February 16, 2022

It was a warm and sunny early January afternoon in Sedona, Arizona. I was still on my birthday / Arizona national parks / hiking vacation with my friend Theresa, whom you’ll get to know as a guest blogger, and we were spending two nights in Sedona, trying to fit in as much hiking, good food, and warm air as possible. Earlier in the week, we had begun our trip in Tucson, where it was around 75°F, but as we went north to explore various national parks in northern Arizona, the temperatures dropped rapidly to the teens at night and only in the 30s during the day! Arizona is a fascinating state for many reasons, but in particular its climate and geography; there are so many interesting and diverse landscapes spread across the state. It could take many months to see it all. Sedona is known for many things, including its striking red rock cliffs, endless mountain biking and hiking trails, "vortexes" and spiritual healing, and a lively community for residents and travelers. Throughout our few days here, I quickly saw why there is so much appeal to living and visiting Sedona.

After morning hikes to Airport Loop, Bell Rock, and Courthouse Butte to visit vortex sites (where energy radiating either from the earth or down into the earth is supposed to help heal your body and spirit of ailments), and visiting Chapel of the Holy Cross, we headed for a sunset hike on Soldier Pass trail No. 66 to see the Seven Sacred Pools. With the sun dipping slightly behind trees and Coffee Pot Rock, the familiar chill of the winter Arizona air nipped our skin. We had been quite warm in the sun all day, wearing t-shirts, but we were quickly reminded of how cool it would still get at night. We saw a few mountain bikers ripping down the trail, seemingly out of nowhere over a rocky edge, as we peered into a large sinkhole, called Devil’s Kitchen. We continued up the trail until it opened up to a couple of puddles in the rock, which were actually the Seven Sacred Pools. A couple was standing there taking numerous selfies (well, it was the man taking repeat photos of the woman because she was constantly dissatisfied with the way the photos looked). We politely waited for our turn to seek the best photo angles and eventually walked to another area to see the pools from a different, quieter angle. It took a few tries to actually count to seven, as the very first puddle was, indeed, just a puddle. At one point in time, there would have been a stream following through here, cutting the rocks, but now only small pools remain. The water was quite brown in the pools, so it was, quite literally, unclear how deep the water was in each pool. As part of our wandering for a different angle, we eventually ended up on a U.S. Forest Service road that connected to Teacup Trail as part of our walk back to the trailhead. Theresa and I debated many times whether Coffee Pot Rock really looked like a coffee pot, as she merely saw a fish. But, Theresa also doesn’t drink coffee, so I gave her a pass!

After returning to the car, we were quite sleepy from our long day of hiking, so, on our way back to our awesome hotel, Sedona Reál Inn and Suites, we were at yet another stop light where I looked to my right and asked Theresa if I should get out of the car to snag coffee and treats from Layla’s Bakery-Café. She said yes – hooray! This time, I assured her I had my wallet and I knew she wanted almond milk, instead of whole milk, which I didn’t know at The Matador. Layla’s offers breakfast and lunch options, in addition to a variety of coffee shop beverages. The shop opened in April 2018 by pastry Chef Javier Franco and his wife Amy, naming the café after their daughter... Layla, but of course. Everything was neat, prompt, and tasty. I ordered a mocha, Theresa’s chai, a deliciously crispy and lightly sweet palmier, as well as a perfectly dressed strawberry-feta-kale-spinach salad. Everything was splendid. The café did not have Wi-Fi, but a number of customers were sitting with laptops while enjoying their treats. It was small and clean and somewhere I’d visit again, and was a refreshing post-hike snack.