if you are standing inside a keyhole. This is me on the right as viewed from the back of the cave.

We then retraced our steps back down to the van. Four hours total and about 6 miles. We were beat by the end. Late lunch at Nick’s on the West Side before doing some shopping. Then we drove to the Chapel of the Holy Cross which is built right into the rocks and has commanding views out its glass windows behind an amazing statue of Jesus on the cross. 

Lastly, we met up with some of Jessica’s Project Athena friends who were finishing up an adventure before finding a boondocking site on Schnebly Hill Road in the Coconino National Forest. And then there was a little mishap with the pee jug. Enough said!