Always start early when hiking Humphrey’s Peak in Flagstaff, Arizona

Always start a hike earlier in the day rather than later. That’s the lesson my friend Jordan and I learned on after our four-hour trek on Monday afternoon in Flagstaff.

Last week, Jordan invited me to hike Humphreys’s Peak, the tallest mountain in Arizona, with an elevation of 12, 633 feet. He had already hiked it in March with a few of our friends from NAU(Northern Arizona University). However, during that time, there was still lots of snow on the mountain so they only made it to the first saddle. This time, he wanted to make it to the top.

We left around 10am on Monday and zoomed to Flagstaff. It only took us about two hours and thirty minutes to arrive in the city. We stopped to buy a few snacks for the hike and then headed to Arizona Snowbowl, the ski resort where Humphrey’s trail begins.

We started the hike around 12:45-1pm thinking we had just enough time to make it to the summit. Unfortunately, we should have started earlier.

On our way up, we encountered other hikers who warned us of the strong winds at the top. We decided to keep going anyway. It took about 2.5 hours to make to the first saddle.

 

We stopped and ate a few snacks and received a small taste of the strong winds awaiting us. They sent chills down our bodies as we stood on the first saddle. It was as if a giant was standing above the mountain and blowing a breath of icy air towards us. It wasn’t strong enough to knock us down but strong enough to convince us that today was not the day. We were told the winds would only pick up as time passed by and that it may be better to come back another day and start earlier.

We stayed a bit longer and indulged in the beautiful views of Flagstaff before turning back down the trail.

Overall, it was a wonderful day and a great adventure. One day, we’ll start earlier and actually make it to the top!

If you ever have the chance, I definitely recommend exploring Mt. Humphrey! It’s a pleasant trail 🙂

Day trip to Sedona, Arizona- Mother Nature’s beautiful red rocks

Beautiful red cliffs of rock surrounded by small green shrubs and trees in front of clear blue skies and lite up by the warm sun. The air smells fresh like Mother Nature’s breath and the views are amazing, like nothing I have ever seen before.

Then I stop.

I realize how lucky I am to live in Arizona and to have access to theses gorgeous creations of Mother Nature and how much I have taken them for granted these past years. This is beautiful. This is life. This right here, is Sedona, Arizona, a city about two hours away from Phoenix.

My friend Jordan and I decided to spontaneously take a day trip here New Year’s Day and start off the year hiking in Sedona. It was my first time ever visiting Sedona and wow, do I feel like I have been missing out.

Since it’s still winter, it was a bit chilly but not too cold to wear shorts.

We hiked the Devil’s Bridge trail after realizing we didn’t have enough time to make it to the Secret Canyon and back before dark.

The trail wasn’t super long but the end was incredible. It’s a bridge that was created naturally and it looks like this:

The hike was well worth it and we even had extra time to explore the area nearby.

The reason I decided to write this week’s post about Sedona is because I wanted to share my experience exploring Arizona. I like to travel and I know a lot of other people do but I think sometimes we have this idea that we have to leave the state or country to “travel” or explore a unknown place but the truth is, most of us forget to explore the places where we grow up. We don’t need to fly to Europe or Asia to go exploring. All we have to do is find a free day and say,

“Hey I’m going to try and discover something new today.”

The coolest part about the trip- there was no planning, whatsoever. Neither of us had to work on New Year’s Day so we decided we’d make a day trip out to Sedona and that’s it.

Sometimes I think the idea of going here or there or planning a camping trip or whatever it may be sounds so time-consuming and like a lot of work but the  truth is, it isn’t. As long as we don’t think of a planning and going on an adventure as a hassle, then it isn’t. It’s as simple as that 🙂 And of course, everybody knows this but at least for me, I didn’t realize it until I started doing it and it’s fantastic!

Well, I hope you enjoyed this post and consider visiting the beauties in Sedona one day 🙂 Feel free to share any comments or thoughts below!

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