Traveling Through Sedona Arizona
Evening Sky Tours in Sedona, Arizona
It’s refreshing visiting a town made famous solely for its natural beauty. The majestic red sandstone rocks, towering over the vibrantly lush town built into the evergreen vegetation, makes for a unique and awe-inspiring landscape that we never grew fully used to. “Look over there!” was a constant exclamation as one of us would point at a new majestic glowing rock formation in the distance. The rock formations are everywhere, changing every few minutes with the passing clouds and light. This makes for a trip filled with constant picture-taking and sighing in awe – a constant reminder that you are visiting one of the most beautiful spots on the planet.
During our stay in Sedona, we went on the most beautiful and tranquil hikes every day – many of the hikes are famously referred to as energy vortexes – spots that are said to be filled with swirling spiritual energy helpful for grounding, self-reflection, and meditation, among other things. Shops filled with Native American art and artifacts, crystals, and psychics line the quiet streets. It is a place to revel in nature. This is why, as we searched online, talked to other travelers and locals, and researched fun things to do while visiting Sedona, our interest was sparked when we heard of one of Sedona’s most much-loved activities: star gazing with a professional sky guide.
We chose Evening Sky Tours because they had the most professional and informative website and were by far the most well-reviewed, from people we talked to in person to yelp. The sky tour costs $60 per adult, but because it seemed like such a unique thing to do – and where better than in Sedona, desert land far away from city lights with a sky full of glowing stars? – we decided it was a small price to pay.
We met up with the Evening Sky Tours crew – the friendly and courteous owner, Cliff, and his NASA sky tour guide that night, David, along with a handful of other adults sitting in canvas chairs covered in comfy blankets all facing David and his telescope. David was extremely knowledgeable and funny, chatting to us easily in the dark as we settled in and gazed upwards, and pointing out with his laser pointer the different constellations, showing us how to find them and describing their mythological stories. We spotted at least five shooting stars, Jupiter, (through the telescope we could even see Jupiter’s moons), and the Andromeda galaxy.
The tour lasted about an hour and a half and kept our interest the entire time, leaving us with new knowledge about the night sky, science, and mythology, but most of all, visions of Jupiter’s moons, shooting stars, and distant constellations. Next time you find yourself one of the lucky ones to be visiting Sedona, be sure to take a long hike, watch the setting sun light up the town in a bright red glow, and end the day with Evening Sky Tours. It is not to be missed and in our opinion, was a highlight of the trip.