Road Trip (part 1)

Warning:  This post is really long.  In fact, I had to split it into 3 parts.  I tried to keep it related to running and hiking, but there’s so much to share.  I hope you enjoy it!

My kids have a week off of school for Thanksgiving Break every year.  And, it tends to be a good time for my husband to take off some time.  So naturally, my husband and I decided to take advantage of this time and we planned a road trip.

We tend to visit many of California’s sites throughout the year.  Therefore, we decided to use the 9 days to travel out of state.  We finally narrowed down our choices to a few different National Parks.

Out of convenience, our first stop was Las Vegas.  The kids have never been there and we thought we would let them have some fun.  We booked a room at Circus Circus and introduced them to Las Vegas, family style.  They had a blast playing games and jumping on the trampoline.  After an 8+ hour car ride, from El Dorado Hills, it was a great place to get out and stretch.

Our trip to Vegas pretty much confirmed the fact that my son is an adrenaline junkie…….hmmmm, not sure who he gets that from?  Since we wouldn’t let him bungee off the Stratosphere, we decided he could go on a less dangerous ride.

We all went up to the top of the tower which was enough for me.  Now that I’m a parent, I’m definitely less adventurous.

I borrowed this picture of the Stratosphere……

As my daughter and I watched people jump off the building, my husband took my son up to a higher point to go on the ride.  Did you know the Stratosphere is the tallest observation tower in the US and has the highest amusement park rides in the world?

By mid morning, we were off to Sedona!  We arrived in Sedona at my husband’s Aunt and Uncle’s home later than we had expected and in the pitch dark.  We went to bed having no idea what Sedona’s landscape looked like. 

We woke up to a beautiful view of Cathedral Rock and other rock formations in the distance.  The color of Sedona’s rock formations is amazing.  I’ve never seen anything like Sedona and really, the pictures don’t show the true beauty.

There is so much to see and do in Sedona, but we only had time to do a few things.  We agreed that we would go to Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well.  Cliff dwellings have always intrigued me and the kids soaked up the information making this stop very educational.  Between the two sites, we spent a few hours outside and were able to walk a mile or so.

Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well are close by each other.  We decided to visit both sites.

After lunch, we decided we needed to do something active.  A hike up Cathedral Rock was perfect!  For the most part, the hike was easy to moderate.

We are headed up to the base of the formation.

But, there was one place where I was worried about the kids, especially my daughter since she is only 9 years old.  Fortunately, my husband is really good with giving her directions on how to climb up holding on to other rocks.  Of course, going down was more of a challenge.

One of the more challenging parts.

We were all happy once we reached the top.

Although I love this picture, I have to admit I was nervous letting my kids go so close to the edge of a huge drop off.

Don’t worry, she isn’t really about to fall.  My kids love being tricksters!

We enjoyed Sedona and hope to return soon.  In fact, next time, I’ll be running some of the many trails.  I  was itching to go for a run, but there didn’t seem to be an extra hour.  And, the hike was a great way to spend time with the family and get some exercise.  We made some good memories on that hike!