There IS Fall in Arizona!

You just have to find it.

Our anniversary surprise #2 was heading up to Sedona for some hiking and camping. The camping part kind of leaked out when I was telling Ben a story but I had to tell him eventually so he could help pack and make sure we had all the right stuff (even though we still forgot a bunch of stuff). I just didn't tell him where we were headed.

When we got into Sedona it was SO crowded. I've never seen that many people in such a small area. We tried to just keep driving until there was less people but it was very difficult. I had forgotten that it was the end of Fall Break for everyone... plus it was a Saturday

Sedona is so amazingly beautiful in the Fall. The weather is perfect and the colors are so pretty and Fall-like. We found a hike to go on but then didn't end up staying on the trail. Ben and I are more of explorers than trail followers... plus we don't like to follow other people on trails or feel like we're being followed. So instead we explored the creek and hopped on rocks.

I'm laughing really hard in this picture because we had to put the camera on a timer to get both of us in the shot. I sat on the rock while Ben got the camera ready and on his way over to me he slipped in the water and disappeared for a few seconds behind a different large rock.

After exploring the canyon we needed to go find a place to camp and knew of only one area close by that didn't make us pay a fee. It was just past Jarome on the top of Mingus Mountain. It was dark when we set up so we didn't realize how awesome it was until the morning.

From our campsite we only had to walk a little ways to see off the side of the mountain. Then we were driving out and got a little lost but ended up finding this launch pad for hang gliders.

All in all I'd say it was a great weekend... just not nearly long enough