Part 1: On the Road to Marfa. And Hotel Paisano.

I've lived in Tejas since 1982 and this is the first time I've been out to west Texas. Within the first two hours, give or take, the word southwest came to mind. Ah yes, this is the southwest. And it's starting to look like Arizona; duh, naturally this makes sense. You can see the landscape organically morph. Who knew there were real mountains in Texas?! 

Our trip was planned around staying in a teepee at El Cosmico that Mike booked as a surprise. The only teepee available happened to land on Thursday. Our trip basically went in three parts based on where we could get a place to stay along the way. We left on Tuesday morning. So we needed some place to stay for two other nights. Besides glamping at El Cosmico (and it's still pretty close to real-ish camping, in my opinion) some other things of nature we had to do were stop at Balmorhea to jump in Solomon Springs on the way (check) and explore the Ft. Davis mountains and stay at Indian Lodge. Those are on the way out to Marfa but the only availability at the lodge was on Wednesday. We couldn't decide on where to stay on the way to or near Marfa on Tuesday (that wouldn't take us out of the way or be a complete shit hole) so we just went on through, stayed the night in Marfa on Tuesday evening then headed back north Wednesday morning to explore the Ft. Davis area.

We originally thought we would real-camp on Tuesday but at the last minute decided not to because we thought we might freeze. It was supposed to be in the 30's or 40's or something. Turns out, with all the blankets we brought we probably would have been fine. Well, after around 10 hours or so of driving (we made stops for photos, etc.) we got to Marfa and stayed at El Paisano. Amazing hotel with turn of the century, southwest revival design and architecture. I'll talk more about Marfa in my next post in this three part road trip series: 1) On the Road to Marfa, 2) Ft. Davis & Indian Lodge, and 3) Back to Marfa.

But for now here are the photos from our trip out to west Texas and early the next morning heading to Ft. Davis & Indian Lodge. This was really one of the best trips I've ever had, including trips to Europe and the Caribbean. For real.

These next two photos are from Balmorhea at Solomon Springs. I hate to say it but the water itself is more amazing than Barton Springs. It's clear spring water that feels so soft and the visibility is phenomenal. If you were blind folded and dropped into the water there then the blindfold was removed and you opened your eyes to look below, you would think you were in the ocean. 

 

These next two photos are a view from our screened-in porch. Some might think, "awful, white-trashy", but if you know me, you know I like seedy stuff & see everything as art when I'm in the mood. The light was ethereal and the texture of the buildings and little patches of grass was crunchy perfect.

This is on our walk to Cochineal for dinner, a really adorable and delicious upscale yet casual chic restaurant. I'm good at identifying the most subtle of flavors in recipes but the steak that Mike had -- I dunno! It was really perfect. All I know is that there was some sort of smoky grilled thing going on and I was getting the sense of something herbaceous, green, and fresh at the same time. Yowza. The building you see in the distance is part of The Chinati Foundation.

From the Sonoran Desert Through the Mountains and Forests to the Northern Verde Valley in Sedona

I've talked about the magic of the Arizona desert before. It is magic and it is dangerous. It is quiet and like being inside of a living painting. It is the perfect place to space out. The wind just seems to carry off any stress-inducing thoughts and dissipates them into nothingness. Once your head is clear then you have space for creative ideas, pure positivity, and the time and gumption to ponder thoughts until the cows come home.

We started in Fountain Hills and road tripped our way through small towns Black Canyon City, Payson, Pine, and Strawberry (among others) to land in Sedona a few hours later. We hit a couple small snowstorms along the way, expanding on the magic and power of nature. It is humbling.

We went from desert lowland in the valley, etched with cactus and gritty, pebbled sand to climbing mountains, furried green and round. For a stretch it seemed that we were in the real America -- whatever that is but it seemed like a more innocent time and unwithered place where most people had a strength of character and respect for life. The mountains formed a barrier and ruled the roost. The road was narrow and long and the land on either side of that stretch was occasionally dotted with cows.

When we reached high plains we could look out over plateaus in a distance that was immense. It was a history lesson. Traveling higher, we wound through a forest (video to follow in the next blog post) and reached what I know now as the peak in our adventure. It looked and felt like I was literally level to the horizon. An untouched blanket of snow formed a panorama around us and the landscape was similar to that of the Texas Hill Country area.

Eventually, after numerous stops to photograph what caught our eyes and a visit to a wonderful antique shop we landed in Sedona, a 360 degree view of multi-colored and jagged red rock sandstone formations and deep southwestern colors.

The change in the landscape from the Sonoran Desert through the mountains and forest to the Northern Verde Valley in Sedona is powerful.

    

Death in the desert. I love it.

Crazy - a dead Saguaro cactus. Looks like a deflated cartoon character.

A white horse! A freaking magic unicorn high up in the distance! Mustangs! Wild, wild horses. Could drag me away.

El Encanto. Great Mexican in Fountain Hills.

We look forward to seeing Stephanie each time we visit Sofrita, our favorite restaurant in Fountain Hills. Lovely tapas. Stephanie is also a talented singer/songwriter. Check her out at kniffinmusic.com 

Yes, there is a lake in the desert.

Amara Resort and Spa

Clear Creek Trading Company