Courvillage Honeymoon - Part 4 // West Fork Trail, An Injury, & A Helicopter Ride
Friday on our honeymoon! We expected this day to be a bit more leisurely as we planned a much easier hike than Cathedral Rock. This hike is about 20 minutes or so outside of Sedona, Arizona. Driving on 89A [goes from Flagstaff to Sedona], you'll be sure to see some spectacular views. Big cliffs, red rocks, monstrous trees, curving roads, cacti, and running water paint such a beautiful part of Arizona.
Once arriving to the West Fork Trail, we packed our bags with enough food to feed three times as many people, we grabbed our camera gear, and we started on the hike! It was a chilly morning, but the sun was warm. As you hike the trail, the temperature would change drastically depending on foliage, height, water, and sun. There are about 18 parts of water that need to be crossed during the entire hike. Some areas are more tricky than others. But it sure made for a fun hike!
You'll see that we didn't take many photos on this hike. In fact, Jon never took the camera out of his bag. iPhone photos it was! We recommend taking a hike to just enjoy. Enjoy nature. Enjoy each other. Enjoy the sun. And that's exactly what we did. Our lunch break was located on the top of a rock with the sun shining on it. We might've taken a short nap there as well...
On the way back to the car, we periodically ran - just to make it back faster. This is where it happened. On the easiest trail of them all. When we were walking.
We passed a family, and one of the girls was wearing a shirt that said in very bold letters "ROMANS 6." I, Jennifer, began to enthusiastically quote the beginning of chapter 6 as we briskly walked the trail. It went something like this...
"What shall we say then?! Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase??!! By no means!! We died to sin! How then can we li-[insert some minor flirting - yes. Quoting, walking, flirting at the same time...] *BAM* On the ground wailing.
Who knew Jon's feet and strides were that BIG? I stepped on his shoe as he was walking, and my right ankle promptly snapped as it rolled all the way to the side. As I sat on the ground wailing in pain, Jon turned around to give me an "are you serious?" kind of look. My first thought was , "I'm going to have this injury for the rest of my life!" Note, this is the second time I've done this to this ankle.
Remembering that we had vowed "For better or for worse" just a few days before, Jon picked me up to begin the daunting, sweaty, and long trek back to our Ford Edge. I might add that piggy-back rides are not easy for the one walking or the one riding. It took muscle to hang on! But I'm sure Jon got the brunt of the workout. ;)
Long story short, we made it to the car and bought a brace at Walgreens. I religiously iced my ankle several times a day, and was careful not to overdo it. [Note: I'm still recovering after 2.5 months! It's almost healed now, but it was a doosy of a sprain.]
We give West Fork Trail 4 stars! It was easy and pretty and perfect for families or for those wanting a relaxed walk on a well marked path.
Thankfully, our plans for the evening were unhindered by my ankle. A HELICOPTER RIDE OVER SEDONA!
We both refrained from individually researching the statistics of helicopter crashes in Sedona. We chose bravery. However, on the flight back to Charlotte, the lady sitting next to us said, "Don't ever go on a helicopter in Sedona! Or Las Vagas! They crash all the time!" So next time, we might not be so brave...
But check out these photos! Jon used his wide angle lens [10-22mm] for most of these spectacular shots.
For some of the clear photos [without the window scratches and reflections], Jon actually opened the sliding window on the side. You can just imagine my panic when I suddenly felt a cold wind hit my face. I was already gripping Jon's leg terribly hard [being brave is not easy!] so I got all the hot flashes when I thought there was a whole in the helicopter. Goodness. Just a window. Just a window. "JON! Don't do that!!!"
Overall, it was a good experience for us! We rate the Sedona, Arizona, helicopter ride with 5 stars! [if there is wind or if the weather isn't so nice, we recommend you wait until the weather is more stable and sunny. We went around 6:30pm]
And that's a wrap for Friday! Next honeymoon post will be featuring a very famous attraction! Hint: Samsung featured it as a screensaver on their TVs.
