SPONTANEOUSLY IN SEDONA

It's the end of summer. I can FEEL it. We are basically at the finish line, so every last second seems to drag on. I'm done. OVER. IT. So, in an effort to not totally lose my mind and destroy everything in my path, we took a spontaneous day-trip this last Friday to get out of the house. My kids haven't spent much time in Sedona, so I decided a trip was in order. First, Chapel of the Holy Cross - a quaint little church built into the surrounding red rocks. It was hot. It was muggy. But it was fascinating. After visiting the chapel, we had lunch at a nearby park before traveling on to the Palatki Ruins. The Palate Ruins are several miles northwest of Sedona, off an unpaved forest road. As such, they are really a little-known gem. The park ranger directed us to the short path for the petroglyph site (unfortunately the cliff dwellings were closed for the day due to the impending storm). We got to see pictographs left by four different tribes who lived there over a number of decades. It was awesome. I love any excuse to explore this state where I live.