I maintain that this post is ON topic by the fact that I drove my Insight TO the Jeep rental facility in Sedona. Now with that said, I'll dive into my cleverly disguised off topic discussion.
Yesterday, a friend of mine and myself experienced a truely life-changing experience on a spontaneous day trip to Sedona, AZ. At first, the most exciting part of the trip was the challenge to maximize my mileage on the ~170 mile drive from the Phoenix area to Sedona. When we got to Sedona, however, we had no idea what we were about to experience.
Sedona, for those who don't know, is an area known for old Western movie backdrops. It is desert land with huge explosions of redrock monoliths and mesas that inspire a sense of wonder and visual awe that has few geological equals. It is also home to some amazing off-road trails.
We stopped by Farabee Jeep Rental (located on 89A, about 3 miles from the intersection of 179). After a surprisingly brief introduction of the finer principles of Jeeping, the man handed us a key to a bright and shiny Jeep Wrangler and saw us on our way. Mind you, the combined off-road experience between myself and my friend at that moment equaled exactly zero. We were expecting a lengthy safety lesson and lots of warnings of where NOT to go, lest we injure ourselves. Instead, we were waved off with nothing but encouraging words to go have fun and push our limits. He even through a cooler with an ice bag in the back so we could pack a lunch.
We followed the map he gave us to the first trail head just down the street. This was supposed to be the "easy" trail. The Easy Trail (aka Soldier's Pass) began with an "obstacle" that was roughly the size of the Catskill Mountains. This was to keep the non-off road equipped vehicles from accidentally wondering onto the path. After we scaled the Catskills, and only because we saw the Jeep in front of us do it successfully, the trail evolved into the second most fun I've ever had inside a vehicle (the first being driving my Insight, of course). We bounced around like popcorn and defied every rule I had learned about material strengths from my engineering classes in school. But somehow the Jeep survived surmounting obstacles that no sane person would believe could be done by any vehicle.
After the Easy Trail, we found our way to the Flipping Ridiculous Trail (aka Broken Arrow). In the 2 1/2 hours it took to get from the beginning to the end, I do not believe the Jeep was ever horizontal. Nor were any of the 4 wheels ever on the same geographical plane with each other. We were bounced, jostled, jirrated, and once, I think we were flying. The experience is best described as twice as thrilling as the most gut-twirling roller coaster you've ever been on.
For anyone that lives in the Phoenix area or anywheres near Sedona, AZ, this is an experience you should not live without for much longer. I hope you enjoyed my little anecdote as much as I enjoyed reflecting upon my experience yesterday. If anyone wants any specific details, feel free to contact me.
Enjoy!
Yesterday, a friend of mine and myself experienced a truely life-changing experience on a spontaneous day trip to Sedona, AZ. At first, the most exciting part of the trip was the challenge to maximize my mileage on the ~170 mile drive from the Phoenix area to Sedona. When we got to Sedona, however, we had no idea what we were about to experience.
Sedona, for those who don't know, is an area known for old Western movie backdrops. It is desert land with huge explosions of redrock monoliths and mesas that inspire a sense of wonder and visual awe that has few geological equals. It is also home to some amazing off-road trails.
We stopped by Farabee Jeep Rental (located on 89A, about 3 miles from the intersection of 179). After a surprisingly brief introduction of the finer principles of Jeeping, the man handed us a key to a bright and shiny Jeep Wrangler and saw us on our way. Mind you, the combined off-road experience between myself and my friend at that moment equaled exactly zero. We were expecting a lengthy safety lesson and lots of warnings of where NOT to go, lest we injure ourselves. Instead, we were waved off with nothing but encouraging words to go have fun and push our limits. He even through a cooler with an ice bag in the back so we could pack a lunch.
We followed the map he gave us to the first trail head just down the street. This was supposed to be the "easy" trail. The Easy Trail (aka Soldier's Pass) began with an "obstacle" that was roughly the size of the Catskill Mountains. This was to keep the non-off road equipped vehicles from accidentally wondering onto the path. After we scaled the Catskills, and only because we saw the Jeep in front of us do it successfully, the trail evolved into the second most fun I've ever had inside a vehicle (the first being driving my Insight, of course). We bounced around like popcorn and defied every rule I had learned about material strengths from my engineering classes in school. But somehow the Jeep survived surmounting obstacles that no sane person would believe could be done by any vehicle.
After the Easy Trail, we found our way to the Flipping Ridiculous Trail (aka Broken Arrow). In the 2 1/2 hours it took to get from the beginning to the end, I do not believe the Jeep was ever horizontal. Nor were any of the 4 wheels ever on the same geographical plane with each other. We were bounced, jostled, jirrated, and once, I think we were flying. The experience is best described as twice as thrilling as the most gut-twirling roller coaster you've ever been on.
For anyone that lives in the Phoenix area or anywheres near Sedona, AZ, this is an experience you should not live without for much longer. I hope you enjoyed my little anecdote as much as I enjoyed reflecting upon my experience yesterday. If anyone wants any specific details, feel free to contact me.
Enjoy!
